what a face

Today Pauly and I were out on a walk. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm! We were gone about a half hour and when we got back and before we went in the house I decided to let Pauly play in the back yard a little to let out some energy since on the walk all he does is play with a stick I find on the side of the road, beat Daphnie when I'm not looking with the stick and ride in the stroller.

While we were in the backyard I decided to call Jodi and touch base for the day like I always do. Obviously I wasn't playing close enough attention to my boy because he came to me with a black dirt like substance dripping out of his mouth as if he was chewing on an oreo. Well since I knew we didn't bring out any oreos (nor do I ever buy them) I knew he must of took a mouth full of dirt and boy was he enjoying it. Just crunching away. I was laughing so hard with Jodi I was crying! I just kept taking my hand trying to clear it out of his mouth.

Once we got in the house I couldn't help but take this picture! I guess mama better pay a little more attention next time... Ha

Dapher Doo!!

Our family pet is a creamy beige colored cocker spaniel named Daphnie. Currently she wears a purple collar with her little identification charms. She gets her grooming from her mommy (me) and I always love to leave a little tuft of hair on top of her head to give her even more personality then she already has.

I got Daphnie as a gift from my mom for my 21st birthday. At the time I was living by myself in a tiny little apartment so it was wonderful to have a little friend. Daphnie is 6 years old. She loves chasing squirrels, going for walks and playing with her boy.

Pauly loves her to pieces and she puts up with him and I think she loves him too! He always tries to sit on her so in some little part of his brain he think she is a bench. It is pretty funny. He can be pretty hard on her trying to pull her ears and stuff but she puts up with it and is always gentle towards him. She loves kids so much!

Here are some picks of our baby girl we love so much. Enjoy!!

Black and White

A couple of weeks ago I sent my mom a picture of black and white bedding simply hinting to her that if she had a little bit of time on her hands she could make me something like it.

I have been dreaming of a black and white master suite. All the drama and romance that a black and white suite could hold takes my breathe away just thinking about it. So today our little conversation came up again and she told me about the bedding she wouldn't mind me working on for her (all of this is all just our style of joking back and forth of course) But I decided to Google some images that were similar to what I'm looking for - just for you mom, I mean so you can get a better idea of what I'm thinking. teee heee!

Check these out - tell me which one is your favorite!

Nicholas Sparks

I fell in love with Nicholas Sparks novels way back (okay not that far back I'm only 27) as a senior in high school when I first read - Message in a Bottle. I had borrowed it from the Library and was sitting up all night in my room reading it. When the end came and I found out that Garrett Blake got... well I won't ruin it for you - my mom found me sobbing in my bedroom.

Next, I read The Notebook and The Wedding - what amazing little page turners! Right now, I am reading The Choice. I actually have got a little behind so I need to catch up because I know I'm missing out :)

I also pick them up at the thrift store when ever I find one I don't have (hardback only :)! This past week I finally found The Wedding which is one of my top picks so far!

If you haven't invested some time into a good romantic saga lately - go pick up a Nicholas Sparks book TODAY! You won't regret it!

Click here for his official website and below are pictures of I think just about all of his book covers. For me, the covers are what helps suck you in to his beautiful stories!

Jill McDonald Design

So I was googling around just now and ran on to the coolest graphic artist Jill McDonald. Jill is national recognized and extremely talented. Her art is mostly found designed for kids from bedding, wall art, cards, and books.

Her work can be found from teen bedding at Target to illustrations in Halmark Cards and Gift Wrap. I fell completely in love with the colorful whimsy that her style holds.

I bet a lot of you will recognize her designs. I know I did - from her work she has done with Land of Nod but I just didn't take the time before to look into this awesome unique talented artist, Jill McDonald.

Visit her website here. Visit her blog here

Following is just a glimpse of her designs :) Enjoy!

To My Sweet...

Carti Girl - Good Night

Macarti Rae your Eyes Shine Bright!

Twinkle Twinkle little Light.

Bless your Heart and Lay your Head.

Cuddle up, It's time for Bed.

Fold your Hands, Don't make a Peep.

May the Lord Bless and Keep.

Tomorrow is a Brand New Day,

My Precious little Carti Rae.

Close your Eyes, Don't make a Sound.

Dream a Dream that's Heaven Bound.

Little one I Love You So,

From your Curls Down to your Toe.

Good Night, Good Night my little one.

Tomorrow we'll have lots of Fun!

Always Always Forever More,

Carti Girl I shall Adore!

Love, Aunt Sam

Kitchen Tips and Tricks

From The F.U.N place:

Go check it out! Lots of fun tips and tricks!


Kitchen

For more effective dish washing, add a few tablespoons of vinegar along with the dish washing detergent when washing dishes. The vinegar cuts the grease and leaves dishes sparkling.

To clean up spills in your oven, sprinkle the spills immediately with salt. When the oven has cooled, brush away the burnt-on food with a damp sponge.

