I Heart Faces: Anything But A Face!

Don't you love my little ballerina? I know I do. Eden was enthralled with her tutu...maybe we will have a little ballet baby on our hands...

Since one of my goals is to "put myself out there" so to speak with photography, I decided to stop watching people enter I Heart Faces challenges, and just do it! Take that New Years Resolutions! 

Be sure to check out the other entries. They are stunning. 

Announcing a Baby

Now that I think all of Eden's birth announcements have FINALLY reached their destinations, I am here to share them with all of you! 

We love, love, love how these turned out. The design fit our personalities and likes perfectly. I had a few people ask me if I designed them myself...while that is extremely flattering I absolutely do not have that kind of talent whatsoever. Like, not even a little bit. Enter my friend, Megan Ward with Red Pearl Designs. 

I have known Megan for many, many years and have had the opportunity to watch her passion for graphic design grow. This girl has got some serious talent. I knew she would be my go to designer, not just because she is a friend, but because I admire her work. Oh, and it doesn't hurt that she offers to address and mail them out as well if you so choose. I did not do this and now I am kicking myself. Literally. I don't know why I thought that as a new mom I would happen to find the time to do all of it. So, to those that received their announcement, sorry my baby was halfway to her first birthday (okay that's untrue) before you found yours in the mail. 

The process itself was simple. I sent her in a photo from our newborn photo shoot (yep, never did share those with you...I am terrible) with KC Photography, told her a bit about what I wanted (actually I think I said something along the lines of, you know my taste, just look at my blog, I trust you), gave her any extra info she needed and voila! Announcements were designed and sent to me at lightening speed. Oh and might I mention that this all occurred during the holidays so she was just a tad slammed with other orders. All this to say, if you need a graphic designer, go to Megan. I wouldn't recommend her if I didn't love her work. 

And now, what you all have been waiting for...the announcements!

Oh and apologies for the fact that I could NOT get a decently lit photo of the announcements, therefore I am not doing them any justice at all. Hopefully you still get the idea that these are super lovely and fantastic. 

Feel free to comment if you have something to announce...anything really...but extra points if it's a baby because we like babies. A lot. And then, go visit Megan, and look through all of her beautiful work. I triple dog dare you.

Oh and I kinda lied. Megan actually saw a preview of my newborn photo shoot and felt inspired and designed one on the spot. It was like, "BAM!" Really she was just having fun designing and gave me every opportunity to pick another photo of my choosing and change the design, but honestly, we didn't want to change one thing. Alright, now that I got that off of my chest...off to enjoy the rest of my Monday. 

A Walk On The Red Carpet

Somebody pinch me (no honey, this is not literal so please don't)....I am feeling more famous than all those stars at the Oscars right now. My girl Ashley (she doesn't know she is my girl so hopefully I don't creep her out too much) mentioned ME in her blog today.

I. KNOW.

Exciting right?

So, I have actually mentioned her before in this post where I mentioned how she inspired me quite a lot. Well, after a few days of thinking that I should probably tell her how inspiring her "A Day in the Life" posts are to me I decided to get my big girl panties on and just do it. I have this semi nervous breakdown whenever I am going to be social, and when approaching a blogger who is up there with the other big named blogs, well let's just say there may be a bit of sweating involved. I did it though. Wow, look at me all big and courageous. Anyway, if you need further proof that she is UH-MAZING just look at her daughter's nursery. 

I wouldn't mind living here. I am sure I could get used to sleeping in a crib. Oh also, she used the same fabric for her crib skirt that we have in Eden's crib. This girl's got style ;) 

So, if you are bored during the Oscar's why don't you take a few minutes hours and look at all the fun pictures of her house and her super cute baby girl. I am now going to treat myself to a chocolate chip cookie just because I feel deserving. 

Also, if you are visiting from The Domestic Wannabe, welcome! Make yourself at home and look around, we don't bite...promise! 

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If you are reading from another outlet like an RSS feed, be sure to stop by and check out some of the changes I have made over the past couple of days to the blog. I even updated our header! It's still not perfect, and I still have plenty of work to do on the rest of the blog, but I am going to use my same old excuse...

