1st Haircut

Last night, my baby boy got his very first hair cut ever.

 EVER. 

I have never even trimmed one single strand of those beautiful white blonde curls. We have always smiled and nodded (and chuckled) when people called him a little girl...and remember the bullying incident because of the ponytail? Whoops! Finn has always said he likes his long hair and never mentioned really WANTING it cut....until recently. He started asking for a haircut...not just any hair cut but he wanted to "get spiky hair, momma" like a little boy in his class. I put that thought in the back of my mind and then again yesterday, when I picked him up from school, he looked at a photo on the Rhea Lana's flyer we got and brought it up again. With bright eyes, he looked at me and said "momma, I want spiky hair like him" in the most serious 3 year old tone. We talked for a minute about how we would have to have our baths in the morning now so we could fix our hair, how it would be really short, etc. He was adamant about "getting spiky hair from the spiky hair store". I asked him when he wanted to go get a haircut and he said "Now". This was serious business, you guys! Off we went.......(after I washed his hair because the major downfall to that head of long curls was the HEAT...bless his heart...he was SO hot all the time :/ )

Those of you that know me know that I no longer have a regular hairdresser. I was dedicated to a fabulous lady (by dedicated, I mean, the 2 times a year I used to get my haircut/colored, she was the ONLY one who could do it....) but, I had Finn and spending money on those kinds of things was no longer an option so my hair was placed very far on the justifiable spending list. I have gotten the occasional "so so" walk in haircut and then let it grow several times.....then the last time I got my hair cut, I went to a different walk in place and got a really good haircut! We went to the Supercuts and even though it wasn't the same person who gave me the great cut, we were really AMAZED at how great of a job she did. Her name was Chiree and she will officially always be cutting Finn's hair. I couldn't speak more highly of how good she was with him and how great of a job she did!!

Now, on to pictures!! 

Before: 

While I LOVED my baby's long curls, they were unruly 98% of the time. Humidity, little boy activity, plus naps made it kind of a mess :/

Long hair combed walking into the salon...he was so excited I could not get him to stand still enough for me to get a good photo!!

Bye, bye, curls....Kept the first curl to save ;)

Such a big boy! Did not move or shed a tear! He was mesmerized watching her cut it in the mirror...

At this point, he held his hands up to his hair in the shape of a point and asked if it was going to "get spiky"!!

Finished!!! 

Of course, we had to go show it off to husband's family!

Grown up hair? check..Big boy scraped elbow? check.

Wiped out after all the excitement :) Oh yeah, and daddy got his haircut "spiky" too :) Husband, I love you and I love how you always want to match Finny

One Year Ago Today...

One year ago today, I did this....

random string removed? check (thank you, sister!)....beautiful sash that went with my dress...no check!! whoops :/ 

to get ready to do this....

walk down to this guy...

so we could do this...

where we stood before our Lord and Savior...

to become this...

because from the moment I met you, you made me do this...

so we became this...

a family...

From our very first official "date" where I met your parents (and somehow didn't die of a heart attack)...

to the first night you told me you loved me...

from goofy glasses...

to engagement announcements in the paper...

you have always been right there by my side....just like our vows...for better or worse..in good times and in the bad...in sickness and in health. I love you, dear husband. I couldn't think of a better person to be my everything. 

Happy Anniversary <3

Happy 3rd Birthday!!

You are so very beautiful, sweet baby boy <3

BEYOND excited about that balloon!!

So handsome!

You are such a ham! This is what 99% of momma's photos look like....you never stop laughing! 

Photo Life

Last week in (a few) pictures....

um, Husband, you may need a new caddy...this one might be too slow for the job...

Finn made this for me at school <3

Ever seen a cactus in bloom? That flower will only last a day or maybe two at the most and then it is gone. Such a beautiful thing to get to see.....fun fact: Husband got this cactus from someone at school when he was in the second grade...AGE 7!! and his grandma kept it alive for 20 of the past 21 years and then she gave it to me because I am absolutely in love with them....the cactii...well, and my family too but you know what I mean)  

Photo Life

This last week/weekend daddy was on a business trip in Florida so Finny and I spent every moment we could together and just enjoyed some great Mommy/Son time. I didn't make fancy dinners, I didn't clean anything unless he was napping, I did nothing except snuggle that baby until he was tired of mommy being his shadow and we had to get out of the house for a minute.....I thought that didn't happen until the teenage years?? ;) 

Sending a photo to Daddy in FL (see our finished paintings behind him? He LOVES to paint!)

Right before I needed to get him dressed and head to a birthday party....needless to say, that sleepy man didn't last long at the party! Happy birthday, Winnie!! <3

Taking a milk break at Fayetteville Farmer's Market

At the Farmer's Market with our "Donda" (my lovely mother-in-law)..too much excitement to cheese for this photo!

Things I Have Made

So, along with every day life and working on getting Veda Marie's up and running, I have had the absolute pleasure of being asked to create a few items here and there for dear friends. Just thought I would quickly share a few of them with you! 

Aisle runner for my friend's wedding...Congrats again to the new Mr. and Mrs.!! <3

Picture prop for the above mentioned wedding! So cute in their photos!

