You've Been Good to me, 2013

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As the hours left in 2013 begin to disappear, I’m finding myself thinking especially hard about everything that has transpired this year. There have been several huge changes that I can think of at this moment, most of which are happy and good, but one in particular makes me sad and also makes me question how I feel about the whole year.

My papa died a few days before Julian’s first birthday over the summer. It was just before I started this blog, so I didn’t really write about it here, but it was certainly one of the top five most life altering things to happen to me. Your grandparents are among those few elite people that, until it happens, you feel like will be with you forever. I don’t think of any of my grandparents as “old”, in fact, when I think about them I think of them as being 65, active, and immortal. It still doesn’t seem real that he’s gone.

Because of papa’s passing, I feel like this year goes from an overall great year full of lots of big changes to a sad year. The year that one of the people I love most passed away.

I know I don’t have to feel that way, so I’m trying not to.

Instead I’m focusing on how huge of a year this was for me. It has been the year that has made me feel like I’m gaining purpose and starting to figure out what the beginning of my life is all about.

I’ve felt more like a mother in the last year than I did in the first 6 months of Julian’s life.
I’ve gained about 4 times as many responsibilities as I had in 2012.
I’ve developed my passion for and knowledge of design so much that I’ve become confident in selling my designs.
I’ve begun to catch a glimpse of what being in a happy, healthy relationship is comprised of- although I hope 2014 will bring more revelations in that department.
I’ve started to become a more honest friend, sister, daughter, granddaughter, and girlfriend in the best of ways.
I’ve also known what it feels like to occasionally struggle financially, and I don’t want to feel it again in 2014.

I guess you can say that in 2013 I’ve started my adult life, whether I was ready for it or not. I don’t know the age when other young people start to feel like an adult, but 20 has been mine, and 2013 has been the year for that to happen to me.

Overall, it was a truly life-changing year. There were so many new things that happened to me, both internally and externally, and in these last few hours of 2013, I’m proud of the person I am so far and I’m excited for the person that I will be at this time, 365 days from now.

Sometimes a tropical drink in Winter does makes sense...

I got the most perfect little blender of Christmas that I've been dying to use to make something delicious. So why not add a dash of alcohol to it on this chilly Friday night?

I love a good seasonal cocktail, but sometimes you just crave a taste of something out of season and you can't wait six months to have it!

So, tonight Dom and I are making our own tropical smoothie "dranks" (we're silly so we call drinks with alcohol in them "dranks"). To make our version of this delicious alcoholic smoothie, you'll need the following ingredients:

Pinnacle Tropical Punch Vodka
Orange Juice
Sparkling Tropical Fruit Juice (we got ours from Wegmans)
Frozen or fresh mixed fruit (ours is the Dole mixed fruit from the frozen section)
Ice

I didn't really measure the ingredients. We've made two drinks and both of them have different levels of each ingredient in them but they both taste amazing!

So just add your ingredients to your blender, blend for about 30 seconds or until you get your desired smoothness. Then pour it into a pretty glass and drink up!

This mixed drink almost makes me want to shave my legs and put on a bathing suit. Almost.

I'll be back on Monday talking about this past year and also my goals for this coming year (because would I really be a blog if I didn't?), but until then, have a happy, fun, and safe weekend!!

Julian's Birth Story // Part 2

Last week, I shared with you the "first part" of Julian's birth story, so I have the rest of it now for you to read.

I gave birth on a Monday, and for 2 nights I walked laps around the maternity ward so that I could leave that hospital and finally get to hold my baby. People visited me and brought me gifts, and we chatted about what was going on with Julian. I pumped my breast milk and had family, who were going to visit Julian, deliver it to him in coolers.

When I finally got to see him in the NICU, I was so excited and nervous. I opened the doors to the NICU and I knew right away that he was in the first incubator by the door. There was a nurse at his station, and when I walked over, she asked me if I was his mom, and I immediately started crying and laughing at the same time. They let me take him out of the incubator and insisted that I try to nurse immediately and that I hold him against my bare skin. They had to come tell me to put him back into the incubator several times because I wanted to hold him day and night.