I HAVE A 5 MONTH OLD BABY WHO DOES NOT NAP AND I AM TRYING TO KEEP MY HOUSE CLEAN AND COOK AND BE A REAL ESTATE ASSISTANT AND CONTROL THE LARGE ANT POPULATION THAT HAS TAKEN OVER MY HOME. I CANNOT DO IT ALL. 

I really need to come up with a new excuse....

Mommy Essential Numero Uno

The nursing tote. One of my essentials during the first few months of feeding. With all of the expecting moms out there, I figured I should probably let them in on my secret to keeping myself fed and somewhat sane (that's about all you can ask for after having a baby) during those weeks where it seemed all I did was feed Eden. 

Yes, there are days where you will feel like a human milk factory. In fact there will be days where you can't remember if you ever moved from your nursing location of choice. Did I pee today? It is 9 p.m., have I eaten anything yet? Yes, those are the kinds of questions that will most likely run through your mind. Oh, and one trick that someone taught me....don't remember who (seriously, I have mommy brain, just let it go)...every time you are about to sit down to feed, GO TO THE BATHROOM. You may not have a baby pushing on your bladder every 2 minutes, but trust me, your bladder will thank you if you choose to empty it every once in awhile. 

Alright, so what is so special about this tote? Nothing really. Just the fact that you can keep it wherever you sit to feed (and it is easily carried to another spot as needed) and it holds some great essentials to keeping you happy. Yep, even though you think your only goal in life is to keep that darling newborn from crying every other minute, it's not. You also have a goal to do things to keep yourself happy and content. 

Everybody's nursing tote will be different. This is my version. I fed Eden on the couch for EVERY FEEDING. Each session lasted for an hour (feed for 45 minutes and pump for 15) every two hours so feeding in a rocking chair or anything else just didn't seem comfortable to me. The couch provided me a comfy place to rest, read blogs from my phone, and enjoy endless Netflix. A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do catch my drift? 

Alright, here is what I had in my nursing tote most of the time:

• Magazine - I chose home decor, you choose whatever makes you smile
• Journal - I need paper by my side all the time, I didn't want to forget anything
• Pen - duh..if you have paper you need a pen, also good to write down feedings, etc.
• Energy bars - I LOVED Luna bars (I only had Cliff on hand the day this was taken)
• Raisins - Trust me, you'll understand after you have had the baby...
• Nursing cover - for those untimely visits from family and friends
• Nipple cream - ESSENTIAL. 
• Nursing pads - Again...ESSENTIAL.

You get to put whatever you want in yours. Oh and a BIG suggestion, have a water bottle in there as well. I just used the gigantic cup from the hospital, but in case you don't have someone around to refill it for you, it would be nice to have a bottle just waiting for you in the tote. Another suggestion that came from my second Filipino mom (a.k.a my previous boss) Tina, have someone buy fresh fruit and veggies and place in snack sized ziploc bags in the fridge. Your body will crave foods that are needed to give you back your energy so have some at the ready. Please don't put these in the tote though. That would be yucky. This is strictly for your hubby to bring to you as you say YO, BABY DADDY, GET ME MY FRUIT NOW pretty please.  

Don't spend a lot of money on the tote. I found mine in the Target dollar section. I bought this yellow one and a teal one. The teal one now holds Eden's bath items in the linen closet. Anything that is small, lightweight, and has a handle would be ideal. Think inexpensive. As your nesting kicks in go out and pick some items up for your nursing tote, you will thank me. 

Now hurry up and have those babies, Eden and I need some playmates!

p to the s....I know I call it the "nursing" tote, but I can bet that this could easily be the "feeding" tote for bottle feeding mom's out there as well. Bottle fed babies need to eat just as much so while you may not need the nursing cover, add in some other items that make that feeding time extra special.

Confessions of an Agent

Not the 007 kind of agent....just to clarify. 

Today you get the pleasure of hearing from the other half of me. I am hoping he will start making more appearances here and give us some handyman tips or maybe even more real estate information. Just know that I am the brains and he is the brawn of this household. Scratch that, I think he is both the brains and the brawn....I'll just take the beauty portion ;) 

Take it away Joshua....

