I take Christmas cards as very serious business. I stress about what outfits we will wear, where we will take pictures and how we will pose. Then I scour the internet looking for the PERFECT christmas card template. Here are my personal requirements- it must have the ability to import multiple (ie more than 3 pictures) and per my dear husband it must say Merry Christmas. Above all, it must have that wow factor that when people open the card and see our's it makes them say "this is a nice card."
During my searching, I landed on Tiny Prints website. They have over 170 cards that hold as many or more than 3 pictures!! This is huge for this MWAC (mom with a camera) that takes ridiculous amounts of pictures of my kiddos. What I also love about Tiny Prints is that they have a variety you can have full picture cards or cards with designs.
What I finally landed on will allow me to incorporate pictures of each child alone, a family shot and a picture of hubby and I together. Here is what I picked and I am thinking of going with the brown as I think it gives the card a little something I am looking for.
http://www.tinyprints.com/product/28038/christmas_cards_simply_heartwarming.html#color/02/pid/28038
You can look at all that Tiny Prints have to offer here:
http://www.tinyprints.com/shop/picture-christmas-cards.htm
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Time flies when you're having fun
So now we are about one week away from Miranda being 9 months and just a couple weeks from Jackson being 3!!?!
My baby boy is almost 3. It is so hard on me that he is growing up entirely too fast. We took some pictures this weekend and looking at them he looks so grown up. But I am even more in love with him today than I was 3 years ago. I am lucky to get to work from home and on those days we start the day pretty much the same way lately. I hear him come out of his room and walk over to my side of the bed. I lean down and pick him up in bed. He proceeds to tell me "it is light now" meaning the sun has risen and therefore he can wake up. I have no idea how he made this connection but he did and it makes me smile. I should also say that when he comes in he brings his entourage of bed things, which would include his blanket, his elephant, his airplane pillow. Sometimes he has to go back for buzz lightyear and cat in the hat but usually those get to sleep in. And other times he comes in with his books that he sleeps with and wants me to read. He has learned how to play tennis and loves to go outside with his racket. He loves being outside in general playing, running, helping daddy and papa do yard projects. His appetite has waned recently but I think that is from his constant readiness to play. He loves to do puzzles and read. We also have some educational dvds that teach the alphabet and sounds, which he loves to watch. It cracks us up cause he tries to recreate some of the scenes- like the T does a tap dance with a top hat and cane. So he gets his explorer hat and a drum stick and dances around in circles. He still amazes me with his vocabulary and memory. He is such a sweet big brother. A couple weeks ago, Papa had given him some change for his piggy bank and on his own he came into Miranda's room and asked me to get her piggy bank down and he shared some of his change with her. He is (usually) really gentle and loving with her. Now that the weather is nice we have been going on walks and it is so heartwarming to see the two of them interact sitting next to each other in the stroller. If she has a shirt with writing on it, he tells her the letters. He will make funny faces and laugh for her and she gives him her best laughs.
Miranda is 8 1/2 months and it growing and doing things way too fast for me! She has been crawling for a couple weeks now. And she also started pulling herself up to stand- mostly on mimi's fireplace. She is our small petite little girl. She is such a happy baby like her brother was/is. She sleeps like a dream at night and sometimes surprises us with super long naps. She loves to eat- she pretty much eats all regular food just cut up small or mashed whatever we are having. She hates to be alone and always wants to be able to see us. I love that when I come home from work her face lights up and she will squeal with excitement. She is Daddy's little girl. And her brother is the most awesome person in the world to her. She loves to talk and scream (happily) the day away. She is already figuring out how to drive Jackson crazy by playing with all of his toys. Yesterday he was finishing up his lunch in the stroller as we walked and she reached right over and grabbed a piece of it and ate it!! He wasn't too pleased.
I am so thankful and blessed to have them both and they teach me so much about life and myself.
