Sneak Peek of our St. Patrick's Day Gifting

With St. Patrick's Day around the corner...

I wanted to make up a design to use for gifting this year!

This is such an Easy DIY Gift Idea.

We are going to print these on card stock..cut..

fold and staple onto a (snack size) ziploc bag full of SKITTLES!

(A favorite candy of mine since I was a kid!!)

Click here to see the design I made last year!

I am going to take some photos of how we make them up..

but was so excited about this little DIY that I wanted to share!

You can buy in my shop. I can personalize them with our child's name.

I am thinking of offering a free Banner like I did for Valentine's Day.

Stop by later next week for that download! :)

Mommy Life.

Mom of the year here...

toddler on coffee table.

1. it was a bus.

2. she was heading to grandma's

3. I found the coffee table in the trash.

Sad Day... finally went through

Micah's dresser and pulled out the

newborn-3 month clothes.

tear*

little mama.

Quick "dipey" change.

Every pregnant mama needs this mug.

This was part of a baby shower gift for my sister in law and a friend.

They are both due with boys within the next week or so! so exciting.

target- 50 % off right now!

 Micah got a new ride.

It's the Harmony Odyssey and I got it at Target.

LOVE how it looks and feels. but really love how it has so many features:

bassinet..rear or forward facing.

the bassinet turns into the seat...rear or forward facing..

and it has a universal car seat adapter.

micah likes it..he is waving hi below ;)

This stroller is going to be so handy during my upcoming trips with Micah.

(Atlanta with BLANQI and Dallas for Blissdom!)

A cute 4 yr old got a hold of my phone today...

(bandaid was a little extreme...but she had a 'scratch' and it's all we had. ;)

baby snuggles.

this is what my nights look like lately...

Micah doesn't want to nurse as much as the girls.. he's a snuggler.

but he is sleeping pretty well in his crib once he gives in.

A better sleeper than they were..and I'll take it. ;)

I love his little fist on the left.. so sweet. and he has such soft fuzzy hair. :)

This week I tried to get a lot of stuff done for Blissdom!

So excited for the iPad case I designed on skinit.com

I'll be sharing a discount code for all my readers in an upcoming post!

 Sienna joined me in bed after her nap.. I love post nap snuggles.

Sophie: "MOM! today was the FUNNEST day."

Proof of part of the fun is in sienna's oreo smile.

I love Micah's jolly face. He's like a little santa clause.

Love my little bear.

I seriously will be so sad when he doesn't fit in this anymore. 

THE VOTES ARE IN.

I posted a couple photos on instagram asking for help to choose

my new bio/social media photo... after 181 votes...

A was the winner! :)

Freezer Crock Pot Meal Prep Day- TAKE TWO

My first try at Freezer Crock Pot Meals was such a hit,

with hundreds of pin and repins..

I thought I would share again my second try at it!

Seems like a lot of us are wanting to make

grocery shopping/cooking/meal planning easier!

By shopping at both Aldi's and Giant Eagle this week

I was able to get the price per meal to under $4!

Here's the list of recipes I made up this past week:

Click to be taken to original recipe I used (my documents with the recipes are changed a little)

Guinness Beef Stew

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Zuppa Toscana

Creamy Beef Stroganoff 

Meatball Minestrone Soup

Pulled Pork (based off this recipe...

my version is in the file to download below)

Chicken and Dumplings

You can download the RECIPES HERE featuring what to write on each Freezer Bag!

(use sharpie and write on bag BEFORE you fill them up.

knowing what to put on them ahead of time makes it so much quicker!)

and my categorized GROCERY LIST can be downloaded HERE

Not sure yet how these all cook up..some are new ones.. let me know what you think!

And thanks for trying it out with me :)

(PS. My favorite is the chicken and dumplings...

I cook it for 2 hours on high and then 30 or so minutes with the biscuits dropped in!)

You can also check out my First Try at this money and time saving project HERE for

more info and other recipes! (downloadable grocery and recipe list)

MY NOTES ON MY FIRST TRY AT FREEZER CROCK POT MEALS.