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Ok blogging world, I am the husband of this awesome blog and I am completely and utterly new to this whole posting thing, so please don’t mind my millions of punctuations or extreme exclaiming!!! When I use an exclamation point I use 3, PERIOD!!!  But seriously, I wanted to write a little bit of something and hopefully you will be able to get somewhat of what I am about through my craziness that is typed hereafter…  Also I am tired and if I say something odd or weird that will be my go-to excuse (and if this is well-written blame it on my wife, who I can more than guarantee will go through it with a fine tooth comb and tweezers and make my literary skill UBER!).

Also a little side-note, this may be a one-time posting because I am sure this will not amount to what my beautiful wife would post, and I don’t want to slice our readership into pieces and make you all be like “unsubscribe” or whatever it is for Blogger.  So if you like it, please comment.

Today I snapped!  Literally… snapped!  Luckily my wife was there to help me out through the process with encouragement and support. (a lot of times, that is all we as big, tough men need!)  I had my heart my brain set on a certain deal that should have closed within the first week of next month.  As a real estate agent we all know to “never bank on the check until it’s in the bank” – (or something like that…) But it’s impossible not to do sometimes, especially when it’s vital to your next month’s food supply. Luckily for me, Mr. Dave Ramsey has had us save up for “emergencies”…

But today is the day I realized that I can always be working harder… (Not saying work harder for my current clientele, because that would be impossible) There is always a contact I can make, or a friend I can remind I am in the business.  I have realized that there has been a “net” so to speak holding me back because I have never HAD to make a paycheck because of my beautiful wife that always seems to provide for us…  HOLD THE PHONE!!!  Wait a second… you’re a man that depends on his wife’s paycheck? What a loser!  I know… I know… SERIOUSLY!  Okay now that I am done yelling at myself let’s get a few things straight. 

1.      I work hard
2.      I provide for my family in more than just monetary ways
3.      I help lead a Bible study
4.      I…
5.      I…

Ya who cares right?  I know I wouldn’t if I read a list of someone who thinks he is worthy of a cool list of worthiness… or something.  Truth is; I am not!  I am not worthy of this life the Lord has given me, with family that watches over us, a roof over our head, food in the pantry, and a working car.  I have a great life, so I need to realize I don’t have to be like Mr. Johnson across the street, or Betty joe who runs a large company… I need to be the best that I can be for God, and by being the best I will show my faith better and be able to witness through my business.  So why can’t that be the best in the Real Estate industry?  Truth is I can! I sincerely believe that I can rock your world when it comes to real estate and what I do for my clients, but how do I get you to trust me use my services?

Well that’s simple…

1.       I meet you (or e-mail in today’s world…)
2.      I try to look older than 18 (which I am!)
3.      You get to know me as a person first
4.      I deliver to you something you need FOR FREE
5.      You like me (Cause who doesn’t right?)
6.      I gain your trust
7.      I insist that you use my services when needed (or recommend them)

a.       Which of course you do… because I market more than any other agent in the world.

Ok... So why then do I not go out and get clients since it’s so easy to do?  Truth is, I… as everybody else; am extremely terrified of rejection and failure.  Yes it is true, Joshua Crain is scared, even though people would call me “outgoing” I am still terrified that when I knock on that door down the road with the “For Sale By Owner” sign in the yard… They will not give me the time of day or understand that I put my heart into serving their needs and giving everything I have for free… because I know it will pay off in the end.  I literally know 90% of people are not going to shut the door in my face or throw my flyer back at me and yell “Take it!!” (thank you neighbor lady for not taking my flyer for the yearly coat drive for freezing homeless kids and single moms!) But it is still the scariest thing in the world to make myself get out of my comfort zone and really kick my marketing into gear by meeting people face to face and letting people use me. 

Truth is, real estate is a business where you work your butt off for people for days and stress over deals through nights and sometimes it never pans out or pays off… and when it does pay off, it is working for tens of hours for every client day after day after day to pay off three months from now.  I love this career, but ye be warned it is not for the faint of heart!!!

