mary poppins style

yesterday i had some time to clean up my studio & get ready for the new year. well, i started cleaning anyway, but then i found myself day dreaming about a new design, so i ended up spending the rest of hudson's precious naptime (!) playing around with the new idea.

i know it's only january, not really close to spring, yet. maybe it's the rainy, grey days we've been having lately that have made me want a bright, fun umbrella!
anyhow, this is what was floating around in my head...

i had been thinking up an umbrella design for awhile, & then the combo of red/pink with the black polkas hit me, & voila! i just loooove this fabric. i'm thinking of what fun, bold curtains it would make (hint, hint - mom!).

happy almost new year :)

warning

i need to warn you. i think i'm going to keep this background for awhile. yep, i think i'm going to do it. i just love the little birds & the fun trees. birds aren't just for christmas, & the colors are really winter-y, don't you think???
if you can pretend there aren't christmas ornaments on the tree branches, i can too, okay?

just so you know, this is coming from the girl who one year wore her christmas sweater to school in JANUARY! the thing was that i got this super cool sweater for christmas (AND it was from m.a. sims - you tyler people!) & i just couldn't wait another w h o l e year to show off it's coolness @ school!!! so yeah, i wore it. i thought my long hair covered the most incriminating evidence - the huge christmas tree on the back, but i think some people may possibly have noticed. wish i could say this was in the second grade or something, but i really think it might have been high school! hee hee!!!

friendly, crafty gifts

the christmas baking bug bit me yesterday, & i suddenly had to bake some snowball cookies asap. it was kind of crazy with hudson underfoot, but they turned out pretty good & i didn't pull any of my hair out:)

i meant to make these before a lot of our friends went out of town, but never quite got to it! also, in my craziest of crafty christmas dreams, i would have liked to send a little bag to all of our friends, even out of town (yeah right, but a girl can dream!). so if you didn't get one of these bags from us, know that i really meant to get you one - & it's also the thought that counts, right??!!!

while wondering how i could package them, i scrounged around the kitchen & i realized we had some left-over bags & ribbon from last christmas - score!!!

we're taking them around to neighbors this afternoon when clint gets home. as i told my sister, really it's just a sad excuse to show off hudson in his cute christmas shirt!!! heehee! lots of our neighbors are older & will appreciate the 19month old cuteness.

okay, i'm off to wrap gifts. hud & i just got back from shopping for clint. every year clint & i seem to do a fabulous job of waiting until the last minute to decide how much we have to spend on each other, which always puts us scurrying around for stocking stuffers & the like. the only unfair thing being that ONE of us has to tote hudson around while doing it!!!! i have a feeling i'm getting some good stuff, though, so i'm letting my hubby off the hook :)

**today i recommend "new soul" radio for your pandora listening pleasure.

"blessed is the man

who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked

or stand in the way of sinners

or sit in the seat of mockers.

but his delight is in the law of the lord,

and on his law he meditates day & night.

he is like a tree planted by streams of water,

which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither.

whatever he does prospers."

ancient hebrew words translated to english & found in psalm 1.

i've really enjoyed a book i borrowed from a friend a few months ago (j - i really need to get this back to you!) called "celtic daily prayers" from the northumbria community in northern england. i've GOT to order it from amazon, so i can get it back to it's owner!!! it's a liturgical type book, which is refreshing & different for me since i didn't grow up with much formality in our church setting. there's a morning, noontime, & nightly prayer that you basically end up memorizing (not that i've done that yet!) & then you have set bible readings (ot, psalms, & nt) & a devo-type part for each day of the year. you also have a reading/meditation for each day of the month.

it provides a nice rhythm, & i find it so helpful when i know/want to connect with the real purpose of life, with God, but can't seem to get there. do you feel me??!

i'd love to end up doing the morning, noontime, & nightly prayer, but right now we do the morning one sometime through out the day - usually @ lunch. i give hudson some finger foods & then read everything out loud to him. i didn't think he even noticed until i started making hand motions to one of the prayers & he started mimicing me! so cute :) also, he randomly started saying "amen" a lot, so i think he picked that up, too.

anyway, wanted to share it with you guys. like i said, i find it such a nice way to connect in a real way with God & the truth of life & i love that i can do it with hudson awake b/c let's face it - mama just can't get up any earlier!!! and i decided i'm not feeling bad about that anymore - i need my beauty rest!!! haha!