That night, Dom drove me home so I could stay in my own bed. I opened the door to my room, and broke down. My parents had set everything up while I was at the hospital. It looked like there should have been a baby in the room, but there was just me and Dom. How was I going to sleep at home while Julian was struggling to breathe in an incubator, in a hospital 30 minutes away from me?

Well, I did. I slept that night in my bed, but for the next 10 nights I slept in a chair by his side. They told us 3 times that he would be going home the next day. Each of those times, a doctor came to us and told us “not today”, and each time it made us even angrier. Finally, I was so exhausted physically and emotionally that I slept at home, and I felt guilty about it the whole night. 

I woke up the next morning, and I could feel that it was going to be a great day. I made sure Dom came with me to the hospital, and I made sure we had the car seat with us. We took our time getting to the hospital because we were still feeling like the day that we brought Julian home would never come. We were about a block away from the hospital when a nurse called us and with so much excitement in her voice, she said “Are you coming here today? Julian is going to be able to go home!”

It felt like years passed between the time that we entered the hospital and the time that we finally were discharged. Paperwork and questions and last minute tips and information were the only things in our way of taking our little guy home. We were both so happy and excited, but so nervous because we would have to take care of him on our own. Without help from nurses.
I had so many fears and worries, but I never voiced any of them because the thought of finally being this guy’s mama overshadowed all of them. And it turns out that none of those fears mattered because he was amazing. 

I still feel like someone cheated me out of the experience that I imagined. When I think about it, talk about it, and write about it, tears come to my eyes because I can still feel all of my fear and anxiety from the time I knew I would have a c-section to the time I brought Julian home. My labor didn’t last a few hours or days. It lasted for weeks because there is no labor greater than what your heart goes through when it is feeling a million emotions and they’re all contradicting eachother.

In the scheme of things, I’m so lucky. There were babies in the NICU that were there for months, and there were probably some there that didn’t even make it. There are mothers that have never been able to hold the babies that they create, and mothers that never get to take their babies home with them. I know I’m lucky to have such a healthy, smart, funny, and loving 18 month old sleeping soundly in his crib right now. We were blessed with a happy ending, and I am so grateful for that.

But next time, I hope I get a happy beginning, too.

I Love Quizzes

I've always loved personality quizzes. I think it's because I love getting to know myself better, and sometimes those quizzes either reinforce what you think you know about yourself. Quizzes also can help you see something about yourself that you may have never thought of or thought to be true.

Style quizzes are fun, too, because I can never quite figure out what to classify my style as. I guess I would say I'm drawn to classic styles with just a little bit of sass or sexy in there. I like the occasional leopard print, sexy makeup, and I like my pants fitted to flatter my curvy figure. But I'm also usually a modest dresser and like to show the least skin possible.

This style profile quiz that I took is nice and quick, which is something I like in a survey. At the end you get your results and a makeup/nail polish package from their line that they recommend. I believe if you sign up, you can have a new package sent to you every month.

This is my result. At first, I got the "boho glam", and while I'm always up for a result that makes me think about who I really am and not who I think I am, I'm pretty sure I'm not boho glam... so if theres anyone out there that thinks I am, please come forward and tell me your reasons why. I re-took the quiz and got "classic with a twist" and I definitely agree with that one.

So go and take the quiz to see what style you are!

Cristmas Brunch

Today began a three day festival of eating for me, so I'm just going to let myself feel fat and bloated and just enjoy all of the food.

This morning I hosted a little Christmas brunch for Dom's mom and her boyfriend because she's going to visit Dom's sister in Texas for the holiday. We ate and did a little exchanging of gifts, and of course I put a lot of work into it. I love any excuse to hone my hostessing skills.

For the menu, I made a Vegetable Strata and sort of followed this recipe. It came out AMAZING, and I highly recommend it because it's fairly easy, fairly quick and makes a huge impact. Everyone was raving about how good it was. I would say it's comparable to the lovechild of a quiche and a breakfast casserole, if that could be a thing. I also made mini pancake stacks with home made whipped cream and strawberries on top. I was inspired by this photo from this post at Design Love Fest. I don't know if these are pancakes, but they made me think of the idea.

