Sea World

Steve had the day off, so we decided to have a family day at Sea World. The conditions were picture perfect: 75 and sunny, small crowds, and the kids maintained their composure until 4pm without a nap!! Success!

enjoying the gorgeous weather!

feeding the ducks (drew got bit by one!)

getting ready to see the shamu show!

my 3 favorites!

cheeseball

the show was fantastic!

feeding the sea lions

dolphin cove

Toy Storage

In my dreams, and maybe in our "forever" home (if we ever stop moving!), I would love to have a playroom that looked like this...

Pottery Barn Kids

Until then, I will keep dreaming and try to maintain my sanity surrounding the abundance of toys/books/games/puzzles that have infiltrated my home over the last 3 years!

My sister and I were just discussing the toy explosion that seems to happen around this time of year and what to do about it. I used to have basket upon basket filled with stuff, until my toyroom started to look more like a basket store than a toyroom. We recently purschased some storage from Ikea and have been very happy with it, so I thought I would share. It is all a part of the Trofast collection (you can mix and match the storage bin sizes). We purchased two and put them side by side where we have a half wall in the toyroom (see below). These bins allow for easy access and there is a surface top where the kids can play air hockey, cars, puzzles, etc. And while they can't store everything we have, at least the smaller items and miscellaneous items have a home! Yay for organization!

Now, the kids know where everything goes ...dress up bin, sports bin, blocks bin, , etc., and there are no more excuses as to why things can't be put away!!!! :)

Go Spurs!!!

The Spurs are a BIG deal here! And they are really, really good! You can imagine the excitement for our little sports fanatic when we told him he would be going to a game with Daddy. The anticipation is half the fun, and he was just giddy. They both got new t-shirts to wear and Drew kept asking, "Is it time to go yet??"!!

They had 10th row seats, ate pizza and popcorn, made it on the Jumbotron (dancing), and watched a WIN! Steve said Drew was so into every play of the game, chanting "DEFENSE" with the crowd and cheering every time the Spurs scored. When they were in line at the concession stand or going to the restroom, Drew was always worried about missing any part of the game. He jumped in Steve's lap at one point and said "thank you so much for bringing me to a spurs game, Daddy". Enough said. I only wish I could have been there to see his excitement!

Thoughtful Gift Idea for the New Year

I saw this idea in the Martha Stewart magazine over a year ago, and just came across it again. I think it is such a cute and crafty little gift idea to give to a neighbor, friend, teacher, etc.

In the magazine, they used a jade plant. Jade plants are a symbol of prosperity, so it is a perfect gift for the start of a new year! I love succulents. I have one potted in my house and it is so easy to take care of and I think they just look really clean and simple placed in a great pot.

Not sure of the name of the one I have, but it is easy to take care of!

For this project, all you need is the plant (around $5), a square piece of decorative paper (I used scrapbooking paper I had laying around from other projects), a ribbon or twine, and a little note card. Super easy!

*If you are not going to put the plant in a decorative pot, I would definitely make sure the soil has some time to dry out so the paper doesn't get wet and tear*

Scrapbook paper (I don't scrapbook, but I like the paper :)

Jade Plant

Bring up two opposite corners and secure with double sided tape, fold the other two flaps up and secure with a ribbon or twine.

I think twine would be cuter, but I didn't have any




Hole punch a card and write a little message!

DIY Dresser

I have had some recent activity on the blog and requests for some more DIY projects similar to the coffee table. I recently completed this project (see before and after below). I have a little bay window/cutout space in my kitchen that needed something. I decided to go nontraditional and put a bedroom dresser in the space. It was the perfect scale, provides storage, and it was a $20 find at the Habitat for Humanity Restore. If you have one of these in your area, they are worth checking out! They have everything from old shutters and doors, to tile, to furniture, to lighting. It is usually hit or miss, but on this particular day, I scored this little beauty! It is currently being used to store napkins, candles, frames, and anything else that doesn't have a home! I love having items that have some character!

I decdied to go for a pop of color, and I love red. It is my favorite. There are bits and pieces of it all throughout my house. My kitchen is pretty neutral so I thought a pop of color near an area that receives lots of natural light would be fun. I primed this bad boy and painted what seemed like a million coats of several different shades of red until I finally finished! Reds can be tricky because they can either go too magenta or to candy apple. I cannot tell you what color this is because I mixed and matched my way through this one! I love the way it turned out, but I still haven't decided about the hardware. It currently has the original hardware...suggestions welcome!!

Solid wood dresser in great shape for $20!

I don't have a great camera, so sorry these pics are not very good!

