give aways…

I am guilty of slacking on my blog posting, I promise to keep better tabs on daily posts. On another note, my obsession with reading other blogs continues, I just can’t get enough of the creativity and inspiration my blogsphere friends offer. I am inspired every day by so many women that I have never even met.

A perk of being obsessed with blogs is that you have the chance to win a lot of free stuff. So many popular blogs have giveaways. I used to never comment for a chance to win, but now I think….what the heck, you never know!

So today, check out Laura’s blog for a chance to win one of these amazing large letters for your house!

FINALLY!

I have FINALLY completed my magnetic chalkboard frame and I couldn’t be more excited about it! This post is a week overdue because the Bob and I hung the completed project with such joy last Sunday. So here you have it…all the details.

Found the perfect frame at Not to Shabby last Friday after work. Notice the super-thick frame. I realized after my buy that the inner frame could be removed…super score! Now I have 2 frames to make – you will have to wait until a later post for the 2nd project which is already in the works!

Here is the frame before:

Note the detail:

See, it’s now 2 frames!:

The goods: Magnetic Paint, Antique White Spray paint, Chalkboard Spray paint….

Progress:

Finally…the completed project (one of 2) I have dreamed of for over a year featuring the 2009 Holiday cards we received from family and friends:

Stay tuned for the 2nd project of this frame…..

little man’s dinner with cuzin D and a rock star

Unfortunately we didn’t have our camera with to capture a pic of the little man and his first dinner with a rock star! My cousin Derek was in town with Everclear (he’s their sound engineer) for the Rock n’Roll marathon – they played at the finish line. So the Bob and I picked up Derek & Art in our little VW Jetta for an authentic mexican dinner at TeePee. It was great to spend time with Derek and get to know Art a bit more – great guy! They were both really impressed with our son’s wall licking skills! Good times!

counting our blessings and helping others

Another pic from the little man’s baptism. I am amazed everyday at how much more “full” our life is now that we have the little man. Words just can’t explain how your whole world changes when you become parents.We count our many blessings daily and thank God for all that he has provided for us.

This picture is especially meaningful as I reflect on the people of Haiti and the suffering they are experiencing. My heart breaks for them all and especially the children who are so very helpless. I pray for all the people of Haiti and all those who are there to provide relief and support. Every little bit we can do for them is helpful. Click here for how you can donate to help the people of Haiti.

the little man’s baptism

I still have not gotten the chance to upload my photos from this weekend, but being the oh-so-organized person she is, the little man’s Godmother beat me to it and sent hers to me last night. So I thought I would share some of the day’s highlights as well as a few of her pics.

We have been anticipating the little man’s baptism for months now and are so happy to have finally had the big day. It was a special day for many reasons, the most important being what the day represented  – bringing our son into the love and grace of God’s family. He is forever one of God’s children and will lead a life of faith with the love and support of our church family, family, friends and his Godparents. We couldn’t have chosen a more fitting pair to stand beside us on this day and each day of the little man’s life – Dana and Colette Parish officially became the little man’s Godparents! We look forward to years of memories spent in their company!

The big surprise of the day was that my mom showed up at the church! I couldn’t believe it! She flew in for a little over 24 hours, just to be there with us! The Bob’s mom was also in town for a week to be with us. And on top of that we had so many family and friends who came and celebrated with us! It was great to be surrounded by the love and support of each and everyone of them. We are so blessed!

The little man couldn’t be any cuter in his little suit and he did so well during the church service. Seeing that it was right in the middle of his nap time, I couldn’t be prouder. We did have to keep him entertained with his Godmother’s link roller, water bottle, contact solution bottle and a few other items from her purse. When it came time for the baptism part of the service he was a trooper – he did cry a bit when Pastor poured the water over his head, but I can’t blame him!

We had everyone back to the house for lunch after and enjoyed time spent in the company of great family and friends! It was a perfect day!

many great moments

It was a GREAT weekend filled with many great moments in which we will cherish forever and an AMAZING surprise too! I will post details and pics later this evening. For now, here’s pic of the little man on the swing – we took Little Momma to the park to show her all his new tricks! He is loving the swing more and more each time.

little pj’s

What is it about babies in pajamas that is soooo darn cute! I can’t get enough of little man in his Paul Frank monkey pj’s. Every time we put them on him he is mesmerized by the little monkey faces on his pants…like “who put these little monkey faces on my pants?” love.

this is it!!!!

