The Hardest Part

I've said it before, and I'll say it again:

I HAVE BEEN VERY BLESSED IN THE FRIEND DEPARTMENT.

Seriously, I have some of the most wonderful girlfriends a person could ever hope to find.

And as a mom, a woman, and a person in general,
 I believe friends are one of the most important things in life.

In our friends, we find support, encouragement, and wisdom.

We have fun, we laugh, and a we comfort one another.

I go to my friends when I need to gripe, complain, or simply ask, 'WHY ME?'.

My friends are the ones I seek out when I need reassurance that I'm doing the right thing, or more importantly, when I need someone to tell me that I'm doing wrong.

And while I could not be more thankful for my friends, I have a problem.

For you see, while I have all of these wonderful friends, they all live far away. We're talking hours.  And while I've met some new friends since moving, there's just something about having someone in your life who knows your history, your in's and out's, and your quirks that is so very comforting. And right now, I have to do without it, at least in the physical sense, for months at a time.

We've moved twice in the last three years, and both times I've essentially had to start over in the local friend department. And while I hate the packing and labeling and taping and heavy lifting that comes with moving, it's the new friend mission that I dread the most.

I am not a shy person, nor do I consider myself an introvert. However, I believe that good, true friends are not easily found. It's also something that doesn't happen over night. Not to mention, now that I'm a mom with a full time job at work and a full time job at home, 'free time' to mingle and visit with my girlfriends is in short supply. But I need it. I am a better person when I have regular grown up girl time. And while I talk and text and facebook my friends often, it's just not the same as face to face, giggling til the wee hours of the morn kinda girl time.

If only I'd known in college what I know now, I would have told those boys 'see ya later' and spent every waking moment with my girls. And I'll keep on praying for a close friend of the local variety, one with an equal need for regular girl time, an equal understanding of what it's like to be a working mom, and perhaps an equally strong love of coffee......

A Big, Hot Mess

The title of this post basically describes my life right now.

I feel like I can't catch up, can't catch a break, and have forgotten what getting ahead even looks like.

This morning my students turned in their research papers, you know, the ones I now have to grade....all eighty of them. And with two rubrics each (one on content and one on mechanics), I'm essentially grading each paper twice. Can someone please remind me why I do these things to myself?

Moving on:

This weekend consisted of:

-seeing good friends

-attending two Christmas shows

-eating out a total of THREE times (adios, skinny jeans. Hopefully we can reconnect this spring...)

-Christmas shopping (online. Word to your mother; it's the greatest thing ever.)

-watching Christmas movies

-cleaning my homestead from top-o to bottom-o

-a Junior Auxillary meeting to work on Angel Tree (LOVE ANGEL TREE)

-and some of this:

Lee and I rarely take the girls shopping. By that I mean, we rarely take Libby shopping. Let's just say sitting quietly while we get things done is not her forte. However, we ventured out Saturday evening in search of a new oven. I wish I could say it went well, but not only did we NOT find an oven, but we were also reminded why we don't take the girls shopping.

Have you finished all of your shopping?

Wrapping?

Ordering and addressing?

I, my friends, have done none of the above.

So, to all of you who say things to me like,

"How do you get it all done? You must be superwoman."

Well, this Christmas this super woman has turned super slacker. But, at least I'm not stressed.

It's the little things, right?

A Christmas Happy {An Idea for You}

I told you earlier this week that I LOVE s'mores.

Did you know I also love giving gifts?

It's true.

Giving gifts is one of my all time favorite things to do.

And here's an idea for a good one:

(Thanks again for this too cute idea, Kelle Hampton.)

It's a s'more making kit!

Included:

-bag of marshmallows

-a chocolate bar

-graham crackers

-some skewers

-jelled chafing fuel

Libby gave this one to a new friend here in town who brought over some happies while Libby was in the dumps post tonsil removal.

To show her thanks, Lib brought this to her last night:

What's YOUR favorite happy to give or receive?

I'm always on the hunt for some good ones....

Today I'm linking here. Care to join me?

Family Pics {A Sneak Peek}

Family pics.

That's what we were doing Saturday in what felt like the wee hours of the morn.

My goal was simple: I wanted one good picture.

Just one.

I feel like so many families avoid capturing precious moments together because it's often nothing more than a big ole' headache. But seeing as how we literally have ZERO pictures of us as a family of four, I was putting my foot down.

I was proud of myself for two reasons:

1. We took our photos locally. We simply took a stroll downtown. The end. Nothing fancy. No traveling. This way, when (not if, because it was bound to happen) someone got grumpy or had had enough, we would be close to home.