Christmas 2010

We had an exceptionally quiet Christmas this year...just the 4 of us. The kid's were so excited about Santa coming this year. However, Drew was inquisitive enough to ask why Santa left all of his trash in our garage. Whoops! Going to have to really watch it with these 2 observant little ones I have on my hands! They loved everything and played and played and played all day long. My favorite part of the whole day is when Drew said, "this is the best Christmas ever, thank you".

I was still feeling very under the weather, so it was nice to just be at home and enjoy some quality family time. It is amazing how one day can really turn a house upside down though!

I also got a new laptop (yes, I have finally stepped into the new millenium, thank you :), so I will now be blogging from the comfort of my couch or bed! Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Love this pic and love that that love each other so much :)

Carrots and cookies!

Steve was having more fun with this gift than Drew was...

Ariel bath toy (she says she lives in Meemard (Mermaid) City)

Bowling set!


Pecan Rolls (a Christmas morning tradition)

K got a trunk of princess dresses and shoes...steve loves this one!

They have already been belting out their favorite Ke$ha and Pink songs (mom of the year, right? :)

She's in the band!

Playing with some new craft stuff!

Santa's trash

Imaginex Rocketship was a hit!

Little Miss Kate Elizabeth

Kate and I just got home from a little coffee/hot chocolate and shopping date. We scored some cute flats at Francesca's and some half-off Christmas decor/paper at Homegoods (have I mentioned that I LOVE Homegoods?? :). Anyway, I think I am in trouble with her! Much like my niece, Mia (2.5 years), Kate has a special place in her heart for shopping! She wants to touch all the clothes and shoes (and breakables) and say "Look mommy at this pretty thing" or "this is cute, Mommy". Did I mention that she just turned 2????? Yikes! She also asked the young, cute cashier at Homegoods if she was a princess and noticed a woman with some boots like I have and yells "look mommy, your boots" and points at the woman as she is walking by. This could be dangerous or really, really fun for me!!! Ha!!

We have our own little Cindy Lou Who :)


Have I also mentioned that Kate is a television addict?? We obviously don't let her watch it all day long, but she would if we let her! She has special affection in her life for this little boy...


So....Steve and I often refer to her as this little boy.........

Do you remember him from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory??? The one who obsessed with TV?? Ha!

Christmas Eve!

Seeing Christmas through D & K's eyes this year has been truly exciting for us. We finished up our food shopping, I have a few more gifts to wrap, we bought and donated diapers and Nintendo DS video games to the San Antonio Children's Shelter, and we are off to church after the kids get up from nap. We are so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends, health, and happiness. We are truly grateful for all of our blessings in life. Merry Christmas!

We are currently all running at about 50%. Allergies, snotty noses, sinus headaches...you name it, we have it. Thanks to some much needed naps, 3 boxes of kleenex, a little Vick's, and Drew's new humidifier (I recommend this one), we are all starting to feel a little bit better. Thankfully, we will be home all day tomorrow playing and eating!

We hope Santa has wipers on his sleigh, because it is dreary and rainy here today! We were talking to the kids last night about leaving Santa some cookies to eat when he comes to our house. Kate chimes in with, "does Santa drink beer, Daddy?" and Steve's reply was "why yes, yes he does drink beer and I think he would like one". Oh, the fun of having a 2 and 3 year old in the house!!!!

This pretty much sums it up for us the past few days...

Theta Mother/Daughter Tea

Being in a sorority in college was a great expereience for me, so I decided to join the alumni group to meet people, be social, and get involved! I attended my first event last night with Kate, a Mother/Daughter Tea. She was the youngest attendee and everyone was going nuts over her baby with the matching outfit. Kate thought she was so big drinking her punch and eating little sandwiches and cookies. It was fun to do something girly with her!


Steve and Drew went to JW Marriot sports bar for dinner (a favorite new place of ours!). Drew said to Steve, "I think Kate and Mommy should go to teas more". Sounds like he really missed us, right??!!

Coffee Table Makeover

For some time now, I have been on the lookout for a new coffee table for our great room in the new house. I like our old one we bought from Storehouse several years back, but the scale was not right for this space. I wanted something round. Then a few months back, my mom was here, and we were "thrifting", and we came across this little beauty. The best part-----it was only $15! I am able to see the forest through the trees, so we snatched it up, threw it in the car, and I finally finished sanding, staining, painting, and sealing!

The finished table:



before: she looks rough here, but I love the shape and the legs and the large surface top

 after!

 table: $15

stain: leftover from a previous project ($0)

paint: bought a sample mistint on a rack at lowe's (.50)

sealer: spray polycrylic that I also found on sale at lowes ($3)

total for new coffee table: $18.50

I'll take it!