using your imagination

I have started a book collection for Max and want it to include all the good ole classics. I was beyond excited when I found out a new Goodwill opened that is solely a book donation store. I found a bunch of hard cover Dr. Seuss books in excellent condition. $2 each

We are not a big TV watching family. There are just so many other exciting things to do....But when did cartoons get so WEIRD? Have you seen Yo Gabba Gabba? Weird Weird. How does a normal, drug free brain even come up with that stuff? I watched it a few times and ended up having the song "Don't Bite Your Friends" in my head all day. No thanks.

I would much rather read to Max..opposed to plopping him in front of the tube while he watches Baby Einstein teach him how to spell cow. I know I know, some Moms LOVE Baby Einstein, but after watching 10 minutes I couldn't take it anymore and either could Max ; )

I want to fill his cute little head with memories of us reading stories to him, where he can use his imagination.

accessorizing your wrist

I may be on a little leather kick right now. I am LOVING leather accessories. Leather tends to have a more masculine feel..but when you add a little feminine touch its the perfect combination. Real leather bracelets can be pretty pricey, so I decided to venture out to Michaels and try to make a similar looking one myself. It still needs a little more...something...but this was my first attempt so I decided to share.

What I used

• Single strips of leather (found them at Michaels for around $4)
• Long chain
• Scissors
• Krazy glue
  

I cut two small strips of leather and glued the ends together...to make one long strip.

Weaved the leather strip in and out of the chain.

Krazy glued the ends over the chain. Opened each end chain link and attached them together.

TAaaa Dahh. It's definitely not perfect, or what I had pictured exactly in my head..but I guess thats the beauty of handmade things.

thrifty vs cheap

I thrifted this leather jacket a little while back. I just recently had it tailored so I no longer resemble a linebacker when I wear it. I'm not a big fan of "pleather"..I think it looks cheap and smells weird. So when I found the real deal for $7 I snatched it right up.

This was for sure a diamond in the rough. It was in a big bin of used purses and I saw a little corner of it peeking out from the bottom. When I reached down to pick it up I thought, "Hmmm this looks nice." It was in PERFECT condition. I looked inside to see if was from Forever 21. Nope it was Italian made and genuine leather. It was "Half off Friday" so I walked away with this little beauty for $5!!

I almost said to the lady checking me out "WOW this little clutch is waaaay under priced"...but then thought NO DUMMY...."One woman's junk is another woman's treasure."

There is a big difference between being thrifty and being cheap. To me, being thrifty means buying the things you love at a great price. Being cheap means compromising quality. Ever since becoming a Momma my outlook on spending has drastically changed. I no longer feel okay about spending $180+ on a pair of jeans (craziness I know). I get such a thrill when I find the SAME jeans at places like Urban Exchange for about $40. I believe you can find even BETTER quality items when you are being thrifty... if you look hard enough and put a little extra effort in.

easy dinners.. yes please

I cut the squash in half and scooped out the seeds and stringy stuff.

Placed it in the Crock Pot with two cups of water. Cooked it on low for 7 hours.

Sauteed up some tomatoes and red onion.

Took the fork lengthwise to the squash and scrapped out the spaghetti.

A refreshing, diabetic friendly... version of spaghetti!

I am LOVING my new favorite kitchen item..the Crock Pot! My friend Felicia is always raving about hers so I was so excited to try it out myself. Why I didn't get one sooner?... Who knows. The possibilities are endless and it has made cooking dinner so simple and easy.

Tonight I made spaghetti squash spaghetti. I was a little hesitant that Ian would be like "Uhhh can I have some real spaghetti please?" but he liked it! He actually told me he was full after, which was a surprise considering the meal was super low carb and did not contain any meat :)

baby junk food attempt # 2

Little baby puffs, which make me so nervous.

Just reading the ingredients. I taught him this ; )

Hey I remember this little thing..

Holding on tight!

Love his chubby little hands. Trying to figure how the heck he is supposed to get this to his mouth.

Yeay!...

After all that hype..he was much more interested in vigorously shaking the container of rice puffs than eating them.

At Max's 6 month check up the Dr. told us it was okay to feed him little rice puffs...AKA baby junk food. We gave him one to try and poor little guy tried to swallow it whole! NOT GOOD I had a mini heart attack...Since he is now almost 9 months and eating chunkier food just fine I decided to give it another try...Success!

a little slice of heaven

The seemingly endless golden field of flowers on our way to Julian.

Such a cute little shop.

Apple raspberry crumble pie. We both decided this made up for the slightly disappointing hike attempt.

After our little slice tease we HAD to buy a whole pie.

We headed out to Julian today to do a little family hike. My weather channel app said it was going to be beautiful with clear skies :) Hit a few speed bumps along the way...

1) Almost ran out of gas driving there.
2) We dressed like we were doing a beach hike and it was 37 degrees.
3) Drove ALL around looking for the hiking trail and ended up on some creepy road with no trail in sight.
4) It started raining.

SO what to do in Julian when its freezing and raining? Eat their famous warm pie of course.

The most wonderful season of them all

Cherry Blossoms are everywhere! Makes driving down my street that much more lovely.

Just bought "Mint Candy Apple" Monday and I love it!

Totally reminds me of Easter. I LOVE these. I could probably eat that whole bowl no biggie

Earth Day. Friday, April 22

How awesome are these springy inspired TOMS?!

Martha Stuart has the best ideas. Vanilla custard in broken egg shells.

I am dying for one of these!..Especially in yellow.

This just sounds yummmy. Gonna make a stop to World Market to pick up a bag!

Lemon cake is just the best. The End.

I asked Ian what comes to his mind when i say "Spring"...and without hesitation this
is what he said...

Baseball starts!

Snow starts melting, which means, no more snowboarding...sad face.

(pretty awesome pic he took while on a man trip in Mammoth)