Days Like These

Days like today make me feel so alive! Me, Eric, Gunner, my Mother-in-Law, and my Sisters-in-Law walked the Komen Race for the Cure. The weather was beautiful, and I was glad to get out of the house and actually do something fun for a change. After the race, we came home, napped a bit, then went to the fair. We had a ton of fun looking at the animals! Gunner was smiling and laughing at each one. He had such a great time this weekend! I know he won't remember anything, but I'm glad that he seemed to enjoy it. I want him to experience all the joys that life has to offer!

Well, I'm off to relax a bit before going to sleep. Hope everyone has a great night!

Whoa

So yeah, it has been a really long time since I have blogged. Yikes! I do have a good excuse though. When Gunner hit 6 months, I started looking for a part-time job and am now officially teaching a wonderful group of two-year-olds at a local church's day school program. We are still doing the event decor rental business and are building our inventory quite nicely. All we need is a storage building for our supplies, and we are in business :) So needless to say, I've been quite busy!

Looking at the current layout, I'm realizing how much my little man has grown! He was probably about 4-months-old in this picture; He is now nearly 8-months-old! I can hardly believe it! He has the sweetest little personality in the world, but he does have a bit of a fiesty temper. He now throws tantrums if we don't give him something that he happens to want to play with. It's cute now, but when he gets older... Eeeehhh not so cute. He has 4 teeth already, and I'm almost 200% sure he has more coming in as he has been rather cranky the past several weeks. The changes in the weather causing his snotty nose and persistent cough probably aren't helping either!

I am literally foaming at the mouth for fall to arrive. This Louisiana heat is just way too much for me. The weather teases me with cool temperatures every morning, but by the afternoon, it's a typical summer day in Louisiana!

Well, I'm off to bed now, but I will do my best to write more often. It's a great outlet for me, and I have no idea why I stopped for a while! Hope everyone has a fantastic night!

Busy Busy

Here recently I've actually been kind of busy (yay!) ... I've been trying out all kind of new from-scratch recipes (homemade tortillas, homemade bread, homemade blueberry muffins - all of which have all been a success). I've also been catching up on that dreaded thing called laundry... UGH! If I had the money to hire someone to come over just to do laundry, I would do it in a heartbeat! I don't mind loading and unloading clothes into the washer and dryer, it's just the folding and putting away that gets really annoying. Especially having to do it repeatedly!

Today I had to pack up more of Gunner's clothes, and pull out the 6-9 month clothing because my chunkers is getting so big! He is so tall for a 4-month-old! At our doctor's appointment yesterday, we weighed in at 16.6 pounds and 26 inches tall. He's growing up so fast; it kind of makes me sad.

My mom called me today and told me that she and my dad will be looking at small portable buildings to hold the supplies for our business! We are opening a business that specializes in event rental decor (tablecloths, chair covers, vases for centerpieces, and more) as well as custom decor (handmade favors, custom centerpieces, etc.) for events in the Central Louisiana area. We are trying to build our inventory as quickly as we can for the grand opening! We are sooooo close, so keep an eye out for a blog post saying we are officially open for business!

On that note, How much would you be willing to pay for event decor (wedding, birthday, or otherwise)?

Help! I'm Running Out Of Stuff To Clean!

The past few days have been a blur of monotony. I wake up at 7AM, feed Gunner, make breakfast, take a nap with Gunner, feed Gunner, go for a walk, go for a drive, come home, Gunner takes a nap, clean the house while Gunner sleeps, feed Gunner, eat lunch, play with Gunner, start supper, wait for Eric to get home, feed Gunner, eat supper, give Gunner a bath, clean up the kitchen, feed Gunner one more time, put Gunner to bed, and play around on the computer or watch movies. I really need something new to jazz up our routine needless to say. I enjoy spending time with my little fellow, but I get so bored once he falls asleep. I stay relatively busy, but I'm becoming even more compulsive about cleaning than I was before.

I'm trying to think of things to do while not spending tons of money. I'm considering getting my head start on Christmas this year by getting all the materials to make the gifts. EVERYONE is getting handmade items this year. GOOD handmade items of course. The years before Gunner, we blew anything and everything on Christmas gifts. Unfortunately, this year will be a little different. On the other hand, I love to create things and would love to find my inner creative goddess once again. I feel like I lost it once real life happened. Nothing like having a baby to help find it again!