To disinfect smelly sponges, wash sponge thoroughly, then microwave it while it is wet, for a short period. When you see steam from the sponge, the bacteria in the sponge will be dead. Remove carefully, it will be hot! Wash the sponge thoroughly before use. **Make sure the sponge has no metal components!**

To remove hard-water and lime build-up in a teapot or kettle, pour in two cups of vinegar and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 10 minutes, then rinse well.

To remove mineral deposits in a tea pot or burnt spots on a coffee pot, put some ice cubes, cut-up lemon, and salt with a tad water and swish around and let sit overnight.

To whiten an old stained sink , poor a half cup of salt in it and then scrub it with a lemon. Let it stand for a few minutes and rinse.

To remove skid marks on linoleum rub the spot with toothpaste before washing the floor.

To keep your plastic containers from getting stained from tomato based foods, rub the inside with vegetable oil before placing the food in the container.

Kitchen surfaces: Mix in spray bottle, 1 part ammonia to 3 parts water. Or try diluted bleach solution in a spray bottle. It will remove stains AND disinfect.

Removing kitchen and food odors: Soak pure vanilla on a cotton ball and place in a saucer. Put the saucer in the car or refrigerator to remove odors. Keep cotton ball out of reach of children as it contains some alcohol.

Odor producing mold and bacteria in garbage cans: sprinkle 1/2 cup Borax in the bottom of the garbage can.

Cleaning coffee maker: Pour straight vinegar into it as if you are making the coffee, no filter is need. Turn coffee maker on as if you were making a pot of coffee. Repeat this with a new batch of vinegar until it runs clear of calcium deposits.

My Saturday Night

I, tonight, am home alone... with Pauly, Daphnie and myself. I had a good day today - we had our monthly Blast from the Past play date and I am so glad we started doing that. Tonight, unlike last night, I hope is relaxing and quiet... Ben has a friend in from Portland, his best friend Raul and the boys are out on the town. I have Enchanted from Netflix and I'm not sure if I'll get to it. I've been working a lot on my her household blog. I also wanted to start making a weekly calender for us that would encompass cleaning, outings and regular scheduling items. We'll see how much I'll really get done as Saturday Night Live is on tonight and loves me some SNL plus my toes could use a pedi... oooh that sounds fab!

My toddler says "No!" to me!

So lately my little one has been picking up on that brutal word "NO!" Every time he says it the hair stands up on the back of my neck. This kid is active, smart and persistent. He is constantly getting up on the dining room chairs, into the stereo/dvd player and grabbing any electronic (remote, phone or plug-in) and of course what do I say... "Pauly, NO!" Where do you think he gets it lady? I take him away from the situation and he is right back in it 2 seconds later! Very busy little guy! Then again I'm back with, "I just told you NO-Pauly!". I"m sure he heard is at least 100 times a day from me. How can I expect him not to say it if I can't stop saying it.

So, I've been really trying to think about what I'm saying and try and be positive when I say it... For example if he is getting into something he shouldn't then I try and remember to say... "Let's play over here with these books." - or in some way leave out words like don't, no, not and so on. I think it is a good thing that he understands yes and no just for basic communicating skills and the realization of his separate little being but, I appreciate better manners other than just "NO!" all the time which is where it seems like we're headed soon. I know that he likes that he can actually say the word correctly for one thing - just like when he says "mama or dada" and for sure he likes the sense of power and making a decision for himself.

So instead I'm trying to teach Pauly to say "No, thank you" when he finds it necessary to disagree or decline. We'll keep working on this and I'm sure there will always be something we are working on until the day he is ready to go off to college. Hopefully he turns out right! ;0)

4th File 4th Picture

My friend Krista tagged me for this game. The way I understand it is your supposed to go to your picture file on your computer go to the 4th file within the files and then on the 4th file go to the 4th picture.

This is a picture that I took - I think Pauly was about 3 or 4 months old. He is so darn cute.

Martha Stewart Hostess Quiz

Are you a good hostess... Martha Stewart has a quiz you can take... click here. Have Fun!

Here is what mine said...

A 4 yr old's wisdom

I wanted to share with everyone something my brother-in-law Brian wrote up about his daughter Bailey (my niece) in his notes on facebook yesterday. I immediately had to ask if I could share with my blog readers.

I hope that it speaks to you the way it did me.