So today I pledge to you world, I will go out and be the best I can be and live in “the today box” and not worry about my tomorrow(or three months from now).  So please bear with me as I proceed to blow your minds!

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First of all, let it be known that the only thing I "fixed" in his post was the fact that he gave away where we live and well I would rather not have random people come a knocking at my door, yaknowhatImean? As you can tell real estate is a tough career. Being the wife of an agent means I can certainly attest to that. Trust me, it's not an easy gig. Thankfully the hubby works so hard and I am so amazed at what all he can do in a day. However, because real estate is a commission only gig we are having to make some tough decisions over the next couple of weeks. I'll let you know if we come to any conclusions, but for now we are just seeking guidance and trusting (there's the word of the year for this family) that everything will be okay! 

In other news, we went to take a family walk amongst the small amount of snow that fell around our house yesterday. Sadly, by the time we got outside (9:30 a.m.) this is all that was left.

Eden and I went outside for a few moments to bask in the beautiful sunshine today. It was such a different picture than the snow that was falling the day before. It was definitely FREEZING outside so we made it a very quick trip. I didn't want Eden to turn into a snowbaby. Before we headed back indoors we found another hint that spring is nearing. There are just a few blossoms popping up on one of our bushes right outside.  

We hope you have a very fun weekend! Ours involves eating very unhealthy burgers and fries with my parents. I blame them for my bad eating habits...love you mom and dad!

Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows

I am craving spring and the beautiful colors that come along with it. However, as I type this, we have been watching snow fall periodically through out the day. Every time we see those beautiful white flakes Eden and I run to the window (okay, I run to the window carrying Eden) and watch them fall. I think snow is magical. Here's the thing though, I always want it to accumulate, but only for a day or two and only a few times a year. I much prefer sunshine, but the quiet that comes alongside freshly fallen snow makes me crave those moments.


For any of you that may have a snow day tomorrow I thought I would share a few new (to me) blogs that I have found over the past week. I thought you might enjoy the extra reading and inspiration these lovelies give.

Mollie Wetta Photography

I just found Mollie Wetta photography when I joined Real Mom*Togs. She is amazing and has the cutest children! I just love to look at her work for some serious inspiration.

Besotted Brand

Um, hello eye candy! This is just full of more photography inspiration and more. Lovely work this lady has. 

Sugar and Charm

I now have a million and one ideas for Eden's 1st birthday. In fact, I have so many ideas that I may just have to have a half birthday party for her. Only teasing. Kind of. 

Lilies & Dandelions

This blog is brand spanking new. I found this blog off of Dreamy Whites (if you love white then you will fall in love with this blog. If you don't love white you will quickly learn to love it). Anyway, I have the feeling this is going to be one of my favorites. I am excited to see where this blog goes over the next year...

Crossing my fingers for a snow day tomorrow so we can take Eden out to play! 

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The Crain's Nest is going through some ch-ch-ch-changes. I haven't gotten too far, but I am working on it in between feedings, diaper changes, and the like. The biggest change so far is that we have moved our most favorite blog links to its own page! Things were feeling a bit cluttered and if you have learned one thing from me it is that I enjoy minimalism. Our link love was getting a bit out of hand. I know that some of you appreciated them being on the side, but too make up for it, I added quite a few more blogs chock full of inspiration. I know, I know, I am too kind. Seriously, pick up your coffee, take a few sips, and enjoy a few new reads. I am also working on an updated header, but the daughter didn't want a nap today so it will have to wait. 

Change can be a good thing and I am learning to embrace it. 

Paint On The Ground

Upon typing the title of this post I instantly had a flashback to the smash hit of "Pants on the Ground" from American Idol. I don't even watch the show (shame on me!), but I couldn't miss the overnight success of one American Idol contestant. Okay, maybe it was just me that thought of that song just from the title.

In thinking of yesterday's post I realized not all of you have hardwoods floors living under your carpet or maybe you love carpet, but your carpet  is looking a bit...umm...icky. Well, if that is the case then this post is for you! I didn't want to leave everyone else out after my wood floor post yesterday.

Alright, so for those of you that are sitting there thinking, "gee, I want to have easy to clean floors, but don't have the money to buy new flooring," this is for you.

