I Heart Faces : JOY

I Heart Faces is a new blog I stumbled upon. And what a neat blog it is! It's a photo contest and each week you post photos you've never posted before according to the selected theme. This week's theme is: JOY! I can't think of anything better than to post a picture of what brings me the most JOY in my life - my precious son, JJ!



Kids Entry: JOY


Adult Entry: JOY

Flip-Flops in January

No, it's not 80 degrees outside (although it was 75 degrees a couple days ago) but I did get a pedicure; therefore, I wore flip-flips today! Yay for me! Pedicures are one of my favorite things and unfortunately they don't happen as often as I would like. My sweet hubby suggested that I schedule one and he would watch JJ. I, of course, jumped on the offer and scheduled an hour of pampering. I forgot how wonderful pedicures are. Sitting in the massage chair with my feet resting in warm water - heaven! And the foot/leg massage is pretty amazing as well! I also got an eyebrow wax, which isn't so relaxing but it is like getting a mini eyebrow lift (and being a sleep-deprived Mother, I could definitely use that!). Here are the before and after photos.

Not so pretty..


Pretty!


My feet were freezing but it was so worth it! Pedicures come HIGHLY recommended! :)

Reindeer Bites

This is the simple treat I brought to our church's annual ladies meeting last week. I found this on another blog (don't remember who) and decided I'd give it a try. It's a fun little snack/dessert and is very easy! If you like salt and sweet combos, chances are you'll love these!
You just top waffle-type pretzels with hershey kisses (I did 3 flavors - peppermint, milk chocolate, and hugs), put them in the oven for about 5 mins. on the lowest temperature, then top with an M&M or another pretzel. I discovered that I prefer topping them with another pretzel. It's much sweeter with an M&M on top and I like more of the salty taste.

Blessed To Be Your Mommy

JJ's sleeping so that means I should be too. But, I'm not. Instead of getting much needed rest, I'm (once again) blogging. Not that I didn't try to sleep. I tossed and turned for a while and decided to get up and give it another try a little later on.
We took some pictures at church today. They turned out pretty good so I thought I'd share. I did a little bit of creative editing (obviously).





As I sit here looking at these pictures, I can't help but think how blessed I am. God has given my Husband and me this amazing, beautiful child and has allowed me to be his Mother. JJ, you have been out of my tummy and in my arms for a little over 9 months now. It's amazing how quickly time flies. It only seems like yesterday that your Father and I found out that I was pregnant and a little was one going to join our family. My time with you has been incredible! Every moment has been priceless. As I hold you, I try to memorize every tiny detail. I don't want you to grow up so quickly. I want you to be my baby boy forever. You came into this world and promptly took over my heart. I will never forget the moment I met you and the love that immediately washed over me. It was such a precious and private moment. The bond between Mother and Son was instant and overwhelming. I know now that the love between a Mother and her child can not compare to anything else on this earth. My sweet boy, I am thankful you are my Son and I look forward to watching you grow into a godly man. I love you! - Mommy

The moment we met - April 8, 2008


Today - January 18, 2009

My New Best Friend

I have a new-found appreciation for JJ's swing. JJ has never really liked the swing so I almost packed it up and put it in the shed. I decided to give it one more try before I did. Thankfully, I did! For the last 3 days, it has put JJ to sleep within minutes and he's out for a good hour or so! Which leaves me more time for - you guessed it - blogging! And, of course, cleaning, organizing, baking, laundry, and anything else that needs to be done. Anyway, here's a tribute to the faithful swing who sat neglected for so long knowing that one day he would be someone's best friend!

Awake...but not really...

Unfortunately, JJ is awake. Therefore, I am awake - barely. So, why not blog. Right? Anyway, JJ usually goes right back to sleep after he wakes up in the middle of the night but he's being rebellious tonight. I've tried for the last hour to put him back to sleep but he would have none of it so he's playing in his pack-n-play and I'm blogging (go figure). Not really much to blog about at this time of night (or morning I should say), considering my brain is mush at the moment, but I thought I'd document this wonderful occasion so that one day I could look back at this sleep-interrupted night and remember it fondly. In the meantime, I WANT TO SLEEP!

Yay! I just saw a yawn. Let's give this sleep thing another try...

Kreativ Blogger Award

I am proud to have received the Kreativ Blogger Award given to me by my church/blogger-friend, Chan (http://chans3.blogspot.com/).

