Summer Wonderland

It is December 31. It is 72 degrees outside. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining at all, but that is just CRAZY. Awesomely crazy!

So, on this New Years Eve, we played outside in t-shirts and I did an outdoor photoshoot in which my subject wore a tank top. just crazy. Ok, enough about the weather. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! Ours was lovely. We went to my in-laws for a couple of days. We opened a lot of presents and ate a LOT of sugar. My kids were absolute angels for the 3 days we were there. Traveling with 2 small children is always interesting, but they made it easy and enjoyable. My three year-old waited patiently for 3 hours while we went in a circle taking turns opening presents. I was amazed by this. He snuggled on my lap and watched as everyone else opened, then excitedly opened his gift and returned to my lap. It was heavenly and I was a proud momma. We did have a few days once we got home where they made up for all that behaving, but at least they were good for Grandma. :)

I had fun making many of the gifts we gave this year. I'm pretty sure I remembered to take pictures of them before I wrapped them up. If I can figure out which camera they are on, I will share some of those with you later on.

I did finally complete my garage makeover a couple of weeks ago! I had been wanting to turn it into a playspace that we could utilize during the "winter". Of course, it has been plenty warm enough lately to play in the backyard, but i'm sure we'll get lots of use out of it. I started by cleaning out the garage and "kid-proofing" it so I didn't have to worry as much. I made sure all the pruning shears, insecticide, etc. were up out of reach. I also was able to get rid of a bunch of junk in the process. It was AWESOME.

This is our b-ball court

Sister thinks she is big. Someone should tell her that she is tiny. I would, but she scares me. She and I had a mexican stand-off today for nearly and hour. I told her to pick up her cup after she threw it on the floor. She screamed at me. For an hour. All she had to do was pick up her cup. She did twice, but then threw it on the ground again and screamed at me some more. Finally, she decided that she was ready to pick it up and put it on the table. It only took an hour. I might have my hands full with this one. But isn't she cute. :)

This is our "electric car/LSV" aka golf cart.  Thanks to Obama's tax rebate incentives, whatever, this little darling gets to take up space in our garage. Actually, when the weather is nice in the evenings, we do take family cruises around the hood quite a bit. So ya know! It's alright I guess. 

I saw this magnet board idea on pinterest. I took an oil drip pan from walmart ($10 in the automotive section) and hung it on the wall. My friend Charissa, had the brilliant idea to get these wooden animals and stuff from Hobby Lobby (around 50 cents each) and put magnets on the back for the kids to play with! I love it! And the kids think it's pretty cool too. 

I hung this ziplock on the pegboard so the magnets don't end up all over the garage floor. Of course, they still do, but a momma can dream, right?

And our lovely ikea easel. Little Miss Priss likes all things artsy. Maybe she will be my little crafting buddy in the future. :)

So that is our new improved garage. I especially love it while I'm getting dinner ready in the evenings. I open the door that goes into the garage and let them run amok. The kitchen is close enough that I can hear them and peek in on them easily. Do any of you have any fun ideas for entertaining kids in the winter time and warding off the stir-crazies? 

I hope you all have a safe and fun New Years Eve! 

-Mica

Home Sweet Home

I don't mean to brag, but my hubby and I just spent 7 days on the beach soaking up the sun, eating guacamole, enjoying adult beverages, and changing no diapers. It was....heavenly.  After all we have been through this year, we knew we would need time to just decompress, regroup, and spend some quality time together. We stayed 4 nights at a spa resort and had resort credit to use toward spa treatments. Both of us were able to get 2 80-min massages, and 80-min facial, an 80-chocolate wrap, a 30-min massage, a manicure and a pedicure. um. yes. it was awesome.

We then transferred to a smaller resort in Cancun that was absolutely gorgeous with amazing food and very friendly staff. For the most part we just vegged out. We layed on the beach, ate, I read 4 books, we got pampered, ate some more, played Jenga and Connect 4 in the Lobby Lounge (both games are seriously underrated!), played Nerts, and ate. We also managed however, to have some quality conversations. We talked about where we go from here. What we learned from the past year. How we are different. How we are the same. What we would like to accomplish this next year. Experiences we would like to share as a family. We came home feeling rested and refreshed and missing our kids terribly.

