Elfy . . . Pronounced "EL-FEE"

Last year, Elfy twisted in the lights around the window

He also hung out in Junior's stocking!

(I think he also made his way into the doggy one at one point too!)

This year . . . who knows where he will end up hiding!
. . . . Yes, Elfy is just about to make his debut back in time for the real start of the Christmas season.

That's right folks, AFTER Thanksgiving!

We will not turn our Christmas lights on until November 28th!
We will not begin our hunt for a tree until the first week of December.
And Elfy will not make his appearance until . . . . Thanksgiving night!


However, we did get a head start on our Christmas shopping.
And Daddy brought our Target flyer with us. . . you know the fabulous TOY catalog.
We carefully went over the circled items together. Knowing Junior knows he wont get EVERYTHING that he circled.

Next week will be teacher conferences, and we know he has had an awesome beginning to the school year. So Daddy picked out this little token, Winter Outfit

This will be Elfy's new outfit I'm sure!

Junior also asked for this Aviator Set, which will be the outfit he arrives in Thanksgiving night

I wouldn't put it past Junior to combine the two outfits as well!

 

 

Cant wait to update with pictures of our creepy Elfy in his new attire!

 

 

Christmas Shopping. . . Yuck!

Being a Stay At Home "MOM" has its advantages. And definitely some disadvantages as well.

Shopping any day, during school & without children is definitely a HUGE bonus!
Especially when you have to buy those sneaky gifts that they MUST not know you bought.
*cough cough* stocking stuffers *cough cough*

This year Daddy decides that he will join me in shopping for Junior!
Definitely put a huge smile on my face.
1. Because he is helping
2. Because I think it is important for him to choose a gift for HIS son
3. Because he will understand the stress level of getting gifts that the child wants (not what HE wants, as an adult)


However, I have been selfish and wanted to make Christmas shopping into a date night.
You know, NO kids and checking out the sparkly stuff in the stores and walking through a mall with all of the stores decorated pretty . . . AFTER Thanksgiving.


Well, that didn't happen. We ended up going shopping with our 9 month old great nephew.
(He was very well behaved!)  And we ended up going on a Monday, during the day, in the POURING rain!. . . . Not as "romantic" as I had hoped. But we did make the best of it!


Three great things that came out of this trip:
1. Daddy picked some really cool gifts for Junior
2. We spent time together with the baby, which I love watching him with the little man!
3. Daddy now understands why I go shopping during the week, during school and even in the rain!

(oh yeah, #4. Daddy also treated me to a lunch and helped with groceries since we were already out!)


I think know that I have an amazing boyfriend.
And Junior has an amazing daddy!

Gardening = Commitment

"To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow" ~ Audrey Hepburn

And with that said, gardening is my biggest hope in my life right now.
After the last year, the rough patches, and a difficulty believing in myself,
I have found that gardening is something that makes me proud!
(especially when all else fails)


When we moved into the new house, there was this lame "sunroom"
and I wasn't too sure about it. It was small, cold and seemed like a waste of space.
However, this "room" is one of my favorite places to be.

I've decorated the room with a Keurig machine, K-cups, mugs and a toaster on one long table.
And against the "windows" I have placed a table from my father's deceased mother (Grammy)
On that table, I have chosen sunflowers to be the quilted table runner.

I love the room. But what I love even more about that room, is what I do in there.
It has been taken over by seed packets, popsicle sticks for labeling, stray black markers and
of course, a HUGE variety of planters, pots and containers.

Now that yard sale season is over, I've begun a hobby in miniature/fairy gardening.
I want to grow my seeds in the sunroom, purchase plants from other greenhouses and begin this new hobby unlike most others. With this hobby, I am going to COMPLETE my projects!

We have completed one Gnome garden already! I cant wait to post pictures.

But so far, a lot of seeds are beginning to sprout and there is plenty of green coming from the ivy cuttings and the herbs I have brought inside.

Hoping for a success with these plants, that are always seeming to keep me busy :)

Water, Sunshine, Repeat!


(Maybe I was a plant in a previous life. I do love my showers & sunshine!!)

Clematis - an outdoor plant, but it was BEAUTIFUL this year!

Some of my beginner herbs! They are growing out of control

Parsley, front & center ;) With a few more pots in the back.

Everything about this room screams NATURAL, the wood on the wall, the dark green floor, and of course all of these plants. Like the succulent above :) Don't know the name for it, but it is constantly shooting off new pieces.

Halloween (a little late)

This year was a first for us.  .  .  .  . as we are still trying to make our own traditions and settle down into our new life as a family of three (full time).

We decided to give trick or treating a whirl and come up with a plan of some sort. So we started off by visiting aunts, uncles, 'grandparents', another aunt, and Junior suggested that he wanted to go "real trick or treating, like the kind where you go to someone's door and say 'trick or treat'"

So we did. We left my aunts house, hit a few houses in her neighborhood and he was thrilled! Daddy, not so much! But he let him do it anyway and watched us from in the car!

Our last stop was at a close family friends house. She gave Junior a couple of special Halloween sugar cookies, a Lego friends kit, some candy, and of course she shared her TV and frozen pizza with him as well.

Seriously, I love our extended family, and over generous friends. Nights like Halloween made me happy this year. Seeing that smile on our child's face, knowing that we did something with him that made him that happy. . . . Satisfaction!


(and as a side note, EVERYONE knew he was Clark Kent and loved his costume. . . felt good to take the credit for that too!)

Whoooooooooooo loves you?

Owl always love you!


Corny, yes! But everything Junior likes is owls, minions and gnomes. Okay, he is still sort of on an American Girl doll kick too!

But he really likes owls. And there are so many owls out now, its crazy! But everything with owls is more pink/purple than green/blue/yellow or orange.

I decided a few months ago that I was going to sew him a blanket. An owl blanket. This was NO easy task (and still isn't complete!)

I went on fabric.com and decided to order some adorable minky green fabric and some owl print cotton fabric. When they arrived, I couldn't wait to get started on a new snuggly blanket!

However, I suck at sewing. That is not just my own personal opinion, I actually barely passed my "Home Economics" class in high school because I just couldn't sew :)

Guess who (with a little help from Daddy) was able to use the sewing machine and make a blanket? . . . That's right, ME!

We managed to get three out of four sides sewn. I really hope Junior loves it!



Except Daddy told me, "Do you ever feel like you overdo things? Like, become obsessed with owls like he does, and go crazy buying him things?"

Of course I blurted out, "I just want to make the damn kid happy, okay!?!" 

In my own words, I will spoil him if I want to. (Even if Daddy thinks I am going to 'ruin' the owl phase)