They came out so great! They're perfect for little ones on Christmas morning, and pancakes are always easy and quick to make. The rest of the menu included bacon, cheesy grits, and cinnamon buns, and to drink we had mimosas.

It was a really nice, intimate party with just me, Dom, his mom, her boyfriend, and Julian. We all devoured pretty much every bite of food. Good thing, because I hate leftovers.

So, now a few pictures!

Are you hosting a Christmas breakfast or brunch? What are you serving? I always like thinking out of the box for breakfast food!

PS- Thank you to everyone to viewed part 1 of Julian's birth story. I'll be posting part 2 soon!

Julian's Birth Story // Part 1

I've never really written Julian's birth story out until tonight. He's almost a year and a half, but late is better than never, right? I'll warn you, it's not the happiest birth story and it won't make you cry tears of joy or make you want to go have a baby.

Without further ado...

The only picture I have of Julian on the day he was born.

Julian's Birth Story // Part 1

When I got pregnant with Julian, I was extremely scared. I was a freshman in college, and still a teenager that didn’t really know what my purpose in life was. It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t ideal, but I was still so excited because as soon as I saw the plus signs on all the pregnancy tests I took, I knew that this baby, my baby, would be the love of my life.

At a routine checkup at about 25 weeks, my doctor discovered that there was an extremely low amount of amniotic fluid in me and I was told to go to the hospital to get fluid into me so that hopefully some amniotic fluid would start producing itself. I didn’t really think it was a huge deal because all of the baby’s vitals were fine and I felt fine. Nothing seemed wrong.

Well, fast forward 5 weeks of hospital visits and dozens of IVs administering fluid into my veins. My visits became more frequent, and before I knew it I was staying overnight 2, 3, 4 and 5 nights in a row, only to have the amount of amniotic fluid drop! It’s a condition medically named oligohydramnios, and it can cause a lot of damage to the baby and can cause a really difficult birthing process. On top of it, Julian was still breach at 35 weeks because he didn’t have any extra room to turn around. So, my doctor told me that I would have to have a c-section at 35 weeks to prevent any of the possible damage that can be caused by oligohydramnios.

I was still really unaware of how serious this condition could have been up until recently, when I thought I would look into it more. The doctors and nurses never really hinted to me the negative possibilities that go along with having such low amniotic fluid.

All along, I had this beautiful vision of what the moment that I met my baby would be like. It didn’t involve an OR, metal instruments, or a curtain being hung on top of my chest. I also didn’t think it would be such a scary experience.

The nights leading up to my scheduled c-section was the worst night of my life. I cried for most of them, terrified at the thought of being cut open and so sad for the experience that I had been imagining for months. But the morning of, I was feeling strong and ready to meet my baby. I had lots of family and some friends at the hospital with me, and my boyfriend Dom was at my side the entire time.

In the operating room, my fears came back to me very quickly. I have had scoliosis since I was a baby, so receiving the epidural in the base of my spine was not fun at all. I could tell the anesthesiologist was having some difficulties, but finally it took. The rest was sort of a blur, because from the time the epidural kicked in until I was wheeled out of the OR, I felt like I was having a major panic attack. I could hear my heart monitor machine going so fast, and the people in the room kept consoling me and trying to engage me in conversation so that I would calm down.

I don’t even remember them pulling Julian out of me, but I remember Dom rushing over to the bassinet where they were probably poking and prodding at Julian. Once he was all wrapped up and in Dom’s arms, he brought him over to me, but I couldn’t even open my mouth to say anything. I wanted to jump off of the table and hold my baby and shower him with kisses, but all I could do was cry silently. Dom asked me if I wanted to hold him, and I remember being so mad and thinking “How stupid! Doesn’t he see my arms are taped to this table?” and just shaking my head no.