***oh, & today i recommend "sufjan stevens (holiday)" for your pandora listenings :)

slumdog millionaire

d-a-t-e. that spells date & clint & i got one tonight! i know, it's totally a christmas miracle :) dana & i are trading my crafty help for her babysitting skills - awesome deal. anyway, clint heard about this movie & surprised me, saying "trust me, i'll pick out the movie", which really did take a leap of faith, as this is the same guy that talked me into "king kong" & "there will be blood" - the two ABSOLUTE WORST movies of all time!!!!!!!!!

part of the reason i let him pick was because it meant i had to do no planning, which was a further blessing to me (because you know my brain is already full with crafty christmas!) & i'm so glad i did because it was a fabulous pick. really.

it's part india story, part love story, a little about human trafficing... & i'll leave it @ that. i'm just saying if you want a non-hollywood cheese-ola or shoot em up kinda flick that will really make you think & consider your own story & your own place in this world - this one's for you!

oh, & if you don't have a babysitter lined up anytime soon, we just saw 2 really great indies from blockbusters -

fugitive pieces (BEAUTIFUL story of redemption)

diving bell & the butterfly (again, redemption - must be a theme in our lives...hmmm)

i highly recommend these if you're into indy stuff. i must put a disclaimer here, though - these do have some "words" & a tiny bit of n*dity, but not in a hollywood sense @ all. email if you want more info.

do tell me if you see any of these - i want to hear your thoughts!

oh & i didn't get those banana breads baked! i'm sure you were on the edge of your seat wondering! (thank you to my fav bakery for having something similar for $4 each!) & i noticed that i wrote on friday that i was "busy", but the "good kind of busy" - hahaha. what was i thinking? i did have a busy-breakdown yesterday - oops!

happy christmas week, guys!

have myself a crafty little christmas

it's gotten ridiculous. i have waaaaay more crafty projects than i can possibly finish! everyday i seem to think of a new idea or i get inspired @ the store getting supplies for the first project & suddenly my basket is full! today it happened @ joann's (it didn't help that there was a sale).

hudson & i were browsing fabrics, looking for flannel for stockings i'm going to make (yes, i know it's less than a week away from christmas & that i'm already working on the lap quilt kit that i got @ the houston quilt show - don't remind me!) & suddenly i spotted this darling little christmas tree! i thought about the mini-trees johnna & i had when we were little & how fun it was to have a little tree in your own room, & well before i knew it this little thing was in my cart along with these...




we already had a mini strand of lights & some tiny wooden ornaments, so i put it all together & voila!!!

and here it is in his room...


could you just die from the cute-ness??? yeah me, too!! hudson's eyes totally lit up when he saw it! he was so amazed & that made it the best $8 i've spent in a while :)

and while i was i was dreaming about hudson's new mini-tree, these jumped out @ me & screamed, "paint us white & then add glitter!".



i said "okay!", & this is how they turned out...





glitterati! this project was super inexpensive & fast/easy-peasy. the snowflakes were only $1, but i must admit that i did splurge & buy the slightly more $$ glitter - it really does sparkle more.
in addition to all of this, i have 2 canvases that i want to paint to go with a photo collage we're putting up in our den wall. that's right, the harps are finally hanging things on the wall after 15 months of living here!!! oh, & dana's coming saturday so i can help her with some of her christmas crafty ventures, & i need to bake 5 loaves of pumpkin & banana bread for church on sunday!!! it's busy, but a good kind of busy - all things that give me life, you know what i mean?