My baby boy is almost 3. It is so hard on me that he is growing up entirely too fast. We took some pictures this weekend and looking at them he looks so grown up. But I am even more in love with him today than I was 3 years ago. I am lucky to get to work from home and on those days we start the day pretty much the same way lately. I hear him come out of his room and walk over to my side of the bed. I lean down and pick him up in bed. He proceeds to tell me "it is light now" meaning the sun has risen and therefore he can wake up. I have no idea how he made this connection but he did and it makes me smile. I should also say that when he comes in he brings his entourage of bed things, which would include his blanket, his elephant, his airplane pillow. Sometimes he has to go back for buzz lightyear and cat in the hat but usually those get to sleep in. And other times he comes in with his books that he sleeps with and wants me to read. He has learned how to play tennis and loves to go outside with his racket. He loves being outside in general playing, running, helping daddy and papa do yard projects. His appetite has waned recently but I think that is from his constant readiness to play. He loves to do puzzles and read. We also have some educational dvds that teach the alphabet and sounds, which he loves to watch. It cracks us up cause he tries to recreate some of the scenes- like the T does a tap dance with a top hat and cane. So he gets his explorer hat and a drum stick and dances around in circles. He still amazes me with his vocabulary and memory. He is such a sweet big brother. A couple weeks ago, Papa had given him some change for his piggy bank and on his own he came into Miranda's room and asked me to get her piggy bank down and he shared some of his change with her. He is (usually) really gentle and loving with her. Now that the weather is nice we have been going on walks and it is so heartwarming to see the two of them interact sitting next to each other in the stroller. If she has a shirt with writing on it, he tells her the letters. He will make funny faces and laugh for her and she gives him her best laughs.
Miranda is 8 1/2 months and it growing and doing things way too fast for me! She has been crawling for a couple weeks now. And she also started pulling herself up to stand- mostly on mimi's fireplace. She is our small petite little girl. She is such a happy baby like her brother was/is. She sleeps like a dream at night and sometimes surprises us with super long naps. She loves to eat- she pretty much eats all regular food just cut up small or mashed whatever we are having. She hates to be alone and always wants to be able to see us. I love that when I come home from work her face lights up and she will squeal with excitement. She is Daddy's little girl. And her brother is the most awesome person in the world to her. She loves to talk and scream (happily) the day away. She is already figuring out how to drive Jackson crazy by playing with all of his toys. Yesterday he was finishing up his lunch in the stroller as we walked and she reached right over and grabbed a piece of it and ate it!! He wasn't too pleased.
I am so thankful and blessed to have them both and they teach me so much about life and myself.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Long time gone
So I have been away again for awhile. But I have the most adorable little excuse her name is Miranda and she is such a joy!! Miranda is almost 4 months old now and I can't believe. I think each time you have a child time must speed up even faster. Jackson has adapted so well to her, but I guess deep down I knew he would. He is our easy going kiddo. Miranda is pretty easy going as well, but she has her moments of letting you know that she is not happy.
She does not like to be in her car seat. This is quite opposite of Jackson who would spend days in there if he left him. So that means I tend to carry her in our baby bjorn a lot, which is has considerly cut down on my shopping- it is super hard to try on clothes and shoes with a baby attached to you. Other than that, she is a super happy, smiley baby. She loves for you to talk to her and I feel she may be a tad dare devilish like her brother. She loves to "fly" She chats with us all the time. I tell my husband that I think she will be right handed like her brother as both of them when they nurse and their right arms are up they move them in swimming motion across me but only on that one side. She sleeps like a champ going about 10 hours at night. I say she is going to be like my husband as he is long and lean and her percentiles show that pattern. She is almost 2 pounds less than jackson was at this same age.
Jackson is now 2 1/2 yrs old. His vocabulary has grown so much in the past several months. He loves trucks, cars, and trains. He is getting in disney movies- his favorites are Cars, Toy Story (for Buzz Lightyear) and Finding Nemo. He cracks us up all the time with the things he says. Yes is 'ness'. Today when I told him I was going to work he told me "no work". He has recently developed fears of thunder and strangers. He lvoed trick or treating once he realized there is candy involved. We started potty training him and he is doing awesome with it!! He has learned all of his colors and now we are working on letters and shapes!!
So that is all totally random things that I wanted to jot down so I don't forget this time with them as it is so amazing.