After that, I didn’t see Julian for a few more hours because the doctors said he was having a hard time breathing. I recovered in a labor and delivery suite and was still really out of it at that point. I can only imagine the things I was saying. Although, I don’t think I was saying much because I was trying so hard to stop shaking and shivering. I think it’s sort of normal to shake after having anesthesia, but this was so bad! I had absolutely no control of my body. I couldn’t move my legs, and the top half of my body wouldn’t stop moving. I felt nauseous and the room was spinning, and everyone was being so loud but I felt like I couldn’t even speak. I just wanted to cry and cry, but I just sat there, probably with a stupid smile on my face. The worst part about all of it was that I was so distracted by my body and the people in the room and the nurses that were poking and prodding me that I don’t even think I asked or wondered where Julian was.

When I was finally feeling better, I was moved to the maternity ward, where the pediatrician finally let me know what was going on. He told me that Julian would have to be brought to a nearby hospital to be monitored more closely because of his breathing. He predicted that he would only be there until the end of the week, and assured me that Julian was doing well.

Shortly after, they brought him into the room inside of a huge incubator on wheels, which he would be transported to the other hospital in. They lowered it so I could “see” him, but since I had no ability to use my abdominal muscles and the incubator was still too high, I barely caught a glimpse of him behind all the wires and tubes he was hooked up to.

He wasn't a tiny baby. At 35 weeks gestation, he weighed 6 pounds and 11 ounces and was 19 inches long. They told me when they gave me 2 steroids a few weeks earlier that his lungs would probably be developed enough for him to be healthy. Nobody warned me that this would happen.

To be continued...

Block Printed Fabric

Hello! I've been brainstorming some REALLY last minute gifts that I can give to some of my family members, and last weekend I went to Old Navy while they were having a huge sale and picked up lots of great stuff! I love their accessories because they're usually inexpensive but so cute! I saw some scarves on sale for less than $10 and figured that it would be used or gifted somehow, so why not buy it. I chose a plain white one with the thought of using one of my [many] linoleum stamps.

I thought about what I wanted to do with the scarf, and initially I thought it would be a good idea to use fabric paint so that if it got wet the color wouldn't run. But when I put the paint on the linoleum stamp I was using, I realized the paint was too runny and my print would just come out like a big blob. If you were doing something like a circle or triangles (which would both be so cute!) it might work ok, but my stamp has grooves in it.

I ended up just using my Speedball water soluable block printing ink in gold, so it'll be interesting to see what happens if the scarf gets wet.

I started out by laying the scarf on top of a canvas dropcloth. (Which was previously a curtain in my living room. It was time for a change.) My scarf was pretty wrinkly so I did iron it before starting.

Then I rolled out my ink onto the stamp that I chose to use, and began stamping in a line down the scarf. This scarf had a nice border around it so I left a little room in between the row and the border. Then you just continue through the whole scarf, evenly placing the stamp as best as you can. I placed every other row diagonally to the one next to it, so I wouldn't have rows of patterns. This way it looks like one big pattern, rather than rows of chevron. You can get fancy with it and do different stamps and different rows. The possibilities are really endless.

The best part about this scarf is that because it's square, it doesn't even have to be a scarf. I might use it on Monday for a Christmas brunch I'm hosting for Dom's mom as a table runner. It's sort of an awkward scarf because it's square. It looks like it's swallowing my neck and head because it's so big.


Printing on fabric is so so easy, and you can use it for anything. You could look through the clearance fabric at JoAnne's or Hobby Lobby and turn it into something amazing! And you don't even have to do a block printed design. You could make a stamp out of a potato! Then you could use your fabric for a whole slew of things; decorative pillows, scarves, table runners, tapestries, curtains, clothing, tea towels...

Get my drift?

So if there are any gifts that you still have to buy, consider making it instead! Home made gifts are especially great if you have a tiny budget but want to give an amazing gift. The fact that you put your own thought and work into something is worth a million bucks in my book.

Good luck with the last of your gift buying! Dom and I went out today and I have to say, the stores are wrought with Christmas shopping frenzy. Get out there while you can!

I can't wait to share my Christmas brunch with you on Monday!

What does it mean to be a "real" designer?

Image Source

This is going to be one of those posts where I attempt to make sense of something I think about often. It would be amazing if you would read through it and start a discussion with me about it! I would love to know your thoughts.