hope you have some fun this christmas week, too :)

wednesday afternoon

sitting here flipping through MS holiday mag (yes, it's too late for this year, but she seriously has such great ideas!), sipping coffee, & listening to pandora.com. now am i the last to hear of this fabulous site??? apparently so - the transition from young to slightly old really is a tough one! i'm becoming my mom in so many ways lately - this is just one. it's like when she tries to tell me about the new technology she's just heard about that's been in existence for years, or when she tells me about new celeb gossip that i'm pretty sure is months old (it's okay, mom - news travels slow in the hill country!). oh, well - becoming my mom for me, is not such a bad thing :) it's just happening so fast these days...

so the song that was just on was the scientist (yes, coldplay), & it ushered me into a moment that was utterly perfect - coffee, martha, looking out the wreath-flanked window to the cold(ish) outdoors with what may be the most perfect song ever. it was a great moment - i actually forgot about all that laundry, my sicko-dirty floors, & the order i need to finish up (sorry, hannah!). hmmmm. those are divine moments!

so back to pandora.com - seriously check it out if you're slightly old like me & haven't been there yet! i recommend a "quick mix" of the scientist, hillsong united, ingrid michaelson, & coldplay (just to make sure you get enough piano & chris martin, of course!). oh, & why didn't anyone tell me about snowpatrol??!

oh! sometimes you can't make it on your own is coming on! a mix of indie + coldplay + u2?? goodness.

hope the holiday spirit hits you, too :)

rudolph

hudson the red-nosed reindeer. yep, that's our red-nosed son! he did that just in time for the christmas picture we were supposed to take @ the wedding on saturday - awesome timing :) alas, we dug up some old pics & the christmas cards were sent out anyway, though he did have a big bruise on his forehead in those pics, but i thought it was less noticable than this red nose!! life with a boy, i suppose.

and here's the little stinker with the blue bowl that he insisted on carrying around with him all day today (yes, even while running our errands!?!)...


and here we were getting ready for those errands...

to do list

harp weekend to do list...

*get xmas tree (every year we say we're getting it early & every year it's suddenly december 13th & we don't have it!)

*get more lights (white with green wire)

*decorate outside + wreathes

*fold laundry (that darn laundry fairy did not come last night!!)

*finish grandparents crafty christmas gift (i'll show you pics later)

*decorate tree

*go to wedding (yaaay!)

*get decent pic @ wedding for christmas card!!!

*order christmas cards

*shop for a few more gifts

*wrap all family gifts for sending on monday

*oh yeah, & church!!!

whew! stay tuned to see if we can accomplish it all & still be coherent for next week!!!!!!!! how is it that the holidays end up being so busy?????

case of the missing o

for the past 2 days, i've come into hudson's room after nap time & the "o" above the crib is gone! it's off the wall & dropped down behind the crib with various socks & small stuffed animals. veeeerrrrry curious! it's never another letter - just the "o". hmmm. i don't know if he's throwing things up there to knock it down?? i dont' think a sock would do it, or even a stuffed animal.

hmmm. very curious indeed.

snow in houston?

it snowed yesterday!!! just a few little flutters of white, cotton-y goodness, but it was beautiful! it was a gift to we poor houstonians; we that suffer in the hot humidity & yearn for that spirit of christmas!

it was an especially blessed event for me in this week as i feel as though i've recently finished a marathon of sewing, trunk show, travels, & sickie children! other causes for celebration this week have been the joy of the starbucks espresso truffle - the perfect concoction of thick, chocolately goodness + rich coffee & yummilicous whip cream (AND it's already made with nonfat milk!!).

hudson has been rejoicing in aunt jen's chex mix that was sent home with us from dallas, where we were last sunday for clint's company christmas party. the child would eat it morning, noon, & night if he could! this is especially funny because he's usually uber-picky for weeks after a stomach bug. and clint, what has he been up to? fire building last night - oh, so nice & i'm sure he will relish in the new office tonight (it is new, right??!).