I did fail to mention one minor detail of our trip. 6 days before we were set to fly out, my husband went and did this:

Which resulted in this:

Beach vacation + cast = bummer

In 4 more weeks, he should be back to his old self. In the meantime, he can't play basketball (the cause of the cast in the first place), work out, shower easily, etc.  He also can't do dishes, cut his own meat, change diapers, buckle carseats, take out the trash, bathe the dog, bathe the kids, write (he is left-handed!).  So...stinks for him. Also stinks for me :)  As always though, it could be so much worse.

This week should hold plenty of fun for us. On the books: a fun photo shoot!, a family movie night, dinner with friends, a painting project with my sister, a trip to the museum, some snow tubing, editing some photos, finishing some wedding projects (I can't wait to show you all the fun stuff we've made. I'll have to wait til after the wedding though) making cookies, and finishing Christmas gifts.

I hope that you all enjoy this week. Avoid the malls if possible! :) (that is my goal from Nov-Feb). Have a blessed day!

So much to be thankful for

The last couple of weeks have been full of friends, food, family, food, fun and food. We hosted several holiday events at the house. One included 9 overnight guests. One involved a craft night with my girlfriends. It was a busy couple of weeks, but one full of rich blessings and quality time with people we love. And did I mention that there was some yummy food involved? Thanksgiving is, by far, my favorite holiday.

I've been knocking some crafts off of my TO DO list. My favorite creation is THIS:

My new planning center. I love having my grocery list, calendar, TO DO list, and menu all in one pretty little place. I covered the backboard of the frame with a fabric scrap I had laying around and printed the calendars and things off the internet. eventually, I'd like to replace them with a little bit cuter ones, but I was anxious to get this finished. <3

My old planning center looked like this. argh! mess=stress. :) now, it's all nice and tidy.

I also created this nice little graphic to hang somewhere, yet to be determined. It has all of our family's important dates. now there is no excuse to forget :)

My upcoming projects include refinishing a table that has bothered me for 4 years, and reorganizing my garage. I want to make it kid-safe so that we can play out there in the winter. i see many painting sessions, bike-riding, and other fun winter activities taking place out there! My brother's wedding date is quickly approaching as well, which means I need to get busy! I have bouquets to make, flower girl dresses to sew, a brunch to plan, and lots more fun projects! 

Although the holidays are here, as well as the busyness that comes with them, I cant help but take a step back and be thankful for all the many blessings in our life. Although 2011 has been a very challenging year, it is one for which I will be forever grateful. I hope each of you found much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving as well. 

I Heart Photoshop

Ok. I might be slightly obsessed with Photoshop.  Ok. Maybe REALLY obsessed. I have had the opportunity to practice my photography skills this past month. I got to do an engagement session, a newborn session, and a family shoot! Thank you for everyone for letting me take your pics! I have had so much fun and I hope to be able to do many more! I love taking pictures. I have read everything I can get my hands on about my camera and exposure and lighting and composition.  I have to admit though, that my favorite part of the process is the post-editing. I <3 Photoshop. It makes me happy. I mean really. How awesome is to to take a picture from THIS:

TO THIS:

Yep. Photoshop Rocks. 

ready to bake!

Maybe it's the colder weather that will surely be approaching, or maybe it's just my own laziness, but I've been wanting to get my freezer stocked with meals that I can just pull out and throw in the oven this winter.  I have a plan. We'll see how it works. I am planning to cook a meal for my family, eat 1/2 that night and put the other 1/2 in the freezer for a later date. That sounds doable, right?

The other day, I decided I was going to make some homemade cookies. I rarely make homemade for a couple of reasons. I am in love with the Simply Chocolate Chip cookie dough that you just plop on the tray and bake. Also, my mom's recipe that I love and grew up with makes a million cookies. Obviously, I could cut the recipe in 1/2 or something, but that's too much work. However, the other day, I was really craving Momma's cookies and I really wanted an excuse to use this beauty:

So I decided to make my own plop and bake cookies. I used my handy dandy cookie dough baller (best invention ever) to make these trays full of goodness. 