She does not like to be in her car seat. This is quite opposite of Jackson who would spend days in there if he left him. So that means I tend to carry her in our baby bjorn a lot, which is has considerly cut down on my shopping- it is super hard to try on clothes and shoes with a baby attached to you. Other than that, she is a super happy, smiley baby. She loves for you to talk to her and I feel she may be a tad dare devilish like her brother. She loves to "fly" She chats with us all the time. I tell my husband that I think she will be right handed like her brother as both of them when they nurse and their right arms are up they move them in swimming motion across me but only on that one side. She sleeps like a champ going about 10 hours at night. I say she is going to be like my husband as he is long and lean and her percentiles show that pattern. She is almost 2 pounds less than jackson was at this same age.
Jackson is now 2 1/2 yrs old. His vocabulary has grown so much in the past several months. He loves trucks, cars, and trains. He is getting in disney movies- his favorites are Cars, Toy Story (for Buzz Lightyear) and Finding Nemo. He cracks us up all the time with the things he says. Yes is 'ness'. Today when I told him I was going to work he told me "no work". He has recently developed fears of thunder and strangers. He lvoed trick or treating once he realized there is candy involved. We started potty training him and he is doing awesome with it!! He has learned all of his colors and now we are working on letters and shapes!!
So that is all totally random things that I wanted to jot down so I don't forget this time with them as it is so amazing.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Snail mail smiles
When digital cameras have become mainstream, it renewed my interest in photography. This interest was passed to me from my father who has loved capturing images for years. He tends to shy away from any sort of posed pictures and loves to capture the truly candid shots. In fact, several cousins have asked him to be the photographer at their wedding when he didn't want to do it afraid they wouldn't be happy.
I on the other hand love the somewhat posed shots. I hate the goofy hold your hands this way and tilt your head and chin that way- I am more of a stand in front of this and lets see what happens. Since I have had my children my photography interest has grown by leaps and bounds. I take pictures of them all the time, but I need a way to share them with friends and family without loading down their email boxes with photo attachments. So what do I do? I send greeting cards for practically every holiday. This way they can see the kids progress as they grown and learn new things.
I have used Shutterfly in the past and love how easy it is to upload, personalize and order my pictures. You can see all of their Christmas card options here
I think I am going to use the Top 10 for our cards. How awesome to be able to give everyone our year in review highlights with pictures of proof!! We have had so many great moments it will be hard to narrow it down and figure out the order though I am sure M's birth is firmly cemented in the number 1 spot!
Other things I just recently found is Shutterfly also sells calendars which will make great gifts for grandparents and great-grandparents. I can put our pictures in them and each month they will see their smiling faces!!
And I am already combing through to find THE perfect birthday invitations for the kids parties next year!!
I on the other hand love the somewhat posed shots. I hate the goofy hold your hands this way and tilt your head and chin that way- I am more of a stand in front of this and lets see what happens. Since I have had my children my photography interest has grown by leaps and bounds. I take pictures of them all the time, but I need a way to share them with friends and family without loading down their email boxes with photo attachments. So what do I do? I send greeting cards for practically every holiday. This way they can see the kids progress as they grown and learn new things.
I have used Shutterfly in the past and love how easy it is to upload, personalize and order my pictures. You can see all of their Christmas card options here
I think I am going to use the Top 10 for our cards. How awesome to be able to give everyone our year in review highlights with pictures of proof!! We have had so many great moments it will be hard to narrow it down and figure out the order though I am sure M's birth is firmly cemented in the number 1 spot!
Other things I just recently found is Shutterfly also sells calendars which will make great gifts for grandparents and great-grandparents. I can put our pictures in them and each month they will see their smiling faces!!
And I am already combing through to find THE perfect birthday invitations for the kids parties next year!!
Friday, October 8, 2010
I love FREE STUFF!!
Ok, so as a Mommy of two kids I have to sadly admit I do not have a video camera to capture all their cuteness. I am photo crazy and will use the video feature on my camera, but it isn't the same and the quality isn't so great. But my good friend Brittany over at MommyWords may be able to fix this problem for me! She is giving a Flip Ultra HD!! SWEET!!