Right now I’m sort of in this place where I don’t feel comfortable calling myself a graphic designer. I feel like I have a lot to learn, and maybe it has something to do with not having that degree that “says” I am. I don’t think I will ever pursue a degree, although I would love to take classes from my Community College occasionally so that I can gain some of that traditional classroom perspective. I also always am on the lookout for informal online classes through Nicole’s Classes or Skillshare that can feed my desire to keep learning.

The second reason for this feeling, I believe, comes from not having “real” clients that cause me to experience a “real” designing process. It’s hard for me to picture what life would be like if designing was to ever become a full time job for me. I’m proud of the things I have designed thus far because I know that people appreciate and love the things I have created for them. They seem like small projects- quickies.

I’m proud that I have recognized these feelings, but now I’m stuck with them in a place of not knowing how to proceed. How can I assert my worth and find clients that I want when I don’t feel valuable? I don’t want to stay in this place forever!

Today, I added three words to my “bio” on Instagram. I hesitantly put “designer” and “blogger” because sometimes I feel like I’m neither, but when I think about the things I love to do, those describe me well. I guess they’re more like goals.

But when I was writing this, I thought “What if a “real” designer stumbles on my Instagram and sees that, and laughs at me and says ‘Well she’s not a real designer’”. I know I’ve (shamefully) thought that about some people who I can tell are working towards a title- just like I am. Then I’m horrified because I’ve just made myself into the biggest hypocrite alive.

Do you think other people- in this case, designers- really say that? Or are there compassionate people out there that believe me when I say I’m a designer? Or am I kidding myself, and my only praise is coming from my small list of clients and family members. That’s what I like to call “the American Idol Phenomenon” because these terrible people go on the show thinking they’re amazing because their family is all there telling them they are, when really they’re terrible and every other person in America knows it.

Phew I feel like a huge weight has been lifted now that I’ve put all of that into words.

I don’t want or expect actualization or consolation in regards to the things I said above. I want to know what you think about it. Is there anyone else that feel similarly to me? Are you a “real” designer that’s been here before? How did you get out of this rut?

I’m dying to know!

Some random feelings involving Christmas

Download this super cute Christmas printable from Nest of Posies here!

This Christmas really feels different than any other Christmas in the past for a lot of reasons. The main reason is that Julian is old enough to be excited about what will happen on Christmas and Christmas Eve. (A.k.a. opening/receiving gifts.) I still don’t think he “gets” it, so I’m not going overboard on everything Christmas, but it’ll definitely be interesting to see how he feels about all of the gifts that are coming his way. Being a mother brings a whole new meaning to holidays, Christmas in particular.

I feel a mixture of emotions when I think about the pressure that is put on parents to teach their children what they want them to value about the holiday season. I feel excitement because it can be such an amazing, beautiful time for kids. I feel anxiety over instilling in him the “right” ideas and values. And I feel nostalgic when I think about my Christmases as a child, and the things that I want to carry over to Julian, and the new traditions and values that I hope to bring to the table as he grows older.

One of the things that I’m proud to have thought of in regards to gift-giving is that Julian (and me and Dom and future children) will only get one gift from Santa. Santa will bring each of us the thing we want most. I think this idea came from thinking about all of the movies and songs about Santa, and how each little child gets one gift, and they all seem to be the thing they want the most. For us as parents, it means less worry about getting a million perfect gifts and then choosing which ones will be from Santa. For Julian it means not expecting tons and tons of gifts from us AND Santa.

I loved Christmases as a kid, and I still do. As I grew older and the things I wanted got smaller and more expensive, it looked like I got less gifts. I appreciate all of the things I have been given, but on those years where I didn’t feel like I got as much as I usually did, I wish I hadn’t grown accustomed to receiving enormous amounts of presents. Being given that sense of entitlement can be poisonous to a kid, because then they grow up into adults that never seem to be satisfied. Around Christmas that dissatisfaction is terrible. Not only is it just a bad trait to have, but being dissatisfied with the things people are giving you, out of the kindness of their hearts, is really confusing and sad to feel. You know its wrong, but you can’t help but feel it anyways.

I want to find the balance between making Julian feel loved and excited about Christmas, but also feeling gracious for the things he does receive, even if his pile of gifts looks sparse one year compared to the others.

