CrAzY Working Mom: December 2011

Thursday, December 08, 2011

The Elves Brought Snow!!!

What were those elves taking a peek at out the window, you ask??

...SNOW!!!

My 3 year old daughter has asked for snow since the end of the summer. Her birthday was on September 2 and she actually had snow on her birthday list! Unfortunately we couldn't deliver then. But, she is convinced that our elves, Simon-Peter and Noelle brought that snow as a gift from Santa straight from the North Pole! Needless to say, she was very excited when she woke up to snow on the ground yesterday morning. Unfortunately for them, it was the kind of snow that hardly covered the ground and it was too warm to hang around very long. The roads were just wet, so they had to go to school. But, it was still pretty to look at and a memory she won't soon forget since those elves brought her that snow!

Wednesday, December 07, 2011

All He Wants For Christmas

...is his front tooth! :)

My 6 year old son lost his front tooth night before last. It didn't just fall out, though. Although it looked like it could, it took lots of motivation (from Dad, 'cause Mom gets grossed out by teeth!!!) and some working it back and forth that baby finally came out. He was nauseated afterward (wonder where he gets that from). I'm not sure if it was from all of the crying, the blood, or the big gaping hole in his mouth...or possibly the combination of all three. BUT, thankfully he got that thing out, and the tooth fairy compensated him accordingly. He wanted a Band-aid afterward. Those things are the fix all for boo-boos. Unfortunately it wouldn't stick in his mouth. ;)

Saturday, December 03, 2011

Ipad - Now My Life Is In Order!!

I posted about Shelby's birthday a few posts down, but I neglected to mention my own. I know when you get to a certain age, birthdays aren't about numbers anymore. Well, they aren't for me, anyhow. Don't get me wrong I don't get hung up on numbers. We all get older each year. It's God's design and we can't change it, so why stress over it. My philosophy is that each day is a gift from God and if one day he decides to stop giving it, then I get to be with him. What could be more perfect?

This year, I had a fabulous birthday. My family went above and beyond to make the day very special for me. I enjoyed lunch at my favorite Japanese steakhouse. I LOVE me some fried rice!! I got tickets to see my very favorite country music band, Rascal Flatts. I also got tickets to go see Breaking Dawn, the latest Twilight movie with my friend. While I was gone to see the movie, the kids and hubby straightened the house so that when I came home, the house was tidy and they also made me home made cards. It was truly a special day with my family. It is one that I will not soon forget.

I also received from hubby and kiddos, an Ipad! I was very excited as I have wanted one for a while. I have been keeping a Mom agenda for a while now and I really love being able to keep up with all of our daily activities on paper. With modern day technologies there is always a risk of not backing up your data properly and losing everything, but then again I suppose we have this same risk with paper. It could easily be lost or destroyed. I was excited to download the Mom Agenda App for Ipad until I read the reviews and decided that it might not be worth the trouble. Instead I have put all of my info in the calendar of my Ipad and so far have found that it works well. I love being able to put info into the Ipad and it automatically syncs with my Iphone. Most of the time I carry my Ipad with me, but if there are instances where I might not have it readily available I usually have my phone on me and I can quickly search my calendar there!

So far some of my favorite Apps are The Loaded Bible, Words With Friends, Tap Tap Revenge, and of course Facebook. Pintrest is a good one as well, although I prefer to do my pinning from the desktop where I can see multiple pins at one time. I did buy a Kensington leather case with a keyboard for it also. I went in to get an Otter Box, but found the leather case to be more appealing and the keyboard to be a plus!

The kids have also taken a fancy to the Interactive books I have downloaded. (see photo) It is so fascinating to them that they can sit down in front of the Ipad and "watch" a book being read to them!

If you have an Ipad, I'd love for you to share some of your favorite Apps and accessories with me. I have downloaded a Grocery List App but have yet to use it at this point. That is something I need to sit down and do...but I sure do hate making out grocery lists! What do you love about your Ipad?

Friday, December 02, 2011

BellisiMo Nouveau Review - Etsy

Cyber Monday has come and gone. I did not participate in Black Friday or Small Business Saturday. I did not boycott either of them, just chose not to leave the house! On Cyber Monday, there were a few things that I knew I wanted to get as gifts, and when I checked that the sites were doing cyber Monday deals, of course I took advantage of that fact. I love to give unique gifts that the gift giver will appreciate and cherish for many years to come. When I came across BellisiMo Nouveau on Etsy, I knew that I could do JUST that!!! Morgen, the shop owner is a dear "virtual" friend of mine and I have bought things from him before. Emily has a beautiful handmade pink wind chime hanging in her bedroom window that came from BelissiMo! (See the photo to the left)

When I was on Facebook Monday, I saw a post from Mo that by using the code "FBFRIENDS" you could get free shipping on all standard shipping in the US!! There was a beautiful hand crafted Mixed Media Collage for sale that caught my eye.

Described on Etsy as "8x10 mixed media collage using photo prints of vintage Christmas postcards.
Reproductions of two vintage Christmas postcards are collaged with rhinestones, scrapbook paper, and a bejeweled ornament. This collage would make a great gift, or a delightful decoration for you own home this holiday season.
The vintage postcard says:
"Every happiness be with you at Christmas time,
and may the New Year bring Good Health,
Good Luck and Good Times
to you."

The lip of the back of the 8x10 canvas allows for it to be hung on picture hanging hardware or a nail - hanging hardware is not included on the back, to keep costs down, but you can easily add it. You can also stand it on a mantle, shelf, or bookcase"

When I saw the collage I loved it. Hand crafted items are the best! I have to admit that I really admired it in the picture before I ordered, but when I opened the package up, it was way more than I could have ever imagined. I immediately fell in love with this piece. This is not just some post cards and ornaments hot glued to a canvas. There is time and effort put into this piece. It is crafted to perfection. Morgen takes pride in his work and I am so glad that I get to benefit from it! I started out ordering this as a gift, but unfortunately I just don't think I can give it away! It is so beautiful and looks SO good in my living room, I think I'll hang on to it at least for now.

If you are looking for one of a kind, hand crafted Christmas gifts, I advise you to head on over to BellissiMoNouveau today. There are others, each one different and unique in it's own way. If you are looking for a gift for that difficult person on your list from your Mother-in-Law to your child's school teacher, these are the perfect solution. BelissiMoNouveau also has fabulous greeting cards and note cards created from many different unique and breath taking photos. The best news is that Morgen has extended the Free Shipping "FBFRIENDS" code throughout the holidays! To get the free shipping simply put in this code at the time of checkout! Speaking of shipping, it is FAST. I ordered the items on Monday and received them, carefully wrapped and packaged neatly, on Wednesday. Even though shipping is fast, keep in mind that these items are one of a kind and if you want one, you'd better get it while they are available. Don't wait until it's too late. Click the link above and head on over now, tell Morgen I sent ya.

Disclosure: I did not receive monetary compensation for writing this post. I did, however receive a second mixed media collage in exchange for an honest review of the product I received. The post reflects my opinion of the product and was not influenced in any way. To read my full disclosure, please click here.

Thursday, December 01, 2011

Faces in Places - Potato Version

Sunday while peeling potatoes for lunch, I came across this potato. I immediately thought of the Flickr group "Faces in Places". I grabbed my cell since it was closer than my camera and snapped this shot of it:

The potato was like this all the way though, rendering it useless. I threw it away after I snapped a quick photo of it. I thought it was an interesting find. What interesting things have you found while peeling potatoes? Do tell!