** LOVE the Chicken and Dumplings..always have. that's why I'm doubling it this time.

**not a fan of the chicken and rice.

**red potatoes turned brown only in ONE of the recipes.. wierd. So this time I put the potatoes in a seperate freezer bag to do a little trial..and see if they turn brown or not. if they do..I'll just throw in some fresh when it's time.

**Pulled Pork last time was yummy to use for tacos.. but we really like it with barbecue the most. So I went ahead and poured in the Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue sauce right away this time. :) LOVEEE eating the barbecue pulled pork on tacos with cheese. it's delicious. trust me.

Creamed Spinach Pasta

This is one of my FAVORITE

super quick (meatless) meals!

Creamed Spinach Pasta

--Pasta..(choo choo wheels because sienna can eat them easy)

--a box of frozen creamed spinach (I used Bird's Eye)

--A 'splash' of Heavy Whipping Cream to moisten it up. (or you could use milk)

--Salt and Pepper to taste!

Sienna gobbles this up..just like me. :)

This meal is perfect for those of you

looking for meatless meal ideas for lent!

Nothing says love like..Freezer Crock Pot Meals.

So I spent most of our valentine's day night in the kitchen..

it was the only chance I had to finally make up the freezer bags

and we didn't want all the meat to spoil.

Very romantic. Ben even helped. ;)

(posting later this week round two of my

freezer crock pot meals.--downloadable grocery list/recipes)

Other romantic activities of the day included:

picking up our broken down van from the shop.

doing dishes.

running out of toilet paper in the house.

returning our friend's car we were borrowing.

Our morning with these cuties was fun...

Sophie loves holidays.. and they both love anything where chocolate is involved.

Earlier this week, they might have been reminded about chocolate bunnies at Easter...

the count down has already begun. gonna be a long couple months.

Daddy made breakfast. it was delish.

I had some much needed girl talk at a friend's valentine's day party in the morning.

the girls had fun playing and they had a table full of yummy treats!

This mama is seriously domesticated...she baked fresh bread DURING the party..and gave my girls pb&j's on fresh bread before we left...

It's a miracle if we even HAVE bread in our house when we need it.

my sweater- h&m    my necklace- caroline g

I made up some valentine's for my two nephews who I don't get to see often!

They are back in my hometown, atlanta.

Used some of my printables I sell. :) 

I had a few orders come in where they got these and were gonna put cars in too!

I love Valentine's Day..any holiday really..

because my shop blows up with activity and then

everyone shares their projects via facebook and Instagram. :) 

It's fun being a part of everyone's special day!

PS. I love this guy. 

1. because he is a holy man.

2. because he is smokin hot.

4. because he didn't go crazy on a certain crabby commenter

yesterday and was the better man. 

5. because he loves all of me. he is my rock.

6. because he helps me get to heaven by doing things like leaving the shower curtain wide open when he knows that drives me insane. patience bonus points.

7. he is a great dad.

Hope you had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

I love you more than...

and that means a lot coming from two toddlers.

Micah says Happy Valentine's Day too...

Hope you have a wonderful day and know

how loved and amazing you are!

xoxoxoxo

Tutorial- DIY {batting material} Clouds

One of the most popular posts on my blog,

is my girls' storybook princess party!

I wanted to share how I made the Batting Material Clouds that were hung up by the castle!

I lovedddd how they turned out!

(Wish I would have taken better photos of them up close!)

There was something so fun and whimsical about them.

I still have them.. I think they would be a cute touch for another party theme..

maybe an airplane one for micah one year?! :)

The clouds are very simple to make!

They would look so cute in a nursery or for a bunch of party themes.

I got my supplies at JoAnns with coupons.

I always pull some up on their mobile app!

Use the "invisible" fishing line to hang up the clouds!

Let me know if you make some up and how you use it!

Life with 3-Getting the Hang of it.

Getting the hang of this having 3 kids thing.....

--Only have the occasional "exhaustion tears"

--I've realized micah sleeps best when the girls are loud.