The past few days have been dedicated to what is becoming last-minute gift shopping. I’m still thinking about the “perfect” gift for each of the people I want to buy for, but I’m also running out of time and money. Mostly money. Leave it to poor planning to make what should be an exciting and fun experience of gift buying into such a stressful time for me. I’m the type of person that starts planning for Christmas financially in October and has the intentions of shopping little by little for a few months, and then all of a sudden it’s Thanksgiving and I'm crunching numbers and trying to figure out how to stay current on bills AND still get everything I have to get for Christmas. I’ve already vowed to start my own version of a Christmas Club account at the beginning of the year so I won’t have to pay out of pocket at this time next year.

The stress of purchasing shouldn’t overshadow the fun part of buying gifts.

I’m so excited to be hosting my second little brunch this coming weekend. Dom’s mom is going to Texas to visit his sister, Alauna, so we’re having her and her boyfriend over for Christmas brunch on Monday morning. (Weird day, I know. It’s the only day we all have off!) I love any excuse to have people over and make yummy food and get my little place all spiffed up. The tentative menu includes a French toast “casserole”, vegetable and cheese strata (sort of a cross between quiche and casserole), probably either breakfast sausage or bacon, cheesy grits, fruit, and yummy beverages that I haven’t quite decided on yet. I would also love to do cinnamon rolls with icing as a desert, and some kind of desert cocktail that we can sip on while we open each other’s presents.

So, stay tuned for all of that fun!

So, so far this Christmas is relatively low-key, and I intend on it being relaxing and fun. I’m saving all of the big guns for next year, when Julian will sure to be basking in the glory of Christmas and all the things that come with it. We’re dipping out toes into the Christmas pond this year, feeling things out and deciding on our own views and traditions as a family, so that next year we can be prepared to teach Julian all about it.

How many gifts do your kids get from Santa? Do you tend to go overboard or do a little less in comparison to others out there? When do you start planning financially for Christmas? Do you have any gift-giving traditions? I would love to hear what you think about anything I mentioned above!

Stay sane!

Printable Holiday Gift Tags

I talked earlier today about holiday gift wrapping and more particularly gave some links to my favorite free holiday gift tag printables. I primised you guys some gift tags created by me, so here they are!

I made two versions of these tags- one is all black, in case you don't have color ink or might have to print them on a black ink printer at work (I won't tell!), and the other has various neutral brown tones. Both would look amazing against red or gold solid wrapping paper!

Click here to download the neutral brown tags.

Click here to download the black tags.

I hope these are useful to you! As I mentioned in my earlier post, printable gift tags are great for those last minute wrapping sessions, when you usually start to run out of supplies. All you have to do is Pin these tags now so you will have them to download and print later!

A few of my favorite gift tags...

I always love the fancy wrapping jobs that people do on their Christmas gifts, because  I have great memories of helping my mom wrap presents as a kid, and I always loved to dig through her wrapping totes to find the best ribbons or embellishments to add to the the wrapped boxes. This year I’m going the simple route and using really pretty wrapping paper that I picked up at Marshalls, but only because I have a 17-month-old that is already attracted to the presents under our tree. I don’t need anything else that screams “Hey kid! Rip me open so your dad can see what your mom got him!” before Christmas arrives. To make things even simpler, I wrote my “to” and “from” right on the paper using metallic Sharpies.

Even though I’m playing it simple this year, I can’t help but love all of the wrapping ideas I see in magazines, blogs, and on Pinterest. I’m especially loving the free printable Christmas gift tags that lots of designers and bloggers are offering to their readers. I thought I would gather some of my favorites for your printing pleasure!

These fun and colorful tags  would be perfect to add to craft paper wrapped gifts

These tags are fun but sophisticated and would be perfect paired with a dramatic, solid colored wrapping paper.

These tags are cute and fun and would be perfect for a gift to a kid, or even a gift from a kid. You might even be able to format them onto a sheet of round printable stickers and stick them right onto your gifts.

More cute and fun tags that would look sweet tied up with some red and white twine.

