In the Beginning....

Our adoption application was accepted!

So we have our first appointment to begin the whole homestudy process, this Tuesday (March 3rd). There is so much wonder that goes through one's mind, when beginning this leg of the journey...."is my house clean enough" "will I answer that question correctly" "do I look like a good mom" it can be overwhelming. I understand that it is completely necessary to insure the safety and well-being of the child...but I really don't like being judged...but who does...So I'm excited, nervous....happy....and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to bring our kids home.

Turning 3

There is something that happens when you strap a gun...real or fake to a boy's (or man's) hip. I took pictures of my son today...dressed as a cowboy. We are having an "Outlaw Johnny Cash Cowboy" B-day party....he is turning three. He immediately took on a whole different personality...walking different, making mad faces and asking if he's allowed to shoot birds. I had a good laugh this afternoon...watching him strut around...I had to convince him to wash the moustache off to take a nap. I love throwing theme parties...I tend to go over the top...but this is the day that my heart was flooded with joy....the day that ended the longing for a child and the day I became a mama. I still remember seeing his beautiful red lips, skinny legs and almost bald head for the first time...and singing "you are my sunshine" as I rocked him to sleep in the nursery. This is going to be a fun party...I'll post more pics after next weekend.

I freehanded this card for my husband for Valentine's Day...it came along with some freshly baked brownies and a 4 pack of Jones Soda...we are celebrating tonight, Friday the 13th (dundundunnnn) because tomorrow I'm getting my CCL (Concealed Carry License)...why is Friday the 13th so "unlucky" who made that decision? Why not Tuesday the 13th or Monday? I always liked Friday the 13th because someone would always call in a "bomb threat" to our school...and we just got to screw around all day...well while all you love birds are going out to dinner, getting dozens of roses and watching sappy movies...I'll be shooting my heart out.

Dear Birth Parent

So the update is....YES! This is the ideal agency for us. We felt extremely comfortable and are super excited to be turning in our application later this week. They asked us to start working on a scrapbook and "dear birth parent" letter that they will present to each birth family that we match....I don't even know where to begin...my heart is flooded with emotions and run-on sentences, oh and 8 years worth of photos. I'm just trying to sort through it all.

Hobby Lobby is having an amazing sale on all their scrapbook supplies....which this time, I didn't hesitate to buy the album I've been coveting for the past year, with no real excuse to buy it...until now...it's beautiful....black and aqua damask...

So now I'm happily looking through all our photos on our computer...remembering when Jude was born....the stories....trips...experiences...and thinking that someday...hopefully soon....my son or daughter's birthmother will be holding this album...turning the pages...seeing just a glimpse into our lives....... and choosing us.

To be or not to be....we will see

A couple of weeks ago, my hubby, Jude and I were driving home from a fantastic lunch at a new bakery when we saw a huge sign that read "Adoption Services." We quickly looked at each other in surprise because there isn't an adoption agency for hundreds of miles in our state. Joe asked if we should turn around....in which I replied..."sure, but it's probably an adoption program for pets" (LOL) I quickly realized we were both dressed NOT to impress...which is important to me...I don't know why, but it is...we went in...and yes it IS a real adoption agency that is just getting started. (they've also worked with the foster care system for sometime) They were very nice....(but not in a bubbly kind of way...which I admit, makes me nervous...) and professional....and they didn't seem to mind that we were not dressed to impress LOL....we actually walked in on a meeting they were having...but they took a couple of minutes to gives us the info we desired. Needless to say we have an appointment with them today at 5 pm. I'm excited....but there is always that side of me that says....it may be too good to be true. However I did say that when Jude's birthmother said "yes, I would like you to adopt my baby"....so that's not always the truth. I'm trying to keep myself from daydreaming about a new nursery....lol...ahhhhhh the joys of waiting

Birth of a Shoe

I took pictures of a childhood friend and her hubby who were pregnant with their first baby. I've taken lots of prego pics, but these are particularly special to me....as she was making her "birthing plan" she asked me to be there when she gave birth to their little girl. I think a dream

of mine is to become a doula at some point in my life...because I truly love the whole process of birth. Sweet baby Mia came into this world last Wednesday...with jet black hair, arms flying, legs kicking, greeted by bright lights and crying faces...it was amazing. The next day I made these little booties...and named them Mia Jade.

Baking bread from scratch

Over a year ago we started milling our own wheat to make wholesome, nay more than wholesome...bread. It is absolutely delicious and packed with vital nutrients that commercial bread lacks.....even the "whole grain" crap you buy doesn't even hold a light up to the amazing nutrients that are in freshly milled flour...

I also enjoy letting my son help whever he can...is more like "letting mama help me".....here's some pics of our adventure

All the ingredients...raw local honey, cold pressed organic olive oil, sea salt, local eggs, yeast, lecithin and water...yes that's also wine...that's for mama

Digging in the red winter wheat bucket

Putting the wheat berries in the mill

turning it on...

...whoa...kinda freaked out (it sounds like an airplane)

Feeling a lot safer on the floor...

Putting everything in...(it's hard trying to take a pic and help pour lol)

Eating honey off the spoon...

Smelling the most important ingredient...yeast

after kneading, rising, shaping, rising again...and baking...

fabulous bread from scratch....

we ate it with butter and apricot preserves...it was amazing!

Cutest Baby Set...

So I haven't been making any new baby blanket sets...due to that they maybe illegal in the weeks to come...but a friend of mine ordered one...Rockabilly Style...I swear this is the cutest one I've made! I'm contemplating on making me one as well! A large blanket...50"x36", booties, and two burp cloths...