Painted sub-floors.

Yes, you heard me right. Rip up that carpet like it's nobody's business and paint away. Seriously, if we didn't have continuous hardwoods floors throughout I would totally be doing this. I am kind of thinking our nasty bathroom linoleum or our dump basement might be getting a paint treatment soon.

spaces design by austin showroom inglenookdecor

eclectic living room design by atlanta photographer James Klotz

Is that not the most fantastic idea ever? I have always dreamed of having white washed wood floors like the image above. My mind is already painting (pun not intended) pictures of white floors with white walls. I love a nice refreshing palate. I think a nice dose of white is just what every creative soul needs.

My favorite painted sub-floor has to be Ashley Ann's at  Under the Sycamore. She is full of awesomeness that blows my mind.

Oh the deliciousness of flooring. 

I Did It All By Myself

Or better known as...how I surprised Josh with a big, giant mess in our master bedroom.

One day a week Josh goes into the office for a 4 hour shift. Knowing this, I decided it was time to do something all on my own. I kept it a complete secret from Josh. I crossed my fingers that Eden would take a nap so that I wouldn't have to worry about her health and safety during this process. I got really lucky the day I decided to master a new skill.

At 1:15 in the afternoon I set out into our room with these things in hand. Yep, just ONE tool and a pair of gloves.

Want to know what my target of attack was going to be?

The final bit of carpet left in our entire house. It was the thorn in my side. Little bits of carpet and padding would fall off and I would find them tracked throughout the house. Drove me batty. On top of that our lovely extremely small bladdered dog felt the need to use this as her potty spot during the days that we were A) out of the house for a long period of time or B) it was wet outside and she didn't want to get her paws wet. Spoiled much? Anyway, I was DESPERATE to get rid of this nastiness.

I definitely knew this was something I could do, but I still was a bit hesitant. I mean, I had NEVER ripped up carpet...well besides the day that we toured the house when we were getting ready to buy and I snuck into the closet to see if there was wood flooring underneath, THERE WAS! Hello captain obvious.

The first step was to rip up the carpet.

Next, I knew I had to get rid of that awful padding. I just pulled up and carefully maneuvered it out of the staples that were holding on for dear life.

The next step is removing all of the staples that were holding down that carpet. For some this task may be easy, for others this may be the most daunting project every. It may have you cursing, even if you have never cursed in your life. Thankfully ours fell more towards the easy side. We were quite lucky with all of the carpet in our house, whoever installed the icky carpet over the gorgeous hardwoods was at least smart enough to not do too much damage. Thank you carpet installer. I will say that some staples were particularly hard to pry out with the pliers so I would usually just move on to another one for awhile...otherwise I would get a bit persistent and would let the pliers dig into the hardwoods in order to get that staple out. I am semi very stubborn like that so it is best for me to take a break before I do permanent damage.

The next task on the list is to remove the tack strips. These are ridiculous and while they do not take much time to pull up, you can very easily damage your floors. Instead of being super woman and pulling them up, I decided to just leave it to the pro a.k.a the husband. Although I would have liked to have the entire project done before he arrived home, I decided that having damaged floors would probably make him too frustrated to realize just how great of a wife I was to pull up the carpet in the first place. See my dilemma? So, I left them knowing that he would be able to pull it up super quick and figuring he would still be thankful for the little work that was left. I was right. It took him 2 minutes and he was thankful that I didn't attack the floors with a crowbar (that was what I planned to do). So if in doubt, let someone else do it.

Want to see the final result? No? Okay then I won't show you. Just teasing...

See that collage of photos on the ground? That frame has been sitting there since we moved in over a year ago. It is supposed to be hanging above our clothes on that back wall. A certain someone in our house who shall remain nameless has yet to follow through on that assignment. The shorter person in the house is crossing her fingers that this post will spur him on to check it off the list. I'll let you know if it works...

Oh that's right...you are all curious about what is up higher. It really isn't very pretty. I have plans to attack the closet with a paint brush and try to make it a little more organized and fun in there. I mean, who wants to pick out clothes in a bland closet? Yeah, didn't think so. Okay, don't say I didn't warn you...

