*pic from here

Ya know what's not fun? Being sick with coughing, a headache, a sore throat, AND having two sweet kids who have coughs and heads full of snot.

Im not totally out of commission. But walking around with a headache is no fun. Theraflu is usually always my friend, but it puts me to sleep. So none of that for me today.

Thank goodness I went grocery shopping last night. Its a pajama wearing, movie watching, chili eating kind of day.

And, I think I will take a nap at 2:00 when the kids do. 

Oh, on a good note, we are headed to the Old Baker Farm in Harpersville next Saturday with some friends! They have mazes, both the hay and corn variety.  Im excited! Pumpkin Patches are so much fun, are you going to any this year?

Time for an upgrade

This morning when I was unloading the dishwasher I noticed a little trend. We have a LOT of these guys

When George and I first got married we had cute glasses and dinnerware from Pier1. Sadly, NONE of the glasses are still with us, and only 3 or 4 plates remain.

 

While I love the fact that we have a beautiful collection of Newk's cups, I think it would be nice to get some pretty glasses and plates again. I have been keeping my eye out for an old china cabinet and the thrift that I can paint up, but haven't had any luck recently. 

 

Look at these Anthro beauties I would like to fill a cabinet with.

 

Verdant Acres plates. $10-$16 

Kamala dessert plates. $12

Atom Art Bowls. $8

 

Fleur-Dy-Lys Tumbler. $8

 

Dandelion Greens Flatware. $24

Oh, one can dream. Maybe every time I go to the Summit I will buy one plate, or bowl. Then in five years or so I will have a complete set to fill the china cabinet I dont have. Ha!

I would like you to meet....Ron

 No, not this Ron. But he is the inspiration for the picture below.

 

 This is Ron.

I made this guy when Lucy was napping this morning and I am SO glad we now have a designated place for our keys! We used to have a little red table (we call it the "LTR". we like abbreviations) in our entry way where I ALWAYS put my keys. But whenever George drives my car he will put them in random spots in the house and then when I need to go somewhere I spend 30 minutes trying to hunt them down. It is so aggravating! Boom, Mustache. Problem solved.

Here he is on my freshly painted wall.

Oh, yea, he is also a chalkboard!

And guess what people..........Ron has a twin!

And since there are only two drivers in this home, we do not need Ron's twin to stay with us.

SOOO, who wants him?

Leave a comment on this post telling me your fav Parks and Rec character and your email, and I will pic a winner on Friday! 

Im also hoping to have a couple of these guys and some other designs in my etsy shop by the end of this month. 

But,  I will have a booth @ The Beanstalk Music Festival at The Innerchange on October 29. My friend Emily and I are doing a booth together, come check us out!

And speaking of giveaways, my friend Jenny is doing one on her blog too, go check it out!

My three fav characters on Parks and Rec:

Tom, Ron, and Andy. In that order.

I heart Italian food

Last night for date night we went up to my most favorite restaurant ever. Cafe Lazio

But we went to the Summit to shop it up first and didnt roll in to the Lazio til about 9:20. They were done cooking :( BOO!

So since I didnt get my Bake Ziti with Meat Sauce fix I am going to attempt to make it tonight!

Yet another thing Pinterest is good for: Recipes. 

Really, if you aren't already on Pinterest, what the crap are you waiting for?! Design ideas, clothing ideas, party ideas, recipes, craft ideas, hair styles, the list goes on.

So I searched Baked Ziti on Pinterest and this image popped up everywhere

  *pic from here

Looks amazing huh? It doesnt quite look like Cafe Lazio's and I am a bit concerned because in the blog post she said used Sour Cream instead of Ricotta cheese. HMMM, I know for a fact that C.L. uses Ricotta. I hope i like it. Plus, not really sure Target even carries Ricotta. I know they dont carry Marscopone. You know, the amazing cheese thats in Tiramisu. My favorite dessert ever.

I REALLY love Italian food. 2nd in line is Mexican. 3rd is Greek. But I CANT stand Asian food. Sometimes when I tell people that they will say, "Oh fill in the blank restaurant  isn't Asian, it's Japanese." Poor moron. Then I have to tell them that Japan is Asian. 

Anyway, after our dinner tonight we are taking the kids to the bonfire! I am an Alabama fan as I should be living in TTown. I think Auburn fans are gross and I love it when we win. But I just cant get into dressing the part. I dont really care about Alabama t-shirts, and houndstooth can move on. I know, dont shoot me. I realize I am the weird one. I just cant rock the houndstooth. Maybe in a subtle way, like just a small little something. The rest of my outfit would have to be non Alabama though. I did just overcome my fear of leopard print and bought a cardigan. But the rest of my outfit is super casual, like with converse. Im not diva-ish enough to rock leopard print and heels and a ruffled shirt. ps: even if I was a diva, not sure I would rock that combo.