I flash froze them for 30 min or so, and then put them in a freezer bag. 

Now, I can just grab a few out whenever I want and have hot, homemade yumminess. mmmm. 

I also did this with my turkey sausage balls. I can grab out 6 or 8 and bake for a quick breakfast for me and the kids. 

Hopefully one of these days, I can show you a picture of a nicely organized and stocked freezer. Full of meals and ready to cook snacks. In the meantime, I should probably go clean out my freezer so that there is actually room in there to put something :)  Hope you are all having a blessed day!

-Mica

Winter Crafts

I have had a few winter crafts on my mind lately. I've been seeing lots of cute scarves out and about lately and I was trying to think of ways to update the old ones I have that I'm tired of wearing. I came up with this:

I took an old pashmina and ruffled it using elastic thread. Instant update :) Plus, can you ever have too many ruffles? I think not. 

Then I made these fingerless glove out of an old sweater. Not exactly an original idea. But I love the fact that they were FREE! This style is great for keeping warm, while still being able to use your phone, take pictures, buckle car seats, etc. 

I made the rosettes out of the neckline of the sweater. 

Just for the sake of keeping it real, this is why I call myself a Kamikaze Krafter. Really. Would it have killed me to take 2 seconds to change out my thread? Yes. It would have. I had to get it done ASAP!!

This one looks a little less terrible. I figured I had 2 seconds to spare. 

So those are some of my fun re-purposing projects. I LOVE making something new out of something old. 

Due Date

Dear Bella,

Yesterday was November 2nd. When we first found out that we were going to have another baby, the doctors told us that we should expect to meet them sometime around November 2nd. That was back before we knew you. Back when only your Creator knew your story. For 19 weeks I carried you. I did not know if you were a boy or a girl. I did not know your name. But I knew I loved you and would love you for the rest of my life.

On June 6th, we went in for our ultrasound and finally met you. Our precious baby girl. Only then, did we begin to learn that your story was not what we had expected--not what we had hoped. Our plans for the future started to change and adapt. Our HOPE in God was strong, but he told us to prepare. We did not know what to expect, but we knew we loved you. And would love you for the rest of our lives.

After meeting you, Bella, and seeing your beautiful face on the screen, I carried you with me for 12 more weeks. The weeks were both wonderful and terrible. I wanted more of them. I wanted to carry you forever so that you would be nice and safe in my belly. I cherished every kick.

You decided that you just couldn't wait to meet your mommy, so you came out to say Hi, 9 weeks early. For 10 minutes you heard us tell you that we love you and will love you for the rest of your life. For 10 minutes, you got a million kisses. For this momma, 10 minutes just weren't enough. But I take comfort in knowing that for the rest of eternity, you get to hear the Father tell you that He loves you.

Yesterday was November 2nd. The day you were supposed to be born. It was a hard day for your momma. We miss you every day. Your story was short. It ended too soon, and yet it has only begun. Thank you for everything you taught me. Thank you for making me a better momma and a better person. I love you, my sweet Bella, and I will love you for the rest of my life.

Love, Your Momma.

The above photos were taken for us at the hospital by Valerie Vaughn, a Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep Photographer. We appreciate them and cherish them.

Thank you to everyone who was thinking of me and praying for me on my due date. It was a very rough day, but I made it through. Thank you to my sweet friends for loving me even when i'm pitiful and anti-social. I couldn't have made it through the last few months without you guys.

The Ugly, The Bad, and The Good.