Diabetic friendly cheesecake for my aunt's birthday...as soon as I can find where I put the recipe I will share it in "Fave Foods"

Hand drawn gift certificates for the most amazing store in town!! (these photos were taken before they were finished and OF COURSE I did not get photos before I handed them over to the lovely lady herself)

I made him too.....

and I thank the good Lord above everyday that I did.

The Green One

As part of our getting healthy, we are cutting out one of our favorite after dinner activities (or at least cutting down the frequency!) and that is.....

going to get ICE CREAM.

we like ice cream. a LOT. 

ice cream...

more ice cream...well, frozen yogurt but still...

you get the picture.

We love it. We love to pile in the car as a family and go to Andy's or Shake's after dinner and even our extended family loves it. We eat with my in-laws and grandparents-in-law (or however you say it) at a minimum of once a week....every Friday night and after we eat dinner, we pile in our cars and head to Braum's and get ice cream. Every. Time. So, while we can't cut out ALL of the ice cream stops, we can at least stop going so often as a family of three and eating frozen custard SO often. But, what about dessert? While I have been trying to make "healthier" desserts (previously posted brownies, graham cracker crust, etc), what else can we have? And then it hit me....what about a smoothie? It's cold, it's sweet, it's yummy....so I thought, let's give it a whirl! (no pun intended on the blender there..) On my first "getting healthy" grocery trip, I focused on fruits and vegetables and some lean meats. I picked up fresh and some frozen fruits for snacks and have been making smoothies that consist of bananas, mangoes, strawberries, pineapple, etc and man, they are GOOD! Not only are they good, but they are good for you! The fruit is sweet enough that I don't have to add any sugar which is a definite plus in this momma's book! No more sugar hangovers or stomach aches from over indulging in sugary desserts.....just good, fresh, yummy stuff.....if you think I am starting to lose is here, just get ready for this next item I am about to show you:

yes, it is green. I did it. I made a green smoothie.

and, you know what??

IT WAS GOOD! 

Are you still there? Did I run you off with my glass of green gunk that looks like only the Hulk himself could love it? 

For those of you that have not abandoned me thinking that the next thing I am going to tell you is to eat only organic, go hop on a love bus and move to a commune, let me explain what this is. It is a strawberry banana smoothie with spinach. yep, you heard me right, fresh spinach. but, do you want to know what it tastes like? JUST STRAWBERRIES AND BANANAS!?!?!?!? I kid you not. You don't believe me? Ask my toddler.....every time I have made one of these, he hears the blender, RUNS into the kitchen, and asks for a straw and wants to drink it with me. So, if you have kiddos that aren't big fans of munching on fresh green leaves (and, seriously, I don't know many kids who are...or adults, really!) PLEASE give this a try. and try it for yourself too. I have been having one of these green shakes a day for about 4 days or so and I feel AWESOME! More energy, I am drinking less coffee (if you know me really well you are either laughing uncontrollably at this statement or you have fallen out of your chair with shock...are you ok? hope you didn't hit your head!?) I kid you not. This thing is loaded with vitamins and I can tell a noticeable difference in my body and my energy level since I started making these. Want to give it a try?  

Strawberry Banana Green Smoothie

1/2 medium banana, fresh or frozen (a side note here-have you ever had frozen bananas as ice cream? see below)

1/2 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen

a big handful (about 1 1/2 cups) of fresh spinach, washed 

1/4 cup of skim milk (this is optional! they are good without the milk as well)

about 8 ounces of water

ice cubes

Place all items in blender and mix well! I will tell you that I add a packet of sweetener to my smoothie yesterday (Splenda or Equal) just because I wanted a little sweetness with the tart strawberries. As I make more of these, I am going to be experimenting with different fruit combinations and hopefully not use this in the future. I have done every "diet" under the sun and have done the "South Beach" where they limit your amount of sugar or sugary fruits, etc. But, something to think about here is that sugar from fresh fruits and sugar added to a cookie or cake are NOT the same thing. I just am not a fan of any diet that says you can't eat fruits and vegetables. I just don't consider that to be very healthy. Everyone has a very different opinion of what "healthy" is but to me it's not just about losing weight. It is about the long term. I don't want to cut out all my carbs, feel terrible and lose 5 pounds only to gain it back (and more). In our house, we are going to be eating plenty of yummy fruits and veggies along with lean meats, etc. and the occasional splurge...because something I have learned is that sometimes you just gotta have something like a burger. It is ok to eat those things sometimes...it is just not ok to eat them ALL the time. Anyway, this has been a long rambling post so I will leave it at that and just say, please give this a try...at least for a few days and let me know if you notice any difference in how you feel/look, etc!! 

I almost forgot!! Frozen bananas!!! So, next time you have some bananas that are getting ripe fast then you can use them, slice them up and stick them in the freezer. When you want something sweet, take your frozen bananas and mash them up with a little cocoa powder and make "ice cream"! You can also add some peanut butter to it as well! Delicious and healthy! 

Photo Life

Our week in pictures...

Blooms!

Roses are in full bloom at our house

Yum!

"Playing drums before church on Sunday

 Hunting eggs at Mema and Papa's house

Our eggs!

We're with Miller!