See, I told you. And yes, Josh and I both fit our clothes into this one tiny "walk in" closet. Our nightstands are also full of undergarments and such, but other than that the closet is where it is at. We are trying to live by the "less is more" standard. Basically if it doesn't fit in the closet then it can't live here...okay this only applies to clothes...not children, animals, or any other living thing, just wanted to clarify. Yes, I have become quite the minimalist. Although, we do have a dresser located in our basement that does have off season items as well as all of the clothes that didn't fit me while I was pregnant....and still don't...another ranting for another day.

I have also been trying to keep it real on here so I am going to tell you something that I never admit. If you come over to my house and think I have everything all neat and tidy and put together all the time well you are very wrong my friend. See, I can clean with the best of them, but sometimes I just don't have the time. Want to know my secret? Here she is...

A laundry basket. There is typically always one hiding in our closet full of stuff that I just don't feel like putting away or don't have the time to put in the right location. Josh loves it. Oh by the way, complete sarcasm, he can't stand it and is always trying to get me to put everything away. My thought is...at least it's not on the floor. In fact, my closet is always my downfall. I can keep the rest of the house spotless, but I always have one place where I feel like I need some chaos. I feel like a bit of chaos is good for my perfectionist ways. Got to keep the balance.

So all this to say, go forth and prosper! Not really. What I actually wanted to say was that I encourage you to push yourself to do something you have never done before in your home. Be courageous. Obviously I picked something that wasn't super scary, but I am sure I could have screwed it up. Doesn't take much for me. Even you renters can find some projects around your home that won't do permanent damage, I am sure of it. I also want to make a full disclosure that even though I did this without Josh's knowledge, he was fully in support of getting rid of the carpet. I would never do something that he wouldn't be okay with. That's just how we roll.

Obviously it is much too late for me to be awake because my jokes are just pathetic today. Who am I kidding? I should say EVERY day. Glad you all love me anyway! Oh and yes, I do realize I owe you some pretty pictures. If this post didn't feel like a novel already I would add some, but alas it is rather long so I will make you wait. Hopefully not for long.

When Life Gives You Lemons

I had a different post planned for today. One where I show you what I did in our house last week...something that I did while Josh was away. I wanted to inspire you to be courageous and do something out of your comfort zone. However, things changed. Today was a rough day. Not because Eden was fussy or anything, in fact, she was quite happy and actually took TWO naps today. My rough day occurred because I started to lose faith and trust in the one person who takes care of me each day. The one person who has provided me with the amazing life that I have. My Jesus. So, I decided to let the tears fall and just relish the time I had with my two girls.

Sometimes you have to embrace the unmade bed. It doesn't make you a bad mom or wife or person, it just means you had other things to enjoy that day. And sometimes, you have to enjoy the fact that your dog nestles in the covers for 23 hours a day.

Sometimes you have to jump into the rumpled sheets with your baby and dog and treasure the fact that they love each other.

(No, I haven't lost my mind. I realize that this is a terribly taken photo, but I love the expression on Eden's face when her sister licks her hand...it's priceless and sometimes it's okay to have less than perfection. Now I just have to tell myself that...)

Sometimes you have to smile as your baby so desperately wants to insert her toes into her mouth, but just can't quite figure out how to get them there.

Sometimes you have to celebrate when your baby is successful in her ventures. 

Sometimes you just have to be thankful that you have the life that you do, even when things seem to be going so very wrong. 

To end, here is a Bible verse that has been my favorite for a very long time. One I have looked to so many times when I just don't feel like I can trust anymore. The days where I let my sin nature make me feel worried. I hope it brings some faith and trust to you as you head into your weekend.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to Him, and he will make your paths straight. 

Have a happy weekend! Xo.

5 Months

We are ALMOST to Eden's half birthday. Don't worry, I realize her first birthday is coming up so quickly so I already planned it. Done and done. This past month has been really fun with Eden. She grew up right before our eyes. She is like an adult now. Okay, not quite, but she doesn't seem much like a baby anymore. This girl has grown so active and she even shows her frustration when she can't just get up and move. Eden is so much fun and we love being around her 24/7. 