What I did over the holidays....whew!

It was a crazy Christmas Holiday for me this year...which I'm grateful that I had...and grateful that I survived it! In the days before, I had a huge order of 100 magnet sets (yes that's 400 magnets) that I had to send out, a wedding to shoot...Etsy store orders and local orders....and then my lovely hubby tells me that we are leaving the day after Christmas for Texas to visit his family (17 hour trip!)....and that's not including shopping, decorating, cooking, baking, wrapping, packing...etc...for us. Let's just say I didn' sleep much...and my family and best friend really surrounded me and helped me get these things done.

I'm including some pics from the wedding...which was beautiful...yet not the ideal photography conditions...super dark, no ceiling to bounce the flash...and surrounded by windows...

New Mess Bags

Well with the holiday rush over...I can finally enjoy sewing again. I've got some super cute messenger bags lined up for the next couple of weeks...with new fabrics and textures...and fabulous colors. The model is one of my friends...she's in a band and she's amazing..

my photography

I love taking pictures....I used to work as a typesetter for my local newspaper office, when I was in high school. They quickly realized that I was a perfectionist with a dash of OCD...and was perfect for the job. One of the sports photographers started training me in the dark room and I was instantly in love...not with him, you sicko....but with photography :) My junior year, my school needed to send a high school student to a college course in journalism...mind you I was never in journalism....and they sent me...I have no idea why. My 1st week there was miserable...I had never been away from my parents, was EXTREMELY shy...and I was surrounded by total strangers....in a class that I never had interest in. I sat and cried in the Mac Lab...because I couldn't figure out how to turn on the darn thing....much less understand any of the programs (I had a PC)....and none of those journalism snobs helped me. They were too busy making out. By the third week I was ready to go home...until they handed each of us a camera. Our assignment was to take a whole roll of film, develop it and come up with a quirky tagline...needless-to-say...I won the contest....and I've never stopped.

I mostly enjoy taking pictures of pregos, babies, children and families....I've shot some weddings...but they are so stressful....but they pay well!

sewing up a storm...well kinda

So last Friday I dislocated two ribs...how? I'd like to know! So that put a major damper on my sewing...what usually takes me hours, took me days...but I'm incredible happy to have listed these today. They are beautiful! I have a friend coming tomorrow to model them for me...so the pics are a little blah...but under the circumstances...I'm just happy to have them up!

ohhh how I love Fall

Fall...my favorite time of year (besides Christmas)...yes it offically arrived weeks ago, however our trees just turned a beautiful bright yellow. This is the time of year I come alive...baking pumpkin everything, making popcorn balls, sipping hot tea (just bought some from teaman and it's fabulous)...and the smell of roasting chile fills the air. I love every bit of it.

here is my all time favorite popcorn ball recipe:

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup margarine
2 teaspoons cold water
2 5/8 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup marshmallows
5 quarts plain popped popcorn (3 bags of mircrowave popcorn...)

(I add 2 teaspoons of ameretto, vanilla OR even peppermint flavoring...oh an a couple of drops of food coloring depending on the holiday)

DIRECTIONS
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the corn syrup, margarine, cold water, confectioners' sugar and marshmallows. Heat and stir until the mixture comes to a boil. Carefully combine the hot mixture with the popcorn, coating each kernel.
Grease hands with vegetable shortening and quickly shape the coated popcorn into balls before it cools. Wrap with cellophane or plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

I love to wrap in saran wrap and tie with raffia or yarn....ahhh I love Fall!!

I love to custom make...my magnet sets

I am a gift giver...and I do it well. I love the whole packaging process and imagine my friends, my family and my customers opening up the gift I've wrapped and always tied with raffia. I also like tucking snips of greenery or flowers from outside under the bow...my heart goes into that lol.

I also love to custom make. I love that the customer had their hand in the process and hopefully get exactly what they wanted. I love it when I get exactly what I want :) I custom made these for Enyaeire (by the way you should check out her shop for amazing crochet items)

I listed these pretties today...all my magnet sets make great gifts...whether its stocking stuffers, office parties, hostess, teachers, best friends...or just a thinking about you gift! Plus I can custom make to have almost any picture you want!

my etsy store...a little about what I make

I've been creating things my whole life...as a child I was ALWAYS doodling, drawing or gluing something....it runs in the family. I basically make things I would want to receive.

I love sewing now...however for years we had a love-hate relationship. In 7th grade I was in a home education class that taught how to sew. We had to make pillows out of our initials...mine were MRS...as I started the 1st one and SEWED my finger...needless to say...that was the last time I sewed until weeks before my son was due. My mom is an amazing seamstress...she'll tell you she'd not...but she really is. I asked her to teach me to read patterns so I could make a baby kimono for my son's dedication. I shortly began making purses for friends and myself....and haven't stopped since. I love picking fabrics and seeing the end product.

I've been making baby sets for years...I used to make the no-sew fleece blankets until I started sewing and just recently added sweet kimono-style booties. I love love love snuggle flannel because the more you wash it...the softer it gets. I've made my son pajamas out of it...and he loves it! I still use the burp cloths too....they are perfect for runny noses and won't rub them raw.

I also love choosing fabrics that are non-traditional...

I can sit for hours looking at different papers to create my magnet sets. These are the perfect little gift for anyone....teachers, office, just thinking of you, wedding and baby shower hostesses...and they are inexpensive! Every set I make....I question whether to keep them for myself!