--and 12 weeks into it, I'm Feeling more Confident.

Took the WHOLE GANG to target this week.

by myself. for the first time. and I did it!

was it relaxing or calming? mmm..not really. haha. but the fact is..I did it.

Whenever we have baby #4 this life will look like a vacation. ;)

Got chap stick and "trail mix" supplies...

The shirts were too hard to turn down for $6. They had me at stripes and coral.

ABOVE: Sophie dressed herself this day...fashionista.

What a Glamarous morning of

Blogging/Graphic Design work looks like:

not pictured: two toddlers jumping all around me...

and me telling them not to jump on micah.

I don't remember the last time I looked at Kohl's for myself...

but this week I had a mommy and micah date and the

clearance racks were calling my name!

When did Kohl's get so chic??

I LOVED every piece of lauren conrad's line.

I ended up getting a blazer of hers originally $75 for something awesome like $30. and I got the shirt on the far left for a great price too!

They had tons of clearance racks for kid clothes as well...

run over this weekend and grab some deals up before they are gone!

(WEARING: polka dot blouse-target, pink sweater-h&m, jeans-American Eagle,

Shoes-Old Navy, Cute Baby-Micah)

It's tough being two.

but it's not tough pulling off this layered look.

she looks good. can't go wrong with tulle, polka dots, stripes and floral. yup.

couch potato.

I want his outfit.

Our last minute super-bowl get together. Had a handful of friends over to watch the game.

For me though it's all about the food, commercials and beyonce.

I was a big fan of sienna's outfit of choice for the big game.

I made chili. because I do every year. It's a must.

We also had a fondue bar! Finally pulled out my Fondue Pot

that Ben gave me for Christmas 2 years ago!

I'm hooked.

this is now a problem.

We had marshmallows, pretzels, nutterbutters, strawberries and bananas!

and then had some yummy toppings like butterfingers and m&ms just to top it off. ;)

My friend Kate brought Cookie Dough Dip. o yes.. as delicious as it sounds.

Sienna was a fan of the cookie dough dip too.....

The morning after the party, I walked into the room to find this:

I can't really blame her.

The girls were chatting about the party.

sophie: "I miss the party. I want to do it again."

couldn't agree more! I love that my girls are little social butterflies like their mama.

Let's just say...

I looked good.. real good this day.

#toddlerstylists

Micah is known for diaper explosions.

On this day I decided to strip him down... I win.

(need to get bigger sized diapers...I'm in denial he is getting bigger.)

And you're welcome for the cute baby thighs and tummy.

So fun seeing a blog mention in Unique Me Magazine!

A blog reader plugged me and they sent me a copy. so nice :)

 Ben and I gave a talk today to 100 juniors on retreat!

Below was right before we went on..quick nurse.

We shared about our prayer life/vocation to marriage and relationship with God.

It was fun. :) I know some of you asked to hear the recording but...

I forgot to hit record. next time!

the girls were so good so we treated them to chick-fil-a....... 

it was all about them in that decision. totally.

Post nap snuggle and snack time earlier in the week.

Mom of the year with that snack.

this girl... non stop mover.

glad this dress only cost $4.50 because she wears it like it's her job.

I seriously say "don't jump on the couch!" a million times a day...

and "don't jump off the coffee table onto the couch!" about 2 million times.

I like to pretend that I made these DIY Book Ends for the girls...

Watching a princess movie that we have seen over a million times.

I might accidently lose this dvd very soon... accidently.

ps. sienna was happier than it appears. so was micah.

my little angel baby. halo!

My Sister Valerie, of BLANQI, had her baby!!!

She and her husband, Will, have two boys and now a sweet little GIRL.

(which was my guess...for the record. ;)

Violette Grace. 12 weeks younger than my Micah.

I can't wait to get these cuties together when I fly down to atlanta!

Everyone is happy and healthy. :)

AND...Best Husband Award goes to-BEN.

Walked through the door with a frosty.

He's a keeper.

Working on the computer..holding this snuggly guy..and treating myself to a frosty.

not a bad way to end the night. ;)