I'm looking forward to the day when I can write a post on here that says, "Last week was an AWESOME week!" Or even, "today was a GREAT day!!!"  Hopefully soon those statements will ring true. For the meantime, let's go with "the last few weeks have been pretty good." :)

The last couple of weeks have been rough for the obvious reason. But unfortunately, my kids have also decided to completely change up our daily schedule on me. At a time in my life when I could really use some "alone time" or even just "quiet time" I no longer have either!! argh. Before a couple of weeks ago, Sis still took a morning and afternoon nap (a couple of hours each) and brother napped for a couple of hours in the afternoon (almost always at the same time as Sissy. Nowadays, Sis sleeps for about 2 hours in the afternoon, right after lunch, and Brother NEVER sleeps!! and rarely stops talking. I try to at least make him play in his room for a while, but if I get 45 min I am lucky. So, our days are feeling very long to say the least. I know it will just take some time to adjust to this new routine, but MAN it came at a bad time for me. I feel anxious and antsy a lot and I think it is because I don't have a chance to get the things done that I NEED to get done, much less the things that I WANT to do. I also don't get a chance to just sit and mentally process things. It just leaves me feeling unsettled. The past few weeks have definitely had a few ugly days, some bad ones, but lots of good ones. 

The good days are finally starting to outnumber the bad. We have been making a concerted effort to get out as a family and do some fun activities with the kids. We have been to some fun birthday parties, taken a trip to the aquarium, and visited the pumpkin patch. I have finally gotten a couple of things checked off my sewing TO DO list. I have had a ton of fun helping my brother's fiance plan their wedding. And I have gotten some fun opportunities to sharpen my photography skills. Here is a look at our past couple of weeks in pictures.

Things I am Dreading: Tomorrow. Tomorrow was my due date. So weird to think that for the last 9 weeks, I "should have been" pregnant. Hopefully tomorrow will be uneventful. Instead of giving birth to a healthy, full-term baby on Nov 2nd, I will be going back to my doctor to see why in the world my belly is still hurting. ARGH!

Things I am looking forward to!: sewing, taking pictures, getting a pedicure, seeing my kids when they get back from Mimi's, giving them lots of kisses, hosting my family for thanksgiving, going on vacation with my hubby!!


I have to keep focusing on the many, many blessings in my left, or else the sadness starts to overshadow them. The last few weeks have been rough. Here's hoping that the next few weeks will be awesome. :)

In a Funk

Lately, I have kind of been in a funk. I'm not really sure why. I am finally feeling better physically which is awesome. I think that this whole time, I assumed that once I felt better, life would look more normal. I would be able to do everything that I needed to do. I would be able to keep the house the way I want to, do activities with my kids, cook 3 square meals a day, start finally checking things off my huge TO DO list. But so far, none of that has fallen into place for me. Maybe the physical pain gave me something to focus on. And now that that is gone, the rest is finally catching up to me. It is a strange thing. I don't feel like I even consciously think about the Bella situation much. But the sadness lingers.

My due date is slowly approaching. In many ways, it was such a blessing that she was born 9 weeks early. But at the same time, that left 9 whole weeks where I should still have been pregnant. I have 4 friends who are due right around Bella's due date. Sometimes I see them and their big old bellies and it is just hard. I am so happy for them, of course. It's just hard.

I think my goal of getting "back to normal" has been challenging also for a couple of reasons. 1) I don't really remember what normal is. It feels like it has been SO long. I can't really remember what that looks like.  and 2) I'm not sure I really want things to be like they were. I think that our time with Bella has changed us in many ways. I don't want to forget that. She opened our eyes to a world that was pretty much foreign to us. A world where people are sad and hurting. We had been "fortunate" enough to avoid that world up to this point, but we are better for knowing it. My prayer is that we will take the things we have learned this year and use it to help others who are living in that world. To reach out and minister to others.

My goal this week is to at least get back in the groove. To try to remember how to cook (after 5 weeks of wonderful meals from friends). To plan some fun activities with my family (pumpkin patch here we come!) . Check a few things off my TO DO list, and to start digging myself out of this funk!


I do have to share a few pics that I took last week. I have a secret ambition to become a decent photographer. I would love to take photos of my friends for a very reasonable price. I bought a good camera and haven't had much time to learn how to use it. Here are a couple shots that I was pumped about though.

Of course, with faces like that, you can't go wrong. :)

I hope you all have a blessed day.