I am sooo excited, I can hardly contain myself. I have been scowering craigslist and local thrift stores for months now to find the perfect mirror to create a magnetic chalkboard (like the one featured on design*sponge awhile back) and have had no luck! I even got tempted over the holidays to create one like Martha’s just until I could find a mirror. I so glad I didn’t because today I found this jem of a magnetic chalkboard featured on Odeehdoh today! Ashley at Under the Sycamore is my kind of girl! Not only is she an amazing photog – she had exactly the same idea I had for our Christmas card display – only she executed on her brilliant idea! Thanks Ashley, I CAN’T WAIT to make our own version. If I can squeeze it in this weekend with a little help from my crafty mother-in-law…I am on it. It may just have to wait until next weekend, since the little man is being Baptized on Sunday.

resolutions…

Typically I don’t make any formal New Years Resolutions, but I think 2010 is a good year to start – and if I put a list out here, I think I might be more prone to complete it – or at least a lot of it!

Below is my list. Boy are we going to be busy!

1. Organize one area of the house each week & donate items/clothes we no longer need or use
2. Try snowboarding
3. Visit my brother in LA
4. Loose the rest of my pregnancy weight
5. Visit family in NJ and WI
6. Learn to make homemade pizza – still need that mixer!
7. Be good to myself – eat clean, exercise more and live in the moment
8. Practice Yoga
9. Send letters to friends and family – the internet has taken away the beauty of receiving snail mail that isn’t a bill
10. Practice patience and respect – with family, friends, nature, God, co-workers, strangers, everyone!
11. Start a dinner party group with friends (ala my parent’s “gourmet group”) I am thinking March will be a good month to start!
12. Hang outdoor Christmas lights this Christmas – the Bob is in charge of this one!
13. Start swimming lessons for the little man
14. Print photos at least once a month and create albums!
15. Complete a minimum of one diy house project each month. Here are a few I have been dying to tackle since the day we moved back to AZ:

– Magnetic Chalkboard – I have been trying to find the perfect thrift store mirror to create my own, just like the one featured on design*sponge awhile back – I am kinda obsessed with it!
– Paint the Living Room wall – this one WILL be done before the little man’s birthday!
– Paint the Master Bathroom
– Paint the Kitchen Cabinets – Paint the Master Bathroom cabinets
– Paint the baseboards and doors
– Landscape the Front & Backyard
– Create a storage space for all the little man’s toys – thinking a window seat with storage would be cool
– Get a new computer desk – searching for a good one to refurb from craigslist
– Nightstands for the Master Bedroom – a variation of this would be cool
– Nightstands for the Guest Bedroom
– Remove the Bathroom Medicine Cabinets – going to create shelves like yhl did

Don’t have any resolutions of your own, check out Monina’sResolution Generator for some inspiration!

top 10 moments of 2009

2009 will forever be one of the greatest years of our lives – it was the year we welcomed our first born child little man (Rowan Gregory Kelly). Words can’t begin to describe the joy of becoming a parent and it’s a joy we live in every moment of everyday as we watch our little man grow.

Inspired by Nie Nie’s post today, I created my own little list of “top 10 moments of 2009.”

1. the birth of our little man & becoming parents
2. having my mom in the delivery room with us when little man was born (best gift I could have given her)
3. moving back to AZ – it is definitely home to us
4. seeing all the “firsts” for the little man – first laugh, smile, roll-over, crawl, etc…
5. bike rides with the Bob and the little man – great talks about our future and adventures we will have
6. hosting & cooking for friends & family – oh how I missed entertaining at our house, nothing beats good food, laughter and the company of great friends
7. the little man’s first Christmas – although we were miles away from our family, we spent the holidays in the company of dear friends who are family to us
8. watching the Bob become the most amazing father – words can’t express the bond he shares with our little man
9. new years AM family walk with the little man and the Bob – definitely a tradition for us to carry on with (AND we were in beautiful Flagstaff)
10. realizing that it is the simple things and moments in life that mean the most and cherishing each one – life is too short

Not sure how 2010 can top 2009, but I am confident it will be filled with many, many, many more moments of joy, laughter, love and adventure. Now onto creating a resolution list….