Eggo Surprise

Last night, I did what I always do. I went in to check on Noah one last time before going to sleep for the night.

When I walked into his room, the first thing I saw was this on the floor.

And I was just like... whaaa...???

And I suddenly remembered Noah earlier in the day telling me he wanted "paacakes".

Crap.

So I turned on the hall light so I could see a little better and that's when I saw this.

The entire box of Eggo's emptied on the floor.

Completely defrosted.

Not that they would've been salvagable if they hadn't been completely defrosted, but still...

All I could say was "Noahhhhhhhhhhh... whyyyyyyy??????"

And this is all the response I got.

Little punk.

Shiny New Pouch

This is the newest item added to my etsy store!

It's such a cute little pouch that I knitted up for my mom for Valentine's day. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to give it to her on V-day because I ran out of yarn (Ugh!!!). So, I had to wait for my new shipment of yarn to come in before I could finish it.

So, last night I completed it and I just LOVE it.

It's made with a shiny cotton/modal blend yarn and it's super soft.

It's perfect for jewelry, hair accessories or anything else you could think of to store or carry around in it! :)

Custom Napkin Rings WINNER

The winner of the adorable custom made napkin rings is.....

Congratulations, Mrs. Northrup, YOU are the WINNER!! :)

Now, email me or facebook me and let me know what colors you want your flowers to be. ;)

Yummy Smoothies

I have been wanting to know how to make smoothies for a while.

This may sound ridiculous to you guys, because everytime I would express this yearning to my mom, she's all... just throw stuff in a blender and blend.

Unfortunately, I DO NOT work that way. I must have a recipe. A very clear direction. I do not just throw things in the pot and hope for the best.

So, I finally tried this concoction out and I must say... it came out quite well.

I took my blender and cleaned some strawberries, blueberries, apple, and grapes and threw those in there.

Then I added a few spoonfuls of yogurt, a big squeeze of honey, splashed in some milk and put in a glass of ice and hit the puree button.

Emma had to have hers in her princess glass, which meant that Noah had to have HIS in a princess glass.

The kids loved it and I loved it and this is going to SERIOUSLY make us a healthier household.

We love fruit, but we are not big vegetable fans. I mean, we will eat them and we DO eat them, but the three of us sometimes get lost in the land of chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese. Or I'll eat a turkey sandwich and they'll eat Chef Boyardee.

These are not the best eating practices, but that's what happens when Tony's not here. I don't always cook big meals several times a week. I cook a big meal once or twice a week and we eat leftovers and whatever we happen to eat the rest of the time.

If you have yummy smoothie recipes or ideas, please leave them in the comments, because I want to learn more and be healthier. I loved that my kids loved these smoothies. It made my heart smile that they were loving it and begging for more.

Pioneer Woman

I have been a follower of Pioneer Woman's for a while now. Years, actually.

I'm sure all of you are as well. Who isn't?

BUT I've never been a daily reader. I've been a once a weeker, maybe. Let's face it, she blogs many times a day on many topics and I just can't keep up. So, I would usually pick a favorite to read about each week.

Well. Then I saw that she'd published this here book. And I've always been fascinated by her and her Marlboro Man, so I downloaded the sample to my iPad to give it a shot.

Can I just say that I'm fully engrossed. I actually chose reading yesterday for a few hours over knitting... and eating... and well, everything that needed to be done in my house.

I kept busting out laughing and Emma would startle from the couch and just say, "Mooooommm!!! Is it that book again??".

This book is so great. So fun and lighthearted and sweet. I'm really enjoying the story so much. I will now be a daily reader, I'm sure. I highly recommend it.

Oh, and if you're in my book club. Sorry. I am supposed to be reading The Kitchen House right now. And I am going to, but it was Valentine's Day and all... and well, I just wanted a little bitta romance in my life for a bit. ;)

25 THINGS...

you should know about me... that you probably don't already know...

if we're going to be friends. :)

1. i love cheese. it's my favorite food group.

2. i want four kids. halfway there.

3. i used to play the clarinet.

4. i'm my mom's only child, which means i was raised an only child.

also, my mom was only 19 when she had me, so growing up, we kind of had as much of a sibling type of relationship as we had a mother/daughter relationship.

now that i'm grown, i prefer her to just be my mom.

