Thursday, December 31, 2009

Happy New Year!!

I hope you all have a safe and happy New Year!!!


Wednesday, December 30, 2009

New Year's Resolutions

The new year is approaching fast and as I run around my house this evening doing chores and making muffins for our morning breakfast I can’t help but think ahead to what the new year will bring and what changes I can make to make this new year a wonderful one for my family and I.




As a homemaker I sometimes find myself feeling like I’m not contributing to life. I often watch my husband with his career and feel like he is actually doing something for the world as I sit here. Sometimes it can be easy to feel like the countless hours spent mopping, sweeping, dusting; baking and everything else that goes into taking care of a home are a waste. Especially when the next day the house seems to become a mess again and I’m back to where I started the day before. I guess that brings me to my new year’s resolutions:

Appreciate. This year I’m going to try to appreciate the blessing I’ve been given of being able to take care of my family in the way that I do. Being able to be home with my child, making my family home cooked meals, keeping our home warm and full of love are just a few of the things I’m going to appreciate more.

Joy. I’m going to find joy in the little things in life. A clean kitchen. Folding laundry. Time spent with my family. I’m going to try to find joy in the things that I do everyday.

Embrace. I’m going to embrace my life and remember that what I do is valuable to my family and to myself. I’m going to learn not to find self worth in what people think I should be doing but in the fact that I know I’m doing the right things for the people I love.

There is so much to look ahead to for us this year with our upcoming move that I’m sure will bring on many life changes for us. I’m excited to take on whatever life brings my way in 2010!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Winter Photo Shoot

Since getting home from his deployment the hubby has taken a recent interest in photography which I think is a great thing. He is such a creative person I love to see his ideas. There is a local photography group that he joined up with that does group photo shoots and mentor sessions and I got to be a model, well one of three anyway! It was a lot of fun running around pretending to be a model even though it was absolutely freezing outside! Here are some of the shots...








This is a good shot of me being a model for the hubby. I like it!



Thanks to Kim Kravitz Photography, Photos by GI and Nadja Peery of Mutt Shots for their great work! They are all very talented!

Monday, December 28, 2009

Looking Ahead.

How was your Christmas? Mine wasn’t bad! Despite being sick Christmas Eve and Christmas Day I managed to get through it (with the help of DayQuil), make a yummy Christmas meal and enjoy a great Christmas with family and friends. Snuggle Bug made out this year with tons of gifts from the grandma’s, mom & dad and of course Santa. She didn’t fully understand the concept of opening the presents but she isn’t even two yet so I imagine next year she’ll figure it out. She did enjoy watching mommy and daddy open her gifts for her and showing her what she got.

Now I’m in the process of finding new homes for all these toys and preparing for the coming of the New Year which brings about lots of new adventures for our family! Between now and April I’ve got to get this house in top shape because in just a few short months we’re moving to Colorado. I’m so excited for our move and ready to April to get here! After our trip to see the area back in October I’ve been more than ready to pack up and head that way. The area is just beautiful! But until then I’ve got more than enough things on my to do list to keep me occupied all the way into spring. Speaking of that to do list….I should probably get off the computer and start some of it!

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Holiday Baking

I absolutely love holiday baking! I must go through bags of flour, sugar, eggs and milk this time of year. But there is something so special about turning on some Christmas music, putting on my apron and spending time baking yummy treats for the people I love. Tonight I made the classic Christmas treat, Gingerbread….yum!

Here is Snuggle Bug decorating her very first gingerbread cookie! Its in the shape of a Christmas tree but she decided on yellow icing.
But she decided later on to add in a little green for good measure.
That cookie is looking pretty good! As you can see by her face she had to take a little sample of that green frosting. Gotta make sure it tastes good!

Here are the finished cookies and the hubby and Snuggle Bug decorated. Aren't they cute?
The hubbt decorating. Not too creative but at least I got him to help a bit!
Here are the rest of the finished decorated cookies. I made even more but decided to save the rest to decorate later, closer to Christmas. But these here are for eating NOW! After we were done I sipped some egg nog (no one else likes it but me) and we watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas together before Snuggle Bug went to bed. I love Christmas moments like these!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Seasons Greetings!!

It’s the most wonderful time of the yearrrrrrrr!! I love this time of year! With the snow and lights and festive decorations it is such a happy season. It is also a very busy time of year! The hubby and I just got back from a week in Colorado and then two week long vacation in San Diego, with a little side trip to Las Vegas, and had such a wonderful time! We spent about a week in Colorado checking out the area we’re moving to and just seeing what the area has to offer. Let me just say I am so darn excited about this move I could burst! The area is beautiful being at the foot of a gorgeous mountain and the city has so much to offer. I really think our family could be very happy there. The post the hubby is being assigned to is also wonderful. Very pretty, small and clean. The entire week left us with a very good feeling about living there for the next 3+ years. We had about two weeks at home to rest before we packed up and flew to San Diego for Thanksgiving and two full weeks of lovely weather, family time and some yummy Thanksgiving food. The entire trip didn’t go without a minor disaster when Snuggle bug got very sick a few days after we got there. She started sleeping a lot and acting like she didn’t feel well then the fever started. Let me tell you seeing her temperature shoot up to 104.6 was so scary! Thankfully the doctors at a nearby hospital took good care of her and she was feeling better in no time. While we were in San Diego we took a quick side trip to Las Vegas while the hubby’s mom took care of Snuggle Bug. It was the first time since he has been back from deployment that we really got to spend some one on one time together. It can be nice to have some grown up time occasionally. As we were driving back from Las Vegas the hubby and I had a bright idea to stop at every tourist trap we could find and let me tell you we found some gems.
Now for some highlights from our trip…..

Here we have Alien Fresh Jerky. It is conveniently located right next to......
The World's Largest Thermometer! Nope, not joking. I'm standing in front of what is billed as the World's Largest Thermometer. They used to have a gift shop but sadly is was closed down :: sad face ::

Close up shot of the thermometer.

Then it was on to Calico Early Man Site.
Which apparently is closed on Tuesdays.
This was my personal favorite, Calico Ghost Town.
The hubby hanging out with the locals.


Sadly, this is the only picture of us in Las Vegas. We realized that on our way out of town and decided to snap one real quick, notice the car roof.

It was such a great trip and I've got so many more pictures to post in the coming days! I have been a terrible blog owner as of late I will admit. Once the hubby came home life got busy and my blogging has suffered quite a bit. But hopefully I can make a turn for the better and hop on here more. I've got so much more to share with you all!