~Mica

Bathroom Remodel

Well, we are ALMOST finished with our bathroom remodel. The things that still have to be done really won't LOOK much different though so I thought I'd go ahead and share the before and after pics with you. We are thrilled with the results. It was a long process, as are most remodels. And let's just sum it up to say that 3 or 4 of the subcontractors that worked on our remodel will no longer be working for our contractor. That is how it all went down. Everything went wrong. Luckily we had complete faith in our contractor the whole time. We knew that no matter what, he wouldn't stop until it was right.  Anyways! Here is a peek at our lovely bathroom BEFORE. Our home was built in 1995 so the main problem was just that everything was starting to look dated. It was also very closed in and broken up. We were able to open it up, update the surfaces and eliminate the unsightly closet!

The door straight ahead is the toilet room. The door on the far left goes into the master bedroom and the cabinet next to that is a linen cabinet. 

The shower, tub, and vanity were all made out of that cultured marble. Not horrible (it was super easy to clean!) just dated. 

the best pic I could get of the shower. Although it wasn't exactly small, it was very claustrophobic. Also notice the second shower head in the middle of the wall. Never really figured out its intended use, but it came in super handy for bathing dogs and 3 year olds.

This was my beautiful closet. yikes. 

And this is the inside of my beautiful closet. 

The toilet room. Look at that nice little window that was always closed off from the rest of the room. such a waste of natural light. 

 Our vanity. pay no mind to the ridiculous amount of toiletries. Sadly, that is just a fraction of the total. 

The main closet in the back there. Built-in ironing board on the wall. Don't think it's ever been used because I refuse to buy things that need ironing. 

notice the beautiful flooring...

Drumroll please. 

Here is our bathroom now!! You can see that we knocked out most of the walls. Removed the "room" enclosing the toilet. Opened up the shower. 

We tore out the linen cabinet and replaced it with this beauty. 

This was literally the ONLY tub we found that would fit in this space. Luckily we liked it. We NEVER used our old tub. It was jetted and I just have issues when I think about what could be in the jets. I never feel like they are clean. but...enough about me and my issues. for now. I am looking forward to soaking in this baby. 

This beast replaced my ugly closet. I love it. We each have a bank of drawers plus we share the closet (after some rearranging to make it much more efficient). Pay no mind to the decorations in here. That will be left to another paycheck. These were thrown up there to get them off of our bedroom floor. I am excited to decorate and bring some color into the space. 

We painted all the woodwork in the space a cream with a dark brown glaze. We replaced our vanity top with granite and got new sinks and faucets. Welcome to this decade Mr. Vanity. 

This is quite possibly my favorite thing in here. This is ceramic tile made to look like wood!!! Best.idea.ever! They have so many styles to chose from. You can get virtually every "wood" look you might want, but with the durability and easy maintenance of ceramic. LOVE IT!

My linen cabinet houses this beauty. I love the idea of having the loads pre-sorted. Plus our old one took up space in the closet. It is nice to have this tucked away so that we don't have to look at it. 

We love the way our shower turned out. Even though the footprint is the same, it feels SO much bigger. One thing that still has to be done is that they are going to replace the shower glass with taller glass. It was supposed to be about a foot taller. 

This handsome devil has two jets that give you a nice soak while you shower. 

The tile we used for this accent band and on the floor were a last minute change of plans. We had picked out some different ones but due to some, let's say "ineptitude", we had tilers there one day to work but the wrong tile for them to install. I had to run to Lowe's to see if they had anything decent in stock. We actually ended up liking this "slate" mosaic and the "copper" accent better than what we had previously picked out. Worked out great. 

My husband picked out these squarish sinks that we love. They add just a little different look. 

So, that is our new bathroom. :) 

Although we definitely questioned our sanity in regard to proceeding with the remodel one week after Bella's birthday, it ended up working out pretty good. I needed to be close to monitor the work, and I was stuck at home anyway recuperating. Plus it totally gave us something else to focus our attention on. And now we have a fresh start for this next chapter in our lives.