5. this goes along with number 4... i've never liked any of the guys

my mom has dated.

never.

i always find reasons for them to FAIL in my book. this new guy, though, seems like he might make the cut. it only took 32 years to find one that would pass the test. ha! ;)

6. i am constantly teaching myself new things.

i really can't get enough of learning.

and i love buying books about how to do things i'm interested in. love, love, love it.

7. i've been married TEN years this year and i married him (tony) after i'd only even known him 8 months. and this was after just ending a 5 year relationship. wow.

however, after knowing him for only like a weekend, i told my mom

i was pretty sure i was gonna marry him.

8. i love to play scrabble.

and

i'm kinda good. really.

9. i hate seafood and i grew up at the beach. go figure. i do like shrimp, but that's IT!

10. i now live on a sod farm and LOVE it.

11. i've owned 5 Hondas in my life and you could never convince me that they're not the best.

unless i one day get a Volvo (which for some reason is my dream car) i'm pretty sure i'll ALWAYS drive a Honda.

12. i'm the oldest of 10 grandchildren on one side and 7 grandchildren on the other. spoiled? not. at. all. (ask tony)

13. i'm really bad at putting up the laundry. i let it pile and pile and pile in the laundry room until most of our drawers are empty and my mom gets frustrated with me and just puts it away for me.

what's funny about this is that she didn't even put away my laundry when i was growing up. now that i'm all big and stuff, she does it for me, though. ;)

love my mommy. ha! ;)

14. i do not do old food. let me explain. i will let leftovers that have been in the fridge longer than say... 3 days stay in said fridge... forEVER before I am the one to throw them away.

old leftovers make me throw up.

15. believe is my favorite word.

16. when i was in first grade, i thought it was the coolest thing ever that my mom's name was LINDA JONES, my step-mom's name was LINDA JONES, and my teacher's name was LINDA JONES.

i pretty much told EVERY person i came into contact with this fact for the entire year.

17. my mom calls me 500 times a day. and she gets annoyed when this annoys me... know why i just thought of that? because she just called me for the third time... this hour.

that's okay, though, it's part of her charm...

and i love her, yes i do. :)

18. purple is my favorite color

19. i love dogs with floppy ears. they're my favorite.

20. i could watch the golden girls all day and if they're not on, just give me some true crime show (i.e. forensic files, disappeared, dr. g medical examiner, dateline, i shouldn't be alive, i survived, etc...) and i'm in pure heaven.

21. in my life before kids, i was a 6th grade english teacher. i loved the kids, loved the teachers i taught with even more, but hated the politics.

22. i'm obsessed with diet pepsi.

23. i have one thing i order at each restaurant i like and that's what i always order and nothing else.

24. i went to college at ECU. the same university as the lovely, sandra bullock. i think that's pretty fabulous, because she is pretty fabulous.

25. i would love to publish a book one day. i love to write. i have great ideas. but i have a really hard time taking a novel from start to finish. therefore, i doubt i'll ever write a novel, but you never knowwwww !!! :)

in summary...

i am very much a free spirit. i go where my whims blow me. but in saying that, i am also very grounded. and committed.

does that make sense?

i try very hard to always have an open mind.

always evolving, always learning. that's what i want my life to be defined by.

i love meeting new people and adopting new ideas.

i love getting to know you and i hope this blog has helped you know a little more about me!! :)

now... what should i know about YOU???

p.s. don't forget to enter my giveaway... it ends thursday!!! :)

This week on my phone...

head on over to the hussy's page and link up! ;)

noah is always the star of the show when it comes to my phone pictures.

why?

because he's a stinker and he's always into mischief and

THOSE MAKE THE BEST PICTURES.

so please don't be fooled and think i play favorites.

i totally do NOT

it's just that emma always looks like this...

and noah always looks like this...

and this...

and this...

(do you see his cute pottery barn chair in the kitchen? you know what he mainly uses that chair for? climbing onto things to... yup... get into mischief... he also uses emma's for this purpose... see above )

this is just one of the reasons you are CRAZY if you don't enter my GIVEAWAY

i made those wee mary jane slippers. aren't they precious?

here's noah bein bad again.