I used these modern gift tags when our office sent out our usual Christmas candy gifts. They looked great tied up with ribbon to craft paper bags!

There are also lots of Etsy shops that sell instant downloadable gift tags for fairly cheap. That's a great option for that last minute gift wrapping frenzy and you don't want to run to the store at 11 o'clock in a blizzard. Simply buy, download, and print!

What wrapping style or theme are you using on your presents this year? Is it simple and fuss-free, like mine is? Or is it fancy and Pin-worthy, like I someday hope to have the energy for?

UPDATE: Download my printable gift tags for free here!

New Year's Party E-Vite

I mentioned in a recent post that I'm obsessed with the idea of a New Year's party, and there were/are some things to take into consideration since we live in an apartment with people below us and next to us, but we were really excited at the idea, so Dom and I decided to have a little soiree.

To make things simple, I made e-vites to be sent as texts to our friends. I wanted to share them here, and if you like them, I'd be happy to make simple alterations and send you an image for your own party! You can email me at emmabauso@gmail.com.

What are your New Year's plans?

Currently // 03

Craving Redi Whip, straight out of the can. It’s been on my mind for a few days now but I haven’t been to the store to get any yet. I’m afraid that I’ll overdose and get a whipped cream stomach ache and be immobile for the rest of the night. It’s a serious condition, ok!

Excited about what else- Christmas! I’m particularly excited for Julian to experience his first real Christmas (last year he was barely sitting up on his own) and to see the look on his face when he realizes that he gets to unwrap all of these new presents. I’m also excited for the New Years party I’m fantasizing about in my head.

Watching Gossip Girl. I just finished Season 4 on Netflix. I know- I’m a little late, but I like to wait for all of the seasons of an entire show to be on Netflix so that I can watch them like one big, long movie. I will admit, I’ve cried for Chuck Bass an estimated amount of four times so far. If he’s supposed to be so evil and bad, why does my heart weep for him so much! I guess you can said I’m a Blair.

Thankful for Julian. I didn’t jump on the “Thankful For” bandwagon last month, but lately I’ve been really appreciative for the baby I was given. He makes me excited to wake up every morning because I get to see his sweet little face and hear the new words that he’s learning. It’s so fun to try to see the world through his eyes, and to try to figure out what he thinks about is such a fun game for me!

Nervous about gift buying. I love trying to think of the perfect gift to get for someone. I love the task of remembering something they mentioned once and then seeing their face when they open it on Christmas. It’s a good feeling to know that you’ve given a gift that someone is excited to receive.

Hating most of the music on the radio. Timber? Really Pitbull? You don’t have any deeper feelings within you than that song? I’ve been riding in my car in silence because I hate every song. And even though it’s December now, I can’t listen to Christmas music just yet.

What about you? Is there anything you’re watching, loving, craving, or hating? If you have a “Currently” post, comment below with a link!

PS- I'm loving the new A Beautiful Mess photo app update! if you don't have it, you need to download it ASAP!

Links I Love // 02

I love collecting links to share on my blog, so lately I’ve been keeping my eye out for interesting things that my Facebook friends are sharing and I also followed Babble on twitter because they are always a good source for interesting lists and entertainment articles. So, here are a few things that I’ve been collecting recently and waiting to share with you guys!

1. These Christmas tree cupcakes are so fun! Although, I can only imagine how messy they will be to eat…
2. Molly Jaques is such a talented calligrapher and this desktop background is perfect for the holiday season!
3. An interesting blog post from a mom who isn’t teaching her toddler about letters, shapes and colors.
4. This video really made me think about the way women view themselves in comparison to what they really look like, and the impact those thoughts have on ourselves.
5. These Double Exposure images are really beautiful! Those are the types of things that inspire me to be a better artist and expand my horizons.

DIY Glitter Vial Necklace

I love giving everyone a gift for Christmas. I love the looks on peoples' faces when I hand them their gift and they didn't expect to get one from me. It's such an amazing feeling. Unfortunately, getting everyone a top-notch, amazing gift isn't in my budget, especially this year. I dont think I planned very well... the holidays always creep up on me!