5 Month Stats
Length: 25 inches (mommy's usually inaccurate guesstimate)
Weight: 12 lbs 13 oz. (so I am really guessing on this one)

Eden Rae, here is what you have been up to lately:

You love to blow raspberries and you always sound like an elephant
You pull your binky out of your mouth and put it back in all the time
You roll back and forth from your tummy and back
You had to go back to being swaddled because you were not getting any sleep
You are napping sometimes, but not consistently
You learned how to fake cough a couple of days ago and now do it all the time to get attention
You do the "sniffle face" where you scrunch up your nose and sniff really hard constantly
You love holding people's faces with your hands
You sat up on your own (with a little assistance from Mr. Boppy) TODAY

You LOVE to talk. You babble pretty much all day long. I think you will beat mommy at talking contests.

You figured out how to scream and we are pretty sure the neighbor's are worried about you

You now notice when mommy is not in the room, but still don't mind going to other people

You open your mouth wide for kisses and have been known to lick faces a time or two

You crack up every time we change your diaper...apparently being dirty is hilarious.

You got to try a small bite of banana the other day and found it to be very strange

It is so much fun having a 5 month old. Actually it is just plain fun having a baby in general. Each day we can't wait to see what new skill she has learned. In fact, we find it fascinating to watch her little brain work and she figures out how everything works around her. She is starting to learn how to grab at her big sister and well, big sister is kind of a grump about it. Granted, Bella LOVES spending time in Eden's crib, or laying on her blanket, or giving her kisses. I think these two girls will enjoy each other a lot as they grow up. 

 

Uncle Brett

Aunt Stephanie

*Sidenote: Aren't my little brother and sister-in-law the most beautiful couple ever? Not only are they adorable, but they are also quite funny and sweet and Eden thinks they are the greatest people ever. My brothers elephant and duck sounds get her every time.

Oh and for those that don't believe me when I say that she does in fact cry...here is proof....

Eden, we think you are the bee's knees and are so glad you are part of our lives. Seriously, things were kind of boring without you around. We love that you are an exact match for both daddy and I. You are extremely dramatic when you wake up just like your dad (seriously he is ridiculous!). You are a big time talker (umm...I think that one is like me). My favorite thing is that you love to capture everyone's attention and if you think you are not getting enough attention then you make sure to let everyone know. Okay, that one is a combo of Josh and I because we both think we need to be the center of attention...

Happy 5 month birthday baby girl! 

 

Love Day Recap

Our love day was great...well mostly. There were a few hiccups along the way, but we weren't treating this like a major holiday, just as an excuse to have fun.

I planned on making heart shaped pancakes, but didn't have a heart shaped cookie cutter. So, I thought, "gee, I'll be creative and improvise." I then went and made a heart template out of construction paper with the intention of dusting powdered sugar over it to create a cute little heart on top of the pancakes.

A big ant family had decided to move in to both of our powdered sugar boxes and then treated it as their own personal cemetery. Awesome.

Instead of feeling like a big failure I just served up plain ole round pancakes. They still tasted the same. Whatever.

Eden was dressed in her heart pajamas the night before. She spit up all over them. It was the last time we were having her wear them since she outgrew them. I didn't even get a picture. Thankfully her "aunt" Ruby had given her a cute cupcake outfit so she wore that instead.

She even pointed to the cupcakes. I think my girl is going to love sweets.

We did some working in the middle of the day.


I put Eden in her valentine outfit that I had been saving for FOREVER. It was a gift from Josh's relatives. She had a blowout...like a real big one. Thankfully I had done a photoshoot with her before she decided to completely cover herself in nastiness.

We visited her grandma at LIMEberry and Josh and I got our "valentines" from my mom. A heart shaped cookie completely covered in sprinkles. This was my last bit of dairy. I have to go off of it again for an unknown amount of time.

Eden also got some valentine's presents from her grandma "Lola." She is spoiled. Our daughter apparently loves puzzles. She is mesmerized by them.

