Posts from — January 2010

taking a step back from blogging to figure out what i want this to be and possibly revamp the website altogether.

any ideas?  comments?  crits?  suggestions?  i’m open to just about everything!

lovies, =o) kel

so far so good!!!  i’m keeping up with my blog!!  haha.  i know it’s only been a week though, so i don’t have this blogging thing down as a habit quite yet, but i’m getting there!!

this week’s freebie is totally inspired by my Albert… his birthday is in a month, and we were talking today about what he wants to do and who he wants to invite.  of course, he’s been obsessed with Marvel since late last year, and now that I’ve remembered to DVR the Super Hero Squad Show on Cartoon Network, he’s completely obsessed all over again.

and he could probably tell you just about everyone in that poster.

but getting back to the freebie – i was searching online for ideas for a superhero birthday and found one at one of my favorite sites, Living Locurto.  Amy shares AWESOME ideas for a cape, mask, and invites… and a super cute batman cake but since we’re mostly anti-DC in this house, i’ll have to change the idea to something else!!

of course, what we end up doing is totally dependent on who we end up inviting… i don’t think many adults would be interested in creating their own cape and superhero mask!!

here’s the link to her post about the party: super hero party

and a direct link to the masks: .pdf file

but seriously, just browse Amy’s site and you’ll find TONS of cute ideas and awesome downloads!!  enjoy!!!

lovies, =o) kel

at the beginning of every year, Ali Edwards prompts us to choose one little word that defines our goals for the new year.  i have mentally played along in the past but having never written anything down, and having never been able to keep up with new year’s resolutions, i can’t tell you what words i chose!!  haha.

with everything that’s gone on this past year, from the family troubles to losing my mind in the 6-month-move-that-was-only-supposed-to-take-a-month, i realized what happened is that i lost control. and then i realized that i am a person who enjoys, and sometimes, needs to be in control of my life and the lives of those around me.  and sometimes i become a control-freak.  but in my mind, that’s not always bad!  haha.

so if you haven’t already figured it out, my word for 2010 is CONTROL. i know it’s a really powerful word with more negative connotations, but from now on, i want to be someone with power and in some ways, this excites me to challenge myself to walk that fine line between being a positive person in control and becoming a dictator.  i will be:

• in control of my home… control the clutter, keeping my home clean and presentable but also lived in and loved.
• in control of my finances… control the spending, keep up with bills, save a little, pay off our debt.
• in control of my family’s schedules… make sure we keep our appointments and leave lots of time for us to just be together.
• in control of my business… be productive and successful but have fun and remember that success is in doing what i love.
• in control of my depression… i will seek help when i need it and not let it cycle to become so big and debilitating like it always does.
• able to relinquish control and remember that i don’t need to be in control of everything at every time.

and with that said, here are some of my goals for 2010. like i said earlier, i don’t do so well with new year’s resolutions.  i do okay with goals and to-do lists though, so maybe thinking about it differently will allow me to do better with it!!

1. lose weight! my cousin gets married may 7th and i’d like to drop at least 25 lbs by then.  5 lbs a month.  i can do it!!!
2. pay off debt! it’s totally do-able to pay our way back to ZERO before the end of the year. just need to continue to stick to our budget.
3. send out birthday cards every month to the people we love but don’t see regularly.  i’m already behind for january but will be getting those cards out this week!
4. organize not only our house but our lives and stay on top of it.
5. clean more often… not only the house but ourselves… meaning eat healthier and exercise regularly.
6. craft more often… personally and professionally.
7. blog more than once a week.  and keep up with my freebies fridays thing.  everyone loves free!!
8. re-join or find a new blogging group! i’d love to rejoin the critters and be a hyper-active member!!  and maybe join a couple more groups, depends on what i can keep up with!
9. keep up with craft show/etsy orders & items! i’m putting up my “wall” today  (will share pics later) and knowing that i will bombard us with craft shows at the end of the year (because we did not do a single fair in 2009), would like to have an inventory built up by october so i don’t have to bust ass!!
10. participate in challenges and submit for publication! i think that’s explanation enough!!
11. sew a quilt and some other things i have been bookmarking on blogs and in books/magazines, including…
12. make plushies and felt food for the boys (and if it comes out great, for craft shows too!).  Albert has picked out his plush for me to sew.  just need to make time to re-introduce myself to my machine!
13. knit some new things! i’ve done a few scarves… would like to make more of them + some toys for the kiddos and other things i’ve bookmarked on blogs and in books.
14. take a trip! eventually i’d like to get away just me and jared, but i don’t think Amare is ready for us to leave him behind.  but family trips are nice too, we don’t have to leave the state, just get off-island.  both boys are DYING to get on an airplane.
15. renew my spirit by re-devoting myself to my religion and getting back in touch with my spirituality.
16. go back to school and learn a new language! which i will be doing fall 2010.  i need to meet with a counselor to confirm my course of action but i plan on taking 1-2 core classes, a language class (japanese), and maybe a beginner’s photography.  this is only supposed to be part-time and i don’t want to overwhelm myself from the start, but i am EXCITED about going back to school and the japanese/photography classes are supposed to by my “for fun” classes.

and my “just-for-fun/i-can-dream-can’t-i?” goal?

get pregnant! but as i’ve shared before, pregnancy for me comes with hyperemesis gravidarum, extreme nausea and vomiting, which means (and it did with both kids) me progressively getting sicker starting at 6 weeks, bed rest and IV home therapy, and losing 30 lbs over the course of  3 weeks at the worst of it, all to end at about 5 or 6 months.  so this is a just-for-fun/i-can-dream-can’t-i? goal because 1) we’re not ready for me to be dead-to-the-world for 5 months, and 2) Amare is not ready to NOT be a baby, and unless it’s twins, i only want one baby at a time in the house!

off to get my wall put up so i can share pictures and then get albert ready for practice!  it’s his last practice before the first game on saturday, so he has to be there!!!

lovies, =o) kel

something new i’m hoping to start up…  every friday check back for something new and free!  either something i made or something i found and loved and wanted to share with all of you!

to kick-start this week, i just wanted to also share something simple i made up for his teacher’s christmas gifts… it was super simple to make and the teachers all LOVED it.  each teacher/staff member got a set of 5 cards (except for his own teacher, who got 10) + envelopes.  and like i said, it was so simple to do.

download the .pdf file here {Scraps_teacher_thankyou.pdf} and print it out on some nice 8 1/2″ x 11″  cardstock.  I printed them on white which was nice but i think i’m gonna play with colors the next time i print them out… maybe a cream or tan that’s not quite as dark as the square.  cut it in half lengthwise to get (2) 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ pieces.  then fold those in half to get your  4 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ cards.  if the .pdf doesn’t work for you  then shoot me an email (or lemme know in the comments) and i can try to send it to you in a different format.

Happy New Year!!!  i’m working on my list of goals for the year… as well-intentioned as i am, i’m the WORST with follow-through (if you can’t already tell by my blog!) so i tend to keep my list of resolutions/goals simple so i don’t feel so… well… guilty at the end of the year (of couple months, depends on when i give up!! lol)

lovies, =o) kel