Once again I find myself late at night reminiscing and actually in this case recalling events from just days ago. Things are pretty busy around a ranch at calving time feed, check,tag,record,mend fence..... Well the other day we had to pull a baby in. It's mother rejected it. The only two around here, that was excited about this little event; was Bailey and Birch.(my four year old girl and my two year old boy.) Bailey could not wait to go out and help me feed little "Kobe" as we now call him. So I mixed up a bottle and headed out with her in tow. Her eyes were dancing as she checked him out her facial expressions were that of pure excitement and joy. She said things like he is "so cute" and "so perfect." She also asked about his mommy and I explained how his mommy didn't like him and that was just not good enough for her. But that little moment of confusion didn't detract from the rest of the time as she ran with Kobe and became good friends with him.As we made our way back from the barn across the barnyard. I was holding her little hand in mine and she was on cloud nine she was so full of energy. But very quite she suddenly stopped looked up at me and uttered words that stopped this heart hardened cowboy dead in his tracks and brought him to a slump on the ground in the barnyard. "Dad I love you and I don't want you to die" WOW! As i caught my breath and my composure; i found myself asking God for the words to explain this thing she had brought up. I could have just brushed it off or gave her a token proud cowboy response that "I wouldn't die." But i felt a moment like this deserved attention and a honest conversation. However the tears were running down my face and I could hardly breath. Me in my cowboy hat, boots, spurs, sitting in the barnyard a crying mess with a four year old girls words to blame and her ears waiting for a response.I told her daddy is going die someday honey but when i do I'm going to see Jesus and live with him. And someday you can come and live with us. This little girl looked at me smiled and said to me exactly what i and everyone needs to be reminded of. She said "Dad Jesus Loves us all of us." Ok by now I'm not in tears I'm an absolute wreck!! I've never cried so hard in my life as I set there and she ran to the yard to play on the swing God began to speak to me. Basically no theologian no preacher, religious organization, author, or professor. Could have spoke as profound truth as I had just been witness. If only we as adults could disentangle our minds from this worlds; theology, dogma, worries, political correctness, and just see God and trust him like a child does. If we could keep our doctrine so simplified in our minds that it is as simple as three words. And if we could be as joyful as a four year old little girl on a warm winters day with her daddy. My prayer is that all would come to know and trust that Jesus loves us.

By: Brian B.

Mark 10:15 Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.Romans5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Bring in the Crops!

Our message this last Sunday was about standing on the sidelines or getting in to play ball.

Are you going to plant the seed so that it can grow or are you going to just let the opportunity pass you by. I have a little bit of hard time with this at first but when the opportunity arises I am excited to tell a friend or acquaintance about Jesus. I wouldn't say I'm the best at it and the whole time I'm always searching for the right verses and thoughts and just praying that the Lord gives me the words to make it a easier to understand and not as intimidating as it can seem to an unbeliever.

I do have a friend who knows about Christ - but she just hasn't caught the message quite yet about what he has done for her and what he can continue to do in her life if she is to turn her life over to him completely. I do get frustrated a little as she is such a little light of her own and I know she would be such a great little light for Christ also! It isn't my timing and I've done my part with this so I will just sit back, continue to do what I have been and that is show her through my words and example and maybe someday she'll accept Christ as her Savior.

We are his and only we can choose to use our fruits from him for good or just sit on the sidelines.

My mom and dad raised us girls to always shine for Christ and always stand up for what we believe in. That is something I'm so thankful for. This is something I was confident in doing even when I was very young. My parents are great examples of this as my mom has just the right words and tone to remind you that HE is always there and how much he loves you and to rely on him. As my dad is a recognized messenger to everyone he is around and with him there is no hesitation when it comes to shareing the ultimate gift of Grace. He is really approachable and has a kind way of speaking.

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Ephesians 2:3-5

3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful naturea and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

HGTV: Dream Home

So... Just wanted to inform you all I may be moving to Sonoma, California soon! I know mom is like what? Sonomoa! Well... don't get upset too soon... I have been applying every day at HGTV.com for their 2009 Dream Home Giveaway and I intend to win! I'm telling you it is exactly my Dream House! Designed with elements in this house that I have only "dreamed" about! I've always wanted like the wrap around patio and a cozy colorful yet classy interior. A sunny nook, double oven (you know things I'm sure we all dream about) oooooh la la!

I've been warning Ben off and on to get ready to move and I'm not sure that he is quite there yet but I told him if I win this I'll move there with Pauly and you'll have to come visit win you can. Look at these pics of the Dream Home and tell me if you wouldn't make the same decision! Sonoma is wine country and Ben wants to be a cheese maker (well he did last week any way - he is just being silly) but really everyone knows wine and cheese are the best combination. See it is meant to be. Just so you know you are all invited to the House Warming Party! :)

Here are my favorite pics...

The HGTV Dream Home 2009

The Beautiful Blue Sun Room!

The Classy Formal Dining Room!

The Bold and Beautiful Kitchen (2 islands!)

The Breakfast Nook... "Crepes anyone?"

The TV Room! "I'm watching Grey's Anatomy, Ben!"

Yes ma... this is where you would stay...

The Perfect Guest Bedroom!

A room for my boy!

Can't you just imagine folding clothes in here.... ahhhhh!

The Utility Room!

And last but certainly not least... the Master Bedroom... See I told you it was Perfect!