We did not spoil our daughter nearly as much. We bought her a cute little headband from this etsy store. So cute. As soon as it arrives I promise to do a photo shoot and share with you.

For dinner we have spaghetti and turkey meatballs. Turkey because we are still on a diet and I like to think it erases the giant amount of sugar in the cookie. It didn't, but it tasted good so I don't care. We had our favorite french bread from Safeway. It's nearly $2 when not on sale, but worth every penny. All this was eaten on our wedding china. I'm so glad I finally pulled it out of storage. It is pretty.

We didn't forget about dessert. I made this dairy, egg, and nut free chocolate pudding cake. It is just like a chocolate molten cake (if you haven't had one then PLEASE do, you will love me for it). It is lots of chocolate and then oozes more chocolate. I ate half of it.

Together we sat down and read our valentine's that we made for one another. It was a great way to really see what we value about the other person. Josh and I wrote a lot of the same things for Eden's valentines. We love that girl.

Josh gave me roses. He started with 1 rose when we were first married and then adds one each year. This year he gave me four. Roses aren't my favorite flower, but I love the tradition. Plus roses were what I carried on our wedding day. It is so sweet that he remembers each year.

We ended our night with kisses for Eden and went to bed thankful for an excuse to celebrate one another and eat chocolate.

A Day of Love

Happy love day! I wanted to share a couple of things before I sign out and spend the rest of the day with my pretty little valentine dates. 

Remember when I showed you a little peek of our mantle when talking about our valentine love notes bowl? No? Well, let me just remind you that it was girly...to the max. Yes, this mommy has embraced the pink and red just to give our little girl a taste of the holiday. I am growing soft in my old age. Well, I thought it was about to time to put a photo or two up since the day is upon us! 

For those of you with good eyes...yes, that is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in that pile of books. What can I say, I was desperate for a red book (not that I have anything against the book, just thought it was a funny choice for a Valentine's day mantle). Of course in my head I had planned out a much grander mantle, but I was limited to what I have on hand. Unfortunately, this is quite limiting since I really don't have much to work with, but hey, when it's free I just can't complain. The fun little love squared art on the window was a free printable. Who doesn't love the word free? Seriously, if you don't, we may have a hard time being friends...I will do anything to not pay a cent for something. Not, not stealing, I mean being resourceful and finding things around the house or on the internet. Goodness people, I haven't lost my mind completely. 

Another thing we did this year was make our own valentine's cards for Eden. We weren't ready to go completely crazy and send them to every single person we knew, so we just gave them to the grandparents, aunts, and uncles (sorry to our Washington family for having to spoil the surprise...we have them waiting for you!). I really enjoyed making these. I think I might just be one of those crazy moms that DIY's all of Eden's valentine's cards when she is in school. Seriously. I do have to say, I am not creative enough short on time so I borrowed this idea from another lovely blogger (who also got it from a fellow blogger). I am just so thankful for all those talented folks out there. You are all incredible! 

Here is a clearer shot of the actual valentine. I just printed it off on our home printer, attached to a sandwich bag filled with valentine kisses and that was that. Simple and Easy.

No matter if you are celebrating with a loved one, boycotting the holiday altogether, or hanging out on your couch watching a chick flick we just wanted to give a little blog love to you in the form of a valentine from us to you...

CSN Giveaway Winner

Thank you to all who entered the giveaway! It was fun hosting our very first one, and we hope we can continue doing them every once in awhile. The giveaway gave us the opportunity to hear from some of you that were reading that we hadn't had a chance to "meet" yet. So, welcome! It is fun to know who all is out there reading. 


Alright, I know you didn't all come here to just read my random mutterings, so I will just get right to the point.


The lucky winner of a $35 gift certificate to CSNStores according to random.org is....

Liz

Congratulations Liz! I will be contacting you shortly with your prize. Happy shopping to you :)


If you didn't win, I am sad for you. However, I still think you should take a little gander at what they have to offer over at CSN. You may just find the perfect item to add to your home. Seriously, if I wasn't still on a spending freeze I would be glued to my computer buying things for every room of our home. That is, when I win the lottery....and that would only happen if I actually played. Darn. 


We will be back later with a little Valentine's day love!