*sigh*

this is him throwing a fit while thrashing around on top of his poor, sweet, innocent sister on the couch. you can see her legs and feet if you look hard enough.

this is when he's best.

when him's sweepin. ;)

i can't wait to see what's on your phone!! :)

Now don't forget to look below and enter my GIVEAWAY!!! :)

Also, I have a super fun post coming up tomorrow, you must come back to see!! :)

GIVEAWAY Monday!!

today's giveaway is brought to you by...

that's right, friends... i've opened an etsy shop. :)

i'm super, duper excited about this endeavor and i truly can't wait to see all that happens with it! i'm so in love with knitting and the peace and true happiness it brings me. you have no idea how happy i am everytime i embark on a new pattern and i see the garment or item taking shape. it gives me the giggles and anything that gives you the giggles is worth keeping around for a while.

SO

the etsy shop is not very stocked at the moment, in fact there is only ONE listing right now.

that's right, ONE.

that's okay, though, because by the end of the week, that will not be the case! :) i have lots more things in the works and you know that you guys will be the first ones to know when new items are added to the shop. ;)

Now for the giveaway...

welcome to my cozy little breakfast nook...

decorating my table so prettily are these beautiful knit napkin rings

(note:: the anthropologie napkins they are hugging are NOT part of the giveaway. sorry. i love those. and i got them in NYC which makes them ever so special.)

i am giving away a set of four of these babies. you can choose your OWN colors, as you won't be getting these pictured, because THESE are MINE. ;) you will be getting your very own freshly knit set.

how do you enter you ask?

usually i would not ask you to become a follower of this blog as a part of entering the contest, but this time i must, because from this point on, this blog will be part of how i advertise and make announcements for my etsy store, so i would like for you to please subscribe to this blog if you are going to enter the giveaway.

with that said, here are the rules to enter the contest...

1. announce the contest on your facebook and/or blog, each place you announce it will earn you an entry.

2. become a follower of this blog (if you aren't already) and that will be an entry.

3. for those of you who are already subscribed to this blog, you may earn an extra entry for each person that you REFER to this blog and who then becomes a follower. did that make sense? hope so. ;)

4. tell me in the comments section what color(s) you'd like your flower petals to be IF you win this contest. that will also get your name in the pot again.

so, you really have an endless amount of entry possibilities here.

also, if you become a new follower because of this contest, you can still earn the extra entries by referring others. don't be shy, i love meeting new friends!!

thanks so much for your help, guys, i'm so excited about this little etsy shop of mine!! :)

oh, and the contest ends THURSDAY MIDNIGHT

winner announced FRIDAY!! :)

have fun, hope you win!! :)

Just you WAIT!!!

monday something super special is going to happen on this here blog.

there's going to be a giveaway and it's going to be super duper fantastic!!

why, you ask?

because it's going to be something handmade by yours truly...

i'm so excited about this!!!!

i can only hope you will be too and tell everyone you know to come on by and take a looksie and see what cool new thing i've made and am going to giveaway.

mark your calendars and come see me on MONDAY!!! :)

oh, and it may or may not have something to do with this favored corner of goodies in my room...

are you excited??

you should be. ;)

today...

* i added an about me section to my photography website. i don't know why i waited this long to do that. i've been meaning to do it forever. i hope it doesn't sound too lame. i'm not great at describing myself.

* i am super stressed about a big change that is potentially happening to our family in the next two weeks. i'm terrified and i just want some resolution. i'm not good at accepting the unknown or change. change is not a friend of mine. never has been.

* i am also not great at waiting. i'm waiting and waiting for some yarn i ordered to arrive. it's needed to complete the valentine's day gift i'm knitting my mom and i can't finish it until it's here. that. sucks.

* i am so thankful to my mom for taking emma to school each day this week. her doing that for me keeps me from having to wake a sleeping grouch (aka noah), thereby giving me a much, much more peaceful morning. thanks mama. love you.

* i'm hoping that when i get on the elliptical in just a few minutes that my lungs respond appropriately. unfortunately, they're quite weakened from the sickness that we've had around here and my first two attempts at working out this week were not very successful.

* one bright spot right now? i'm making some super duper cute napkin rings to go on the anthropologie napkins i bought in new york. i have one done and one more half way done. when they are a complete set of four, i shall share. :)

*that's it... hope you guys are having a great day...