So, wish me luck on my Baked Ziti minus Ricotta. Im hoping its amazing.

Time

 

 *pic from here

 

I am concerned about how I spend my time like most women are concerned about losing weight. I think about it A LOT.

I am constantly trying to find a daily schedule that works for me and my family. Or maybe its a daily routine.

I go back and forth between if I am a routine kind of girl or a schedule kind of girl, I think a little of both.

With the kids sleeping and awake times its pretty much on a schedule. They wake up generally at the same time every day and naps are on the dot at 9:00 am for Lucy and 2-5 pm for Ryder AND Lucy.

Even yesterday I was out running some errands and I had one more stop to make at Target. I only needed 6 things, but it was 1:50. I was passing right by Target and it took everything I had to make myself just run in really quick, grab the items and come home. I was freaking out about not being home @ 2:00 for her nap. So, she was about 30 min late going to sleep, and was a MONSTER in Target. 

 I would like to make a schedule out for my day, and how and what I should clean, and what I should be doing at this certain time, but nothing ever sticks.

I guess I just like consistency. I know that things in life happen that throw our whole schedule out the window, and thats ok. But on the boring, day to day times when nothing special is happening I like having something to guide me.

So, do you have a routine or schedule you follow? Ive heard "meat in the morning" like get all your daily chores out of the way early. And I have tried that, and it works......but if I dont get to check my email, read the blogs I like and whatever in the a.m......well, I just HATE IT!! haha! I guess thats something I need to talk to Jesus about. 

 

Attention! :SALE:

Im sure you all got this email too, but in case you didnt, that little image above is from Anthro :)

Extra 25% off the sale? Oh, Date night will be happening @ The Summit tomorrow.

PLUS! I went to Urban Outfitters Monday night while George and Ryder were at Skate Church and all of their sale is an EXTRA 50% off! WHAT! I had Lucy with me so I wasn't able to thoroughly look through everything, but I did come away with a couple of $40 area rugs for $5! And a pair of dressy shorts for $5! I wore them with tights yesterday, perfect for fall.

In case you didnt know Im the master at finding sales. It really does seem like I always stumble into stores when they are having awesome deals like an extra 50% off.

Aside from my awesome purchases yesterday I have gotten Ryder and Lucy Gap jeans for $2 and $4, socks from the Gap for the kids for 50 cents a pair and Gap leggings in every color and pattern for $2 each. 

I guess you CAN get deals that good or better at the Thrift Store, but they are worn, or you have to DIG DIG DIG. Im not into digging. It stresses me out. My friend Devin can go into the thrift and find brand new GOOD stuff for cheapo, she is a thrift warrior. 

I feel like I have been buying new clothes a bunch lately, but when I can have an entire new outfit, including shoes, for under $30 then its ok right?!

Next on the list for the kids clothes, Ryder needs some new jeans. And some more Toms, his have holes in them. 

Have you bought anything awesome lately that was a super good deal?! Tell me!

Now, I am off to fold my MOUNTAIN of laundry and catch up on GLEE!

ps: who else is sad Sam is gone?

A few of my favorite things

Since fall is officially here in the south I started thinking of my most favorite fallish things.

 

First, MUMS! I  just love mums. I bought two huge pots at Home Depot a couple of weekends ago. I love that they last for forever, are HUMUNGO and are super cheap! 

2nd: Caramel Apple Cider! The best kind was at the coffee shop I used to work at. We had this awesome whipped cream called On Top. It was in a huge bag like a pastry bag and was the perfect thing to put on hot drinks because the drink didnt melt it. Oh, if only they sold that crap in the grocery store.

  3rd: Pumpkins! And Harry Potter is always appropriate no matter what the season. I think I want to do a kind of modern pumpkin this year. Maybe something like this:

I really like the large white one. I mean of course I will let Ryder pick out a design for us to carve. But as far as decorating my porch, I think that one is a winner.

 

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Side note: In the middle of this blog post Lucy started waking up from her morning nap. I decided to let her play in there for a few more minutes. Then I heard a HUGE thud. Ran in her room to find her OUT of her crib walking towards me. Yep. I guess we need to lower her crib again.

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Also, we are repainting our porch, shutters, and front door. Remember how I said they were a dirty red color? Well, I dont know if we should just pick a different shade of red or go with something different all together. Our house is light gray. The red is pretty with a gray house, but just want to weigh all our options. Got a suggestion for me? Tell me now, because I am about to dress Lucy and head out for lunch and then Home Depot for some paint! 

Oh, also, I think I am making a trip to Urban tonight to check out whats on sale. Any bham friends wanna meet me? 

BYE!