i'm hoping things can continue to slow down & let me simmer in them as we approach christmas. i just hate to rush through the holidays, only to be left in the cold winter of january. (okay, that was totally dramatic & anyway it won't be cold here & i DO have a certain big birthday in january, so i actually have things to look forward to, but you know what i mean!!!) i just want to be able to enjoy, celebrate, & have time to be here in this holiday moment!

trunk show fun

so the show was a success! despite the chaos of the beginning of the week (read post below!), everything managed to come together & it was wonderful :)
props to my mamacita for coming with me. every designer needs an assistant, huh??! haha! seriously, we had so much fun together & i couldn't have done it with out her!
and thanks to everyone who came out! it was sooo fun to see everyone - what a great excuse to catch up!


getting organized to pack up...


@ the store, getting things together...




finished product...








kathy, mom, & connie (who helped me immensely!! thank you!)



i had so much fun chatting it up with friends who came! here i am with a good friend from college. kim's baby girl is due in december, so she had fun shopping!!


so as you can see, i have much more inventory now! i've got some new designs that are super fun. AND i now have the following sizes...

0-3m gowns
3-6m gowns
3-6m onesies (long & short sleeve)
6-12m onesies (long & short sleeve)
18-24m tshirts (long & short sleeve)
2T tshirts (long sleeve - working on short!!)
***thinking of doing some larger sizes, too - what do you think????!

AND matching bibs, hats (0-6m adjustable), & larger blankie-burps!

i'm working on getting all of this up on my site, but if you need something before, let me know.

needless to say, i was a bit tired last night when we got home, though i can't really complain since mom had to then drive 4 more hours back home :(. the craziness of this week ended pretty nicely though with a movie by the fire(YES, it was finally cold enough to build one here!). props to my sweet hubby who built the fire & got the movie... oh, yeah AND took care of the little guy for 2 days so i could go! i'm a lucky gal.


happy weekend to all!

lessons from a sickie child

we brought several things home with us from thanksgiving this year - a tickle me elmo from mimi, a super cute brown fleece & matching hat & gloves set from memaw, a fun piano toy from the kids' christmas swap, & a nasty stomach bug from kaegan! the virus went through our family like the plague & this poor little guy is sicker than he's ever been in his 18 months of life. you'll remember the "puke fest" from last spring? yeah, he lost his lunch regularly over several months last spring, but then he'd go on about his merry way, acting just the same.

not so this time.

he's so puny it's breaking my heart. he's subsisting off of cracker bits (only if i actually put them in his mouth!) & pedialyte (again, only if i stick the cup in his mouth). all he wants to do is have me hold him & watch einstein over & over & over. poor baby! thank goodness mimi bought us another baby einstein when she was here last, so we at least have a 3 dvd rotation :) we're so hoping to avoid the hospital, so if he doesn't eat much today, we'll probably be setting alarms periodically tonight to wake him & get him to eat/drink. fun times!

& yes, if you're wondering - i do have my trunk show THIS thursday, & YES, this sickness is putting a bit of a damper on all of the loose ends i need to tie up. i'm trying not to stress about it :) reading this post last week (& really all of her posts - she's so darn cute!) reminded me of the real wisdom in being thankful in all circumstance & like it or not, i'm getting a great opportunity to live it out right now!

one of my favorite historic people is corrie ten boom & one of my fav stories of hers is the one about her & her sister's discovery of the flea infestation in their concentration camp room's mattresses. they were both horrified, but her sister reminded them to be thankful for all things (yeah, right! i would have been tempted to hit my sister at that point!! johnna - you know it's true!). so corrie begrudgingly gave in, with what i imagine included a roll of the eyes. later they discovered that their little room of women was afforded much freedom as the guards refused to enter because of the fleas! crazy story, huh?! and while i've yet to have the faith of corrie's sister (!), i am trying to copy it in the smallest of ways while i'm enduring this week with sickie hud + a long to do list.

anyway, this sickness is reminding me that life isn't just about ME, darn it!

well, here's to hoping you have a healthy & thankful week :)