My Phone... the past few weeks

it's tuesday, so that means it's time to play...

and link up with my friend jess, the hussy. you should play too, it's fun. ;)

the plague that we were cursed with prevented me from blogging normally the past few weeks, so i'm a bit behind. i'm only including my favorite phone pics, because a lot of them are boring pics of sickos that i only took to send to tony in iraq to show him how sick we are to get some sympathy. hee hee ;)

sometimes noah and i go to mc d's to have breakfast together after we take emma to school.

this was one such morning.

one evening noah went missing and when i found him, he was in my bed with a container of turkey chowing down.

weird kid. ;)

pepper likes to sleep in the pillows piled beside my bed.

i don't blame her, it looks pretty cozy.

emma recently lost ANOTHER tooth. i swear, if the girl doesn't slow down, she's going to need dentures.

noah got percy the train caught up in his gorgeous locks one night.

this was the result.

looks painful.

noah has this thing about him that's very disturbing.

when he runs a fever, he develops a rash. a very scary looking rash.

this is like the ... i don't know the exact number.... but this has happened to him numerous times in his short life, however, this past sunday it was the worst that it's ever been.

usually it's just on his belly or just on his legs or just on his back or butt or .... you get it... concentrated on one body part. however, with the plague we've had, he had a fever from thursday to sunday and when we woke up sunday, he was covered.

and i do mean COVERED in red splotchy raised rash. it was horrifying. even though this has happened to him a lot and his doctor told me that this just happens to some kids in reaction to a fever, it was still so scary to me.

every surface of his body was covered in this.

however, he woke up monday and the fever was gone and along with it this rash.

he was a brand new boy.

thank god.

and that's it for my phone pics! now i'm off to check out everyone else's! :)

My Valentines

emma is such an awesome little girl. she has a huge heart, she never gets mad, she loves everyone and everything, and she's such a great and loving and forgiving big sister.

she is a huge help at home to me when tony is away. there's nothing i ask of her that she won't at least attempt to do and she'll forgive her brother any injustice no matter how large or how small.

i don't know what I did to deserve a child such as her, but i am so thankful everyday to God for choosing me as her mother.

she loves barbies, princesses, horses (and all other animals), the color pink, macaroni and cheese, and her family... most of all her brother.

i think my most favorite thing about her is that she promises she'll never leave me. she'll always live in this house with me and she'll be my baby forever. she promised. i'm holding her to it.

noah. mischievous, rotten, sweet and precious. he has such a temper, but he's so sweet about it that you can't get mad at him. he has his mommy wrapped around his little fingers and he knows it.

he loves his "tom banket" (thomas the train blanket) and he will not sleep without it and his sassy (pacifier). he loves trains, toy story, and nemo. he's all boy.

he won't go outside unless he has a hat on his head and he's prone to pointing his finger at you and telling you what for.

my favorite thing about him is that he loves his mommy best. ;)

tony. he's loyal, easygoing, sweet (most of the time), and he loves me. i know i'm a lucky girl to have him as my hubby. he makes big sacrifices for us and i know i'm lucky he's willing to do that for us.

my favorite thing about him is that he's completely the opposite of me. let's face it, i could not make it for 10 minutes being married to someone as high strung, independent, and opinionated as i am. i love him and he's perfect for me.

happy valentine's day.

did u guess??

so, thanks for the feedback from last night's post... i really appreciate the fact that no one showed up at my door this morning to have me commited. you guys are great! ;)

now...

if you guessed the other day that it was a LEGWARMER i was making.... you were so right! ;)

now I just have to make the other one... lol... that's the only thing that's not fun about making things in pairs. when you finish the first one, you have to start all over again and make one to match.

also, i'm pretty excited about this legwarmer and that it turned out so nicely, because i made this pattern up on my own. i couldn't find a legwarmer pattern i liked, so i just winged it and it turned out great! always nice when that happens.

and do you recall in my first post on learning to knit that i wanted to make that awesome advent calendar for next christmas for my babies? the one that is made of a string of mittens?

oh yeahhhh.....

i got that one DOWN! :) now i just have to make 49 more mittens and the garland to string them on. i have until thanksgiving, though, so it's ON! :)

*****

an update on our plague... noah is still such a sick boy. and it's really worrying me. a super healthy teenage athlete in raleigh died this past week of the flu. when i saw that on the news last night, it really freaked me out.

i sent emma to school for only the second time this week yesterday and i was called to pick her up due to her throwing up. she seems okay today, though.

noah had such a hard time falling asleep last night. he couldn't quit coughing and he kept on waking up crying and really angry because of it. it was so sad.

please pray that my babies are well and back to normal by monday. i'm really SO over our house being an emergency room. it freakin sucks!