Ho Hum

Today was relatively uneventful. Woke up this morning, fed Gunner, played with Gunner, napped... Then we did it all over again! In between all the eating, playing, and napping, I did my Carmen Electra Striptease workout video, played on the computer, did a lot of obsessive cleaning around the house, and hunted for wasps. You heard me. Hunting for wasps.

Over the past week, two wasps from I don't know where just all of a sudden appeared. One flew into the living room where I was sitting; I ran outside as quick as I could until Eric killed it. The second one I almost stepped on last night when I was checking on Gunner. It was just kind of hanging out on the hall floor. It almost looked dead, but it most certainly twitched when Eric was beating it with my shoe! Anyone who knows me, knows I cannot stand wasps. I will take spiders and cockroaches over a wasp anyday. I have never been stung by one, but they really freak me out! They are scary looking!

Well, we have finally solved this whole neighbor-cat problem. Eric built him an outside pen (with a roof and everything). He actually looked quite content in it. So now when he isn't in the house, he is in his homemade cat-pen (and we no longer have to deal with the crazy anti-cat lady anymore)! Yay!

I think I'm going to try to sleep now. Hopefully Gunner will rest better than he did last night, poor baby. In the meantime, I added my Deviantart to my navigation above! Here you can see and order prints of all of my non-portrait work! If you decide to check it out, I would love to hear feedback!

Eyeing Memories Give-A-Way!

Everyone head over to Eyeing Memories and enter Elizabeth Nafe's awesome give-a-way! After doing one required entry telling her your favorite product at http://www.uprinting.com (along with the option of doing 7 other entries) - You will be entered for a chance to win 25 Business Card Magnets from http://www.uprinting.com ! It's an awesome opportunity so don't miss out!

I Am Going...

To clobber an old woman in the head! I am so sick of hearing my neighbor across the street whine about my cat being in her yard. I understand, to a certain degree. And she does work hard on her garden, I won't deny that. She just can't understand why we can't keep our cat in the house 24/7. We let him outside every once in a while as I refuse to put a litter box in the house again. We got rid of it about a month before Gunner was in the picture and it's not coming back. Funny thing is, Garfield isn't the only cat allowed to wander around the neighborhood. I've seen two cats in her yard before, a gray cat as well as a black and white cat - and they loitered for a good while. So why must I get rid of my cat? It's apparently not going to solve her problems! My husband, Eric, told her that we were doing what we could, ie. Doing our best to keep an eye on him when we do let him outside which is difficult with an infant, and trying to figure out a temporary place for him until we move outside the city (I use the term city very loosely - We aren't throwing our cat into traffic). Eric even told her that we do not have any room in our house for a litter box, which we don't because we live in a tiny 800 square foot home. Gunner's room was the former litter box room, and we just don't have the room anymore. He also said that we wouldn't put a litter box in the house because of the baby to which she responded, "What about my flowers? I'm sick and old and work hard on my garden" Lady, compared to my little man, I could care less about your stupid flowers (no offense to flowers which are lovely). We are doing what we can, end of story.

Speaking of my little man, we had a rough day today. He just refused to nap and was a total fussbudget all day long! I hope tomorrow is a better day...

Before I log off for the day, I would like to plug a very plug-worthy photography site whose owner also happens to be from the wonderful state of Louisiana like yours truly :) Elizabeth of http://eyeingmemories.blogspot.com/ has such stunning work! Check out her awesome site and photography!

I Heart Faces Weekly Challenge - From A Distance

This picture I am entering in this challenge is one of my new favorite pictures! It features my mother-in-law and my baby boy :) ... I do what I can to capture pictures when family members visit, and this one conveys such strong emotion, I had to enter it!

How the time does fly!

It seems like only yesterday my little man came into this world. He will be 4-months-old soon ... Today I started bawling at the thought of my little guy growing up. I want to freeze him at this age so I can always snuggle him and see his face light up when I enter the room. There is always the negative nancy in me saying this won't last forever. Soon I'll be the bane of his existance, a background noise always telling him what he can and can't do. It almost makes me sad. But for now, I will enjoy my little enjoy my little fellow and not worry what tomorrow will bring. He will always be my precious little man! ♥

Recipe - Vinegar Disinfectant

This recipe is great for those who want to save money or live a more chemical-free lifestyle. There are so many harmful ingredients in today's cleaning products - Don't even get me started on the prices! This recipe is so simple, you will wonder why you weren't cleaning with it before!

