dance costume

last night was anna's dance pictures.
she loved her new costume so much...


until she put it on!
then she became an itchy mess.


it was so pityful.
she wanted to cry, but since she was wearing a little bit of makeup (it's all a part of the drama, of course), she didn't want her makeup to get messed up.

she toughed it out,


but the minute she walked through the door, the leotard was off!

i hope she'll make it through recital without a breakdown.

decorating on the brain

i have been bitten by the decorating bug again.
and it's so hard.
i like so many different styles and it's hard to narrow it all down.
there's just so much good stuff out there!

we really need new dining room furniture and new kitchen chairs.
but i hate spending so much money at one time. makes my skin feel all tingly and butterflies start flying around in my tummy. why is furniture so expensive?? is it made of gold or something?

while i was surfing the web for inspiration, i ran across the new ballard designs spring stuff and fell in love with so many things.

unfortunately, my budget won't allow for most, if any, of these things, but check out some of my faves:








i might be able to afford some of that burlap ribbon (more burlap ms. doris! yipee!)

ok, gotta go now. american idol is on so i need to focus.

prize dart (a blog award!)

i received the sweetest blog award from lisa at bridget's light.

Premios Dardos means “prize darts” in Italian. This award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his or her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day.



And in the spirit of passing along the love, here's how it works:

Step 1: respond and rework -- answer the questions on your own blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, add one more question of your own.

Step 2: tag - eight other bloggers to do the same, remembering to contact each of them to let them know they have been selected for this award.

so, here goes nothin'!

1) What are you wearing right now?

sweat pants and my buddy walk tee shirt. and that's sort of my weekend uniform.

2) What is your biggest fear?

dying in an airplane crash. morbid, i know, but it truly is.
that, and dying before getting to see my children grow up.

3) Do you nap a lot?

believe it or not, i actually napped this afternoon for about an hour. but it made me feel WORSE!!

4) Who is the last person you hugged?

josh. he came back downstairs after we had tucked him in bed for just one more hug.

5) What websites do you visit when you go online?

always but always not in this order: email, etsy, craislist (looking for an old vanity to redo for anna), and google reader for my favorite blog updates

6) What was the last item you bought?

that would have to be gas for the minivan. but for myself, i bought pillows from etsy (to help build cora's playground!)


7) If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

i went to france when i was 16 and fell in love with the country and people. i would love to go back, this time with john. i would also love to go to hawaii one day. i'm a beach person 100%.

8) If you could go to the Oscars, who would you want to sit next to?

my sister. and my niece mandee. we would have to go together with matching dresses and hairdos. (just kidding)


9) Has a celebrity's hair cut ever influenced your own hairstyle?

when i was a young girl, i had the dorothy hammil hairdo. is that how you even spell her name? when i was in college, i had the "rachel"/jennifer anniston hairdo and still to this day, love it. it was a great hairdo!

10) What is your most embarrassing moment?

i may have to skip this one. can't think of one specific moment--probably too many that i've blocked them all out!

11) What was the last movie you watched?

most of slum dog millionaire. maybe taken?

12) What is the luckiest thing that ever happened to you?

the day ben was born, my entire life changed. i was devestated and scared, and i felt like one of my biggest fears had come to fruition. it's hard to admit, but it is the absolute truth. now i remember that day and think about how much my life came into focus the minute he was born. as cliche as it sounds, having him made me realize what life is really all about. i feel like i'm so much more sensitive to what others are going through and i really care at a much deeper level about my family and friends. nothing else matters. and just knowing that at such a personal and deep level makes me feel like the luckiest person!

13) If you had a whole day to yourself with no work, commitments or interruptions what would you do?

i would go to hartlex, an antique mall near me, with my mom and a super huge nonfat vanilla latte. and maybe cook a complicated dinner and dessert. i love to antique shop and never have the time to browse like you really have to in a place like that. i love to shop with my mom. and i really love to cook.

14) Is there a major goal you have that you haven't yet achieved?

i would love to lose a bunch of weight. i gained some weight before i got pregnant with ben and it needs to go. if i could do it, i would consider that a major accomplishment. it's so HARD!!

15) Drinks are on the house!! What do you order?

something simple like a glass of sangria or a yuengling lager (miss that good pennsylvania beer!)


16) If you were in a terrible accident and your doctors told you they could save either your hearing or your sight (but not both), which would you choose and why?

this is a tough one. i really don't like this question at all.
i would have to choose hearing. i could not spend the rest of my life in silence. i need noise: music, laughter, birds chirping, the sound of the ocean, my dog barking, the kids giggling.

17) What is something that those in blogland might not know about you?

i am an aerospace engineer and work as a contractor to NASA. right now i'm working on the International Space Station project as an operations lead. pretty weird, right? and who cares about that? i'd much rather blog about my kids and decorating and baking and crafty things!

i'm stealing lisa's words here, but they fit perfectly:

There are so many blogs out there that I truly enjoy for a variety of reasons. The following bloggers possess distinctive voices, and their blogs make me think, laugh, cry or nod in agreement. (I’m passing the award on to others I feel deserve it. If this is a duplicate award, consider yourself extra awesome. If you do not participate in memes, or similar activities--or if you aren’t comfortable acknowledging or passing it on--I won't mind at all, just know that I appreciate your efforts & your thoughts...)

Now for the love, in no particular order...

meg at whatever
linda at restyled home
pam at rhett's journey/the bird flock
edie at life in grace
emily at little momma and company
emily at lovely and amazing
tara at just be blogged (tara whitney photograpy)
julie at joy's hope
and one more
karen at my life...just not on the road i expected (but it's still dang good)

i know that's nine, but i just love these blogs and whether these ladies have ever read my blog or not doesn't matter to me. i find their blogs to be inspirational and lovely and that's just that! and i don't care who you are, these little awards are just F-U-N! (insert big ole smiley face here!)

southern snow day

last night, our little southern town had a winter storm watch.
we all thought, "yeah, right!" and went to bed.
but low and behold, the forecasters were right this time.
we woke up to a steady snowfall and lots of the white stuff for the kids to play in.
for us southerners, it was like a winter wonderland!










now, as i sit and type this, the snow is all gone.
the warm sun has peeked it's way through the clouds and what we enjoyed this morning is left to our memories.
and that's pretty much how most of our southern snow days usually end.
it sure was fun while it lasted.

i was awarded my very first blog award from lisa at bridget's light. thanks lisa!!
come back and check it all out tomorrow.