blogging blues

tonight i was feeling annoyed/depressed about the fact that i've kept this blog since 2007 but in some ways i don't really feel like it amounts to much.  i've come and gone and come back again in my commitment to it, but at the end of the day, i don't keep a journal, i never print any of our photos or make photobooks or scrapbooks, so this is all i've got! doesn't my posterity want to read my blog?? kidding. i just wish i would make a better effort to 1- take better pictures that are not via my iphone and 2- have more consistency with entries that is actually more journal-like. i guess then it makes it seem like i'm assuming anyone cares about anything and everything i might write... so here is your notice: i'm not writing this for you, i'm writing it for me. well, maybe a little bit for you, seeing as how i'm horrible at KIT (keep in touch), so this is the avenue for that as well....anyways, you get my drift. here's to better blogging that i'll actually care about reading in 10 years!

a little entry tonight...

last night we went to my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary celebration. my favorite part had to be the slideshow my aunt put together of all these amazing pictures dating back to who knows when all the way up to this year (the last picture was a cute one of olivia and violet!). i'm the oldest grandchild, so i decided to make a book (i used shutterfly) giving each grandchild a page, where i had a current photo of them alongside their answers to 3 basic questions about our grandparents. it turned out really cute and it was really easy, and my grandparents really liked it. i'm hoping to get my hands on some of the pictures from the slideshow and make a similar book... i think it's a great way to have a "hard copy" of super old photos that otherwise get lost in somebody's junk drawer, you know?

in my own photos, i couldn't find an oldie of me with both my grandparents, but here's one with me and my granddaddy! i don't know why it looks like i have a black eye? 

Mother's Day 2011

Yesterday was a good day. I attempted to sleep in...why is it on days where sleeping in is planned, I can't sleep past 7:30 to save my life, but on all other days when I hear "moooommmyyy!!!" at the same time, I feel like waking up = coming back from the dead??

Adam made me breakfast and had grand plans for my gift presentation involving both girls, but they had to re-write with Violet as the solo act when, around 8:30, Olivia was still snoozing soundly. Of course Violet had no problem charging into our room with a balloon in each hand and necklaces (part of my gift) around her neck. Being the bossy boss that she is, she was very annoyed that I dare try to take the necklaces off of her and was treating the balloons like pets on a leash saying, "commeer! (come here) and "come on!"

Church, family and probably too much food rounded out the day. A belated happy m-day to my own mom who is a top notch listener, helper, opinion-giver, shopping partner, babysitter... The list goes on!

Of course my pics are less than impressive but good memories all the same, right?







The best pic I could get of her running around like a maniac with her balloons....






Oh, Vi isn't smiling, let's try another one...






Yeah, not so much.





I somewhat on accident and somewhat on purpose let Olivia nap until 6pm, so she stayed up for a while to burn off some energy. Adam got this cute pic of her after she saw me reading in the corner and brought her own material (fruit ninja on Adam's iPhone) over to join me. She is my little snuggle girl. She sat there for a while with me. Too cute.



This is the pic that was in my Mother's Day card from preschool. My favorite parts besides how sweetly is smiling are 1- she has some kind of food in her mouth and 2- she could totally use some frizz-ease.... Just like her mama!

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dear target:

stop tempting me. my children need NO MORE SHOES. they have an embarrassing amount as it is. you are only lucky that my store didn't have them in the right sizes when i was there last. and they are sold out online. ugh. i cannot resist. there aren't word to describe the cuteness of these on violet's fat little feet. there is a whole new slew of cute toddler shoes right now, but these were my favorite.

tubby time

both my girls (especially violet) love to be their craziest in the tub for some reason. i had to be careful snapping these pictures because at any given moment, violet could've tried some crazy move for the camera and knocked her teeth out. she is trouble. she likes to say, "splash? no!" and then do it anyway. olivia has taken to using violet as her test dummy.. she likes to make her do or wear things and dump water on her head instead of her own. violet is fortunately amused...for now.

olivia likes to do these little half dunks in the water to pretend she's swimming. not quite brave enough to put her whole face in. :)

basically i just posted this instead of posting about easter because i'm too tired to sort through all my pictures. i think i just need to stop taking so many pictures... then i wouldn't have this problem! 

good times in the backyard

we bought our house last june and moved in around august or september, after some renovating. i can honestly say that this week was the first time we actually really,truly utilized the backyard. lest you think every person in florida has a pool, here are pictures to prove that is not the case...exactly. some of us have a $9.99 kiddie pool from target plus a slide for some real fun. olivia and violet weren't sure what to think of this newfound land to explore but they love it now. the other day olivia was trying to climb through the window in the living room to get to the backyard. need to familiarize her with those darn back doors that she's never been through until this week since apparently we are hermits and stay indoors 24/7. truth be told, i didn't realize how great of shape (relatively speaking) the yard is actually in, which brought me to a more reasonable comfort level in terms of traipsing around in it. anyway, the pool, slide and bouncy balls in the grass were a hit and we'll definitely be doing this more often. playing outside at your OWN house- who knew!? much better than packing up and going to the park some days. do i sound like as big of an idiot as i feel like as i type this? although i have a list of 50 items large and small that i still want to do around this house, i was definitely feeling lucky this week that we have it as good as we do just the way it is. kudos to adam for working day and night (literally) to get us this little joint! we were laughing the other day when we were laying in bed, both on our phones...adam doing work email and me looking at stuff for the house online... money in, money out! good times.

ok, enjoy the pics.

 olivia chose to slide in with the popcorn she had been eating poolside (and the stupid binky which she has gotten reattached to recently after being sick... kill me)

 violet was quite happy to catch the bowl and have a little snack in the water!

no shoes, no shorts? no problem in the backyard!

note sure why we've failed to remove these random blocks from the back of the house but olivia had a good time climbing on them and saying "marching on the bricks!!" sure thing!

PS- on a side note... need a little reader poll...since there are so many of you and all. below is the TV wall in our house. i've been debating what to do above the TV for a while. i feel like it needs something to close that area in..doesn't have to be huge, obviously.. just something. i've thought about a clock, some series of 3, continuing the photos to the left with more frames, a DIY art piece that i should link to show you but i won't.... and who knows what else. any ideas??????? ps if you're wondering if that is a box of spaghetti next to the TV, it is. violet brought it to me and said, "cack-oo?" (cracker). good try, baby vi!

I am soo crafty

Just bought 2 of these...




...to make 2 of these!





Wish me luck! We had the same Easter baskets all growing up and while I am definitely known to dump any and all things holiday into my cart at Target, I'd like to take a more long-lasting, sentimental approach to the Easter baskets, the Christmas stockings, etc. Mmmk? Here's to finishing this task before Olivia's 3rd Easter and Violet's 2nd! Better late than never, right?

Tutorial here if you're interested.

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FYI

I act like anyone reads my blog for recommendations on anything. I am aware that is not quite the case, but I don't have much else to blog about so I thought I'd share these few things...

Love these. Nothing more annoying than trying to make a grilled cheese with a slice of cheese that doesn't fill up the bread. And, they are the same as the regular slices as far as nutrition goes. They're just a little thinner, which I like better anyway.

These are really good. I'm not sure if the "Flat Out" brand is sold everywhere, but it's definitely at Publix for my FL friends.

Totally invested $3.99 in this beauty today at 7-11. Embarrassing to say the least.

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