2. I bought not one new thing for any of us to wear; I simply used what we had. The only thing new you see here is Hollyn's bow, which I made in about fifteen minutes during Thanksgiving break.

The results?

Oh. My. Lanta.

I think I might be in love.

Here are four of my favorites:

So even though we only had fifteen (yes, fifteen) minutes of no grumpies and all smiles, the result is one I am more than pleased with, and I'm ready to do it again.

So, if you've been putting it off, stop that!

 Have those pictures made and capture your memories.

 Just keep in mind: simple is better,

 and kids will not stop being kids simply because there is a camera present.  

Here's hoping it's warm and toasty where you are. Tonight there will be Christmas music playing at my house whilst I attempt to make a new tree skirt. The key word here is attempt.

Happy Tuesday to you and you and you, and look for more of our photos to be making an appearance here in the weeks to come.

S'mores...Of the Indoor Variety

Thanks to an idea I got from one of my all time favorite bloggers, last week Libby and I enjoyed s'mores...indoors.

But before we get there, I interrupt this post to show you that my little girl can now officially say, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth."

Now back to the ooey goody goodness:

That's right; we played with fire.

The kind that came from this:

I bought a pack of two of these at Wal-Mart in the cake decorating department (because they clearly have so much to do with cake. Ugh. I digress). And then we lit up right in our kitchen.

Warning: the flame got high at some times, and the marshmallows caught on fire pretty quickly. I do recommend this project; I do NOT recommend this project for kiddos is mom is not going to be directly hovering over them ready to blow out a flame at a moment's notice.

The s'mores, though?

Yummy in our tummies.

Seriously, they are one of my all-time favorite treats.

 

Fingers crossed that your week is off to a great start. Can you believe there are only twenty days until Christmas? Well, that makes two of us. Have you finished your shopping? I certainly have not... oops.

And It Only Cost a Dollar

See this here hat?

I bought it...

for a dolla...

from Target' (said with a fancy French accent, as Target' should always be said).

I kinda feel like I stole it, but it was in fact a dollar.

Please ignore the fact that it was originally made with a boy in mind; I took care of that.

The first thing I did was cut some felt in the shape of a flower... five petals, two leaves, one center. You will also need four more yellow circles, cut the same size as your center circle.

Next I sewed the leaves on the front of the hat on one side.

(Please forgive me for how terribly dark these pictures are; darn you, camera phone.)

Next I stitched the petals and center. Notice, my stitching here is horrible. It could be that I'm just that bad at sewing, or it could be that I was almost out of yellow thread and didn't feel the need to run out and purchase more to complete a part of a project that NO ONE WILL EVER SEE. I'll never tell.

Moving on....

Once this was in place, I took the four yellow circles and sewed them using the same method I used in this post, and voila:

One super adorable winter hat for one super adorable, tonsil-free, little girl.

And it only cost a dollar.

How's that for a good deal?

Tomorrow for our family there will be family pictures (insert dramatic music here) and hopefully a football game. I promise to provide details and some sneak peeks as soon as possible.

Here's hoping your weekend is nothing short of magical.

Today I'm linking here, here, here, here, here, and here. That's a lot of linking, folks.

I Heart Hydrangeas

I do heart hydrangeas, I really do.

So, when the I signed us up for family pictures on Saturday and knew I would need a grey bow for Hollyn, I also knew I was in a pinch. Where in the heck was I gonna find a grey bow in my little town? There's not even grey ribbon (or any ribbon, for that matter) at our Wal-Mart, so the possibility of making one wasn't even an option. However, while I didn't have grey ribbon, I did have grey felt. I also had the picture of a hydrangea stuck in my head.

Here's what I came up with:

I cut some grey felt into a flower shape. They didn't have to be perfect, because no one will be able to tell once all is said and done. I also cut out two green leaves (not pictured).

Then I sewed the flowers onto the rectangle, and seeing as how they won't all fit there, they overlapped, creating the hydrangea-like look. I sewed some white seed beads onto the centers as I was sewing them to the rectangle, adding to the flower-like feel. Once the sewing was all done. I hot glued my leaves to a clippie and then hot glued the rectangle on over that. The end.

Seriously, this whole project took me less than fifteen minutes, and that includes digging for white seed beads that would fit over my needle.

Anyway, here's the finished product:

 I love, love, love it.

Two points for me for using something that I had to make something that I needed.

Here's hoping your Thursday was great and that we get our tree up tonight....we shall see.

 Fingers are officially crossed.

Today I'm keeping things simple and only linking here. Sometimes the simple way is the best way.