Thirteen Years today!
Category Archives: life
Christmas Portrait with the Most Cooperative Kid Ever…
I am being sarcastic, of course…
He refused to sit in the nice chair, so this it the one from the play table in the waiting area.
His dramatic reaction to the flash!
More Drama, until I found Hersey Kisses in my purse…. which explains the next picture.
Can you say, “Awkward Family Photo!”
At this point, the photographer wanted to change the backdrop and take more pictures. I told her I thought we had done enough. She proceeded to tell me that if I stopped now, “I would not get the whole portrait session experience”. OMG!!!lady. We just gave you the whole session experience. We gave the whole store the “Whole Session Experience”
So here is more to experience….
and here….
and here…. How’s that for an experience?!?
She asked if they could have permission to use these images in their marketing. Oh sure, by all means, use these!
I was going to take him back in a couple weeks to get his 2 year old pictures made, but I don’t think so now. When he is older and is upset with me because I have all these pictures of his brother and not him, I am going to show him these and tell him this is why! (i.e. He is no different at the doctors office or the hair salon, hence the horrible haircut I had to give him.)
Urgent vs. Important
I little while ago, a visiting minister at our church gave a sermon about putting the things that are important in our life aside for things that are urgent. Often times in our busy lives, we tend to put the things that are most important on the back burner so we can deal with the things that are “urgent”. Each day there is something pressing that “needs” to be done and I suppose it will always be that way. I feel like I am most guilty of this. For a while now, there has been this nagging voice in the back of my head repeating these words. “Is this important? Why am I doing this?” The end of the year is always a time for reflection and with the tragedy at Sandy Hook, I seem to be particularly reflective. Those children were Fletcher’s age. Each day that I look at his sweet face and hug and kiss him, I can’t help but think about that. Today I am headed to the school to spend time in a first grade class room with 19 kids making gingerbread houses. Even though it is a moment I will cherish with Fletcher, I cannot help but ache for the parents of the 20 children that won’t get to enjoy a similar experience. It is overwhelmingly sad.
I know that this tragedy has made me more aware of the unpredictability of life and the fleeting moments that we all have and I am determined to put the things that are important in my life ahead of the urgent.
Southern Comfort
I got me some new kickers!
Woobie Beans = Amazing
I participated in a craft show this past spring. It was full of local vendors with some amazing talents. I meet Kelly there. She is the talented lady behind Woobie Beans – hand stamped jewelry. I love the look of the hand stamped jewelry! I am so glad to know that there is a local artist I can go to when I want one for myself or a gift. I love her work and I thought you might too!
Run Forest, Run
So, have you missed me?!? It’s been a little crazy around here. Lots going on. This past weekend, I traveled to Charleston, SC with my mom and some of her friends to do the Cooper River Bridge Run. We did it along with about 44,000 other people. It was pretty awesome. 6.2 miles. Need I say more.
Let’s see…. what else. I have put my sewing machine away. (I know… total shocker, right!) With so much going on around here, I decided to focus on a couple of things at a time. I still have some hand applique to work on, so I’m not completely shutting down the sewing operation, but it has come to a major slow down. First focus… losing weight. I started after Thanksgiving on a diet/exercise plan and have lost 20 lbs., but I have stalled out for about the last month. I’ve regrouped and come up with a new plan with my trainer and it’s gonna get hardcore. (if I live past what he has planned, I might actually start to look like an after picture as opposed to the before) So… that is where most of my energy is going to be for awhile. Focus #2…. operation organization. I. have. got. to. clean. out. this. house. The amount of crap stuff in this house multiplies daily and it is driving me crazy. I don’t want to be on the show Hoarders, so it is going. Be it goodwill, yard sale or the dump, it is outta here!
I’ve missed blogging and sharing my crafty things, but life gets in the way sometimes. Once I get focus 1 and 2 under control, I have lots of ideas of things I want to make and do…..so stay tuned.
-g
Longest Post Ever
Shew… it’s been a little while since I’ve posted. There has been so much going on, I’m not quite sure where to begin. The Holidays were a whirlwind. As much as I tried to get most things done to prepare for the holiday early, I was still making preparations right up to the bitter end. For some reason I had pictured in my mind a December where I would sit back and relax while knitting and quilting by the fire. Uhhh… that didn’t happen. I actually don’t know why I ever thought it would. I managed to get Nolan’s Christmas stocking knitted and hung by the fire with care by the night before Christmas Eve. Nothing like waiting til the 11th hour. I’ll have to post pictures of it later. (I just realized I forgot to take one.) If I am adding it all up correctly, Nolan’s stocking would be the 17th stocking I have knitted for family members over the years. I have an 18th to make this year, as my sister is due in February. Last year I was on bed rest during the holidays, so I think this year I was trying to make up for that. I baked waaay to much, tried to make waaay to many handmade gifts, and ran around completing errands waaay to much. It was Nolan’s first Christmas and I wanted everything to be special and to begin to make some new traditions.