But, I thought of this cute little gift idea that would be perfect for little cousins, a niece (or nephew!), or even a friend that might appreciate something fun and whimsical. So, without further ado...

This project took me about 20 minutes and all the supplies cost less than $15 (and even less than that if you already have ribbon and glitter, which I did), so this is something that's easy for even the least crafty gifter. The idea behind this necklace is that the glitter could be magical, or fairy dust, which I think a little kid would be so excited about. I know my little cousins and niece will enjoy it, and I even have a friend in mind that will enjoy wearing it out as a "statement" necklace. It's definitely a conversation piece!

The supplies you need for this project are:

• 1 package of corked vials (I got mine at A.C. Moore in the scrapbook section)
• Glitter in the color of your choice
• Hot glue gun & glue (optional)
• Ribbon, string, or necklace chain (depending on the look you're going for)
• Piece of scrap paper & tape

You'll need to make a very small funnel to easily guide the glitter into theopening of the vial, and for this I used a piece of scrap paper that I rolled into a cone shape with a very small tip for the glitter to slide through. I secured it with tape so it wouldn't move around on me.

Then, you can open your package of vials and select the ones that you want to use. Some of them were a little bigger than I wanted for my necklaces. This is the brand that was at A.C. Moore.

Next, you can start filling your vials with glitter. You can put as much or as little in there as you'd like, but keep in mind that you need to leave a little space to fit the cork back into the opening.

Once your vials are filled, you can put the corks in. Some of the corks fit into the opening of the vials enough to not fall out, but some of them didn't feel as secure- and you don't want to lose your magic! To secure those corks, I just put a little bit of hot glue around the cork.

I originally pictured the vials hung on some sort of dainty metal chain, but my sister persuaded me that some thin ribbon would serve the purpose. 

Cut the ribbon to the length of your choice, and tie the two ends together with about an inch on each end to spare, so that you can wrap them around the neck of the vial. Wrap the ends around the vial and secure them with tiny dots of hot glue. If you don't have hot glue, you could leave extra room to tie the ends in a knot.

They would also look pretty with thicker ribbon and a cute little bow around the neck of the vial!

It's hard to tell what's going on in the picture, but I promise it's easy!

The end result is so cute, and perfect as a quick little gift that a little kid wil definitely be excited to wear! And, it's very cost-effective because you get a few out of just one set of supplies. And you'll have glitter on hand now, which is an important addition to every crafter's collection.

What Christmas quickie gifts are you making or giving this season? If you have any tutorials on your blog, I would love to see them! Post a link in the comments below!

It's really December?

Is anyone else feeling like they need a long nap today? I’ve had (almost) a nine day break, including weekends, and I was so not looking forward to working this morning. Luckily the day went fast and I’m missing Julian a ton, so I’m looking forward to seeing him all night!

I’ve been sick since last week, so I’m embarrassed at my lack of blogging, or any computer use at all, really. But, it has felt good to just enjoy time with my guys, my couch, and Netflix. I always start to get super stressed around this time because of last-minute gift buying stress, so I can’t promise I’ll be any greater of a presence on the Internet in the coming weeks. I’m really looking forward to getting myself organized for the new year and enjoying Julian’s second Christmas and our first Christmas in our apartment.

I didn’t waste any time starting to decorate because I was so excited, and I also didn’t waste any time starting my home made Christmas cards, which I want to write more about later, or tomorrow.

In the meantime, I hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving, and that you’re not nearly as stressed out as I am!

If you are, let’s promise each other to take a breather and remember the things that really matter. Sometimes I forget, don’t you?

My Manifesto

I was inspired by a post I read over at Braid Creative (sorry, I can't find the original post!) to write down my own manifesto, and so far, this is what I've come up with!

I believe...

You don't have to be able to describe what you "do" in a few concise words. It can be a whole story!

Leggings can be worn as pants.

In making the people that I love feel very special.

You don't have to have an extraordinary life to have a fulfilling one.

What is your manifesto? Do you think it's a god idea to have separate personal and business (or blog) manifestos? I look forward to seeing my manifesto change and grow.

I had so much fun with this cute little guy this weekend. I miss him when he goes to bed- most of the time!