Upon receipt of this award the recipient must list 6 things that make her/him happy then pass the award forward to others so, here goes:

1. First and foremost, my family makes me happy. I have a wonderful, thoughtful Husband and a precious baby boy. Because my husband works so hard, I am able to live my dream which is to be a stay-at-home Mommy. They are the joy and the sunshine in my life! Without them, I would not be complete.
2. Secondly, my parents make me happy. I am blessed to have amazing parents who are also such loving grandparents. I can only hope to be as wonderful a parent to my children as they were for my brother and me. I know that I can always count on them to be there for my family and me.
3. Third, my brother makes me happy. Andrew may be my "little" brother but he is definitely bigger than me now - and he is protective like a big brother! He also always makes me laugh! Anyone who knows my brother knows that where Andrew is, laughter is!
4. Fourth, my church family and friends make me happy. We are so blessed to be part of such a wonderful church. After past church experiences, they are a breath of fresh air! I actually look forward to Sundays now!
5. Fifth, baking makes me happy! I'm sure if you've read my blog you know that I love to bake. It's relaxing to spend time in the kitchen making something yummy and then share it with family. I grew up coming home to wonderful aromas in the kitchen and I want my family to experience the same!
6. Sixth, playing the piano makes me happy. I love the fact that I can sit down at a keyboard and make music. Whether is soft, loud, sad, or crazy, there are so many things you can reveal through music. My fingers are used to express my innermost feelings.

Now, I'm giving this award to 4 bloggers:
1. Sarah, http://newlywedws.blogspot.com/, is a woman after my own heart. She loves to cook and bake and posts some great recipes. Keep them coming!
2. Kelly, http://kellybeanephotography.blogspot.com/, is our family's photographer. She has taken our Wedding, Maternity, and Newborn pictures. We love her work and are so glad she has been able to capture our life in pictures!
3. Abi, http://abeautifulimageblog.com/, is an amazing photographer and the one who introduced us to Kelly. Check out her work. It's amazing!
4. McMama, http://www.mycharmingkids.net/, I know has received this award before but she's very deserving to receive it again. Not a day goes by that I do not read her blog. Her family is beautiful and her pictures and writing are fantastic!

Ballroom Dancing

One of the best gifts I've ever received came from my Husband this past Christmas. It was a month of ballroom dancing lessons! This is something I've always wanted to do but didn't think I'd ever get the chance to do it. We started our first lesson last night and began by learning the Foxtrot. It is such a fun dance! We had to start from the very beginning because we don't know a thing about proper dancing, to say the least. Our instructor is a jolly, round man (but without the beard) and we are learning with 4 other people. The class is small and that's how I like it. There are 7 basic steps to the Foxtrot and we went through all of them last night. I was afraid this would happen but this morning, I hardly remember a thing we learned last night! We'll have to practice this week so that we can be ready for next Monday's lesson. I told my Husband that I'm hooked so it looks like we will be taking more than a month of lessons. I'm excited about learning different dances. I really don't know when we'll use our new-found talents but it will be fun learning. And besides, it's a great date-night for me a hubby! I'll keep you updated on our dancing adventures!

Potato Spice Cookies

As mentioned before, I got a new mixer for Christmas. I only had a small hand-held mixer before which sometimes made things a little difficult. The first thing I made with the new mixer is Potato Spice Cookies. They are yummy cookies with the odd ingredient of cold mashed potatoes. They rest of the ingredients include wonderful spices, nuts, and raisins. The mashed potatoes may sound a little strange but they make the cookies so moist and it's a great way to use those leftover mashed potatoes you don't know what to do with. It's a recipe my Mom has made for years and is one that I just got from her. I'm so glad I did! They turned out so good and Hubby likes them, too. He's trying to eat better in 2009 so he feels better about eating these cookies instead of sugar/chocolate filled cookies. The recipe is below:

Potato Spice Cookies
1 c. honey
1/2 c. butter
1 c. cold mashed potatoes
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. raisins
1/2 c. nuts
2 c. flour

Heat honey and butter until melted. stir in potatoes until smooth. Sift dry ingredients and add to honey/butter mixture. Add nuts and raisins. Bake 350 for 10-12 minutes. Enjoy!

"Not Me" Monday

I definitely did NOT put off folding laundry, sweeping floors, or cleaning the kitchen so I could play on the Internet all day. I'm a responsible wife and mother and would never let my family live in such a mess just so I can play!

I most definitely did NOT avoid going to the grocery store because I didn't feel like taking a shower. And that did NOT leave 3 diapers to hold me over until I make it to the grocery store tomorrow. I'm a much better mother than that!

I do NOT already want another baby! I have a 9 month old and it would be crazy to want another one already! And I have NOT wanted a sibling for JJ since he was a couple months old. I'm way too tired for such things.

I do NOT still have the Christmas decorations up. I do NOT keep putting it off until "next weekend" and I did NOT contemplate leaving the tree up all year long and decorating it for each season. Nope. Not me.

Your turn. What have you NOT done lately??