Let’s see… what else. I went ahead and got a jump on my New Years Resolution. This is the year I am going to lose weight. I am damn determined to finally get it off. All 50 lbs. of it! I decided after a shopping trip that I was going to have to get serious about losing weight. I was having trouble fitting into the clothes at store I used to always shop at. Apparently these stores don’t want the big girls sportin’ their style. I used to be a solid size 6. I used to walk in these stores and pick something off the rack and take it home. I wouldn’t even need to try it on. Not so much now. Shirts don’t button up over my boobs and if they do they have that oh so lovely gap. Pants don’t look right, (i.e. muffin top) etc… You know the story. Anyway… it was pretty depressing. So after I binged on some holiday cookies and feeling sorry for myself for a little while, I bit the bullet and got myself a personal trainer. I started my workouts the Monday after Thanksgiving. I know what you’re thinking…the holidays are only like the worst time ever to start a diet, but I figured it was just like any other day. It was just another excuse to not diet. I have been lifting weight with the trainer 3 times a week and following his diet and I am proud to say that as of today, six weeks into it, I am 13 lbs. lighter. I still have a long way to go, but 13 pounds is 13 pounds! (and that is during the holidays… I kinda feel like saying Boo-ya!) Now I am adding in cardio. I’m signing up to do the Cooper River Bridge Run at the end of March. I am making goals and sticking with it. (hide yo boyfriends laaaadies! I’m bringing Sexyback. tee hee.)
Okay, next. Anthony, Nolan, Fletcher, my mom and I did the Running of the Lights at Tanglewood on New Years Eve. It’s a 5.5K race that takes you thru the Festival of the Lights at Tanglewood Park. It starts at midnight and it is a lot of fun. We walked it, but maybe next year I’ll run it. Who knows.
Ummm, what else…. Nolan turns one tomorrow. I can’t believe it’s been a year. At this time last year I was having contractions and trying really hard to deny that I was having contractions. He is such a great baby. I am so lucky to be his and Fletcher’s mom! I’ll post pictures of his party. We are going with the Animal Cookies Theme. It came out kind cute. If anyone has suggestions on how to make red icing with out it tasting super nasty from all the food coloring you have to add to it, I’d be glad to know.
To sum up the longest post ever…. everything is good here, boys are happy and healthy which makes me happy. I’m working on the healthy- that’s top priority. I WANT to quilt. I did not make or finish very many quilts last year and I plan to do better this year. I have some to complete and many I want to start. I have my brain full of new ideas that I want to make for Flaunt. I have tutorials I want to share….blah, blah,blah. I want to thank you all for stopping by my blog and taking the time to read it. It’s kinda a good feeling knowing that there are people out there that stop by.
Oh yeah, that picture way, way, way back up there at the top is the beginnings of a new quilt.
I’ll just say… Swoon, Pat Bravo, Kona. Stay tuned ….
Ummm…Cookies
I’m staying way from all the crazy drivers and long lines out there in the real world. (I went out yesterday and thought I was gonna have to use my ninja skills on some dude. Don’t make me take you down during this festive holiday season, because I will Mr.) I’ll just stay here in my little space…. making cookies. I’ve never made sugar cookies before and my inner Martha Stewart really thought I should give it a try. I came across this beautiful blog and knew I had to. I used her recipe and they tasted very good. (according to my very critical taste tester who is not afraid to give his opinion…a.k.a my husband) Just in case they didn’t turn out, I bought a sugar cookie scented candle. If it went bad, it would still smell all holiday-like up in hur. Now that they are baked… the hard part. I have to decorate them.
Thanksgiving
These are for the kiddos on Thanksgiving. They are going to go at their place at the table. I think this year we are going to have ourselves a little Thanksgiving Day Pageant with all the kids dressed up.
I know that this year I am grateful to be with my family and not in some hospital room. (last year I went into pre-term labor on Thanksgiving Day) I can’t wait to eat my two favorite things, Turnips and my Grandfather’s Stuffing. I only eat turnips once a year, on Thanksgiving. My mom fixes them like nobody’s business. (I actually think that my mom, my grandmother and I are the only ones who partake of the turnips out of the whole clan of 15 people that will be there.) We have Thanksgiving lunch at my in-laws around 11:00 and Thanksgiving “lupper” around 3:00 at my parents. It’s some serious food eatin’ so I will be wearing my “dress-up” sweatpants! Oh- I think I saw some Pajama Jeans for sale at Sears. Maybe I should splurge for some of those for Turkey Day.
What’s Been Going On?
A lot has been going on around the Allen household. Believe it or not, I have gotten all the projects I needed to do for other people completed. I had some projects to finish up and I am not going to take on any more for a while. I am looking forward to catching up with my own projects and spending time celebrating the holidays with my boys. On Sunday, Nolan was baptised. It was a bitter sweet day. On the one hand, we celebrated Nolan’s baptism, but then we had to attend the funeral of a dear friend. It was hard to say goodbye. I think Anthony and I are still feeling a little numb. His passing has been hard to accept. He was truely one of the best men I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.