Ingredients
- White Vinegar (buy a big jug of white vinegar for storage to save even more $$)
- Water
- Tea Trea Essential Oil*
- Spray Bottle

Directions
Fill half of the spray bottle with water. Fill the remaining half with white vinegar. Add a few drops of Tea Trea Essential Oil with an eyedropper.


See? It's that easy!


*Tea Trea Oil has anti-septic, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral properties. It has been proven to treat moderate acne, head lice, dandruff, and warts.

I Heart Faces Weekly Challenge

So I finally decided to participate in one of I Heart Faces Weekly Challenges! I'm so excited :)

Here is my picture!

Hope you enjoy it :)

Kidgets Brand Diapers = AWESOME!

Eric and I received a variety of diapers during our baby shower - Huggies, Pampers, Parent's Choice, Luvs, Fisher Price, Target's Up & Up, and Kidgets. It has really given us the opportunity to try out and see which ones we (as well as Gunner) like best. Among our favorites include the generic Parent's Choice and Up & Up brand because they don't turn into a gelly mush and leak, but our most favorite brand that we have tried is the Kidgets brand from Family Dollar! No Joke! Gunner tends to wet his diaper frequently, so it was nice not having to change his clothes for the umpteenth time because his diaper leaked. After trying them out, I read some reviews on them to see if others have had the same positive experience with them because I couldn't believe they were dollar store diapers, and I read a ton of great reviews! A lot of them compared the actual diaper to Pampers diapers with the elastic waste of Huggies which is a great combination! AND they are super cute! The diapers are even cuter at $6.50 for a jumbo box of 50 :) ... When I run out of the gift diapers, I will definitely be supplementing my cloth diapering and traveling with Kidgets!

Strange...

What is this feeling of getting things accomplished? I barely know what it feels like anymore. Gunner has been asleep for 2.5 hours now, and I have done some laundry, made a menu for the next two weeks, washed all the dishes (including bottles), straightened the house, made our bed, AND managed to bathe, dress up, and do my hair! Like I said, very strange. Hopefully he will be more smiley when he wakes up. When he woke up around 9am, he was a little more difficult to put down for his next nap. Once he has been up for over 2 hours, he starts getting rather fussy.

I'm so ready for Eric to get home. While I am glad he is working hard to support us, things get rather lonely at times since the only one I talk to is Gunner, who of course, can't talk back yet. I'm waiting for one of his days off so I can go ask around town to plead with some boutique owners about putting lead boxes so I can get some new clients. My business cards will be in (relatively) soon too! Woo-hoo!

Well, I guess I will go ahead and take advantage of the time Gunner is sleeping and sweep/mop the floor. FUN. Loads and loads of fun.

Luvable Friends 16-Piece Deluxe Layette Set, 0-6 Months, Blue

Photo Session with Gunner!

Today was an absolutely beautiful day! After doing a bit of cleaning, laundry, eating lunch with my mom, and paying a few bills, I decided to have a little photo session with Gunner. He has been changing so much, and I want to document as much of it as I can. Here is a sampling of what I have taken. I'll post the rest later!

"Mommy, leave me alone!"

Just Chillin'

A creative approach of the one before.

This one is entitled "Fist Pumpin'" This is also my personal favorite :)

New Beginnings

Ok, so I've decided to update my blog again and get a fresh start since there have been so many changes in my life here recently. I will actually be home more often to keep it updated too! I have finally quit the nightmare dubbed Hertz Rent-A-Car, and after a long and thankfully uneventful pregnancy, I've had my baby boy Gunner Lee. He will be exactly 7 weeks old tomorrow, and I just love him to pieces. I have also signed up to be a BeautiControl Independent Consultant so I can get out of the house on occasion to meet new people as well as make a little extra money on the side. I am very thankful to be able to stay at home during the day with my little boy. I can't imagine sending him to any day care in this area. Now I'm just looking for ways to save money and be more efficient which is becoming more fun than I originally thought it would be.

This blog is my venting space, diary, photography portfolio, business site, product review, cook-book, and more. I look forward to being part of the blogosphere once again!