You can check out her blog and the giveaway here!!
In addition to being so generous with her readers, she is an awesome mom blogger who writes about the fun and tough stuff of being a parent and wife.
You can check out her blog and the giveaway here!!
In addition to being so generous with her readers, she is an awesome mom blogger who writes about the fun and tough stuff of being a parent and wife.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
You are my sunshine
Recently I received the best compliment ever, that my love for my children just exudes out of me. Now there are some days that I am sure this is not case, but I like to think that most days people can tell I am head over heels in love with my family. I have a little over 30 days till we get to meet our baby girl. For the most part, I am still feeling really good. The heat is starting to get to me, so I try to limit my time outside but I love to drive around in my car cause then I don't feel guilty for cranking the air down to frostbite level. I would hate to see our power bill if I did that at home! She is still pretty active in here and was causing some pain as she was trying to pop out a rib yesterday. I feel her hiccup several times a day. I need to do a couple final things in preparation for her arrival. We need to wash and fold her clothes, put the car seats in the cars and I need to pack for the hospital.
Jackson is doing so many amazing things. Since he had reaching talking age, I had always wondered if he was 'up to speed.' Mostly this fear was related to the well baby checklists the ped gives at each visit to monitor his progress. He was at the lower end of the word counts each time, then at his two year visit he was 'supposed' to have several sentences, but he only had one 2 word sentence of 'whats that'. Anyway, the ped suggested we have him evaluated she didn't feel anything was wrong since he comprehended everything we tell him, but she thought early intervention would be best. After the evaluation, we were told he was borderline for speech but would most likely score off the charts for understanding. We were given some tools to try and they said he should be mimicking our sounds within 30 days. See he had 20 words but they weren't conversation words. He didn't ask for anything he would just grunt and point. So the day after the evaluation was rough trying to 'make' him talk to us, but by lunch time he was saying more for more food. After that his words just grew. He now says up, down, milk, more, please, eat and other item words. We are now working on getting him to combine words, but it is so exciting to see his vocabulary almost double in a couple weeks.
He is getting interested in coloring. Thank goodness for Crayola paper where the markers only show up on special paper. Sure it costs more but think of what it saves in un-ruined furniture and time of cleaning up walls. We had placed him in swim class earlier this year and I worried that he hadn't really picked anything up. He still want to play in the water. But I found him a float that has the two arm supports, but also has a float piece that goes across his chest. We tried it out this past weekend for the first time and he did awesome. He will venture out and actually swim around and turn around and come back while kicking. He is also starting to incorporate the arm movements. And he loves it!!
The title of this post comes from a one of our baby toys. I found it while I was cleaning up the baby items- car seat, bouncer, etc. It is a toy that when you squeeze it plays musical "you are my sunshine." Course Jackson didn't miss a single new item that found its way into the house, so he will play with that toy and get such a kick out of the fact that mommy knows the song and sings along.
Jackson is doing so many amazing things. Since he had reaching talking age, I had always wondered if he was 'up to speed.' Mostly this fear was related to the well baby checklists the ped gives at each visit to monitor his progress. He was at the lower end of the word counts each time, then at his two year visit he was 'supposed' to have several sentences, but he only had one 2 word sentence of 'whats that'. Anyway, the ped suggested we have him evaluated she didn't feel anything was wrong since he comprehended everything we tell him, but she thought early intervention would be best. After the evaluation, we were told he was borderline for speech but would most likely score off the charts for understanding. We were given some tools to try and they said he should be mimicking our sounds within 30 days. See he had 20 words but they weren't conversation words. He didn't ask for anything he would just grunt and point. So the day after the evaluation was rough trying to 'make' him talk to us, but by lunch time he was saying more for more food. After that his words just grew. He now says up, down, milk, more, please, eat and other item words. We are now working on getting him to combine words, but it is so exciting to see his vocabulary almost double in a couple weeks.
He is getting interested in coloring. Thank goodness for Crayola paper where the markers only show up on special paper. Sure it costs more but think of what it saves in un-ruined furniture and time of cleaning up walls. We had placed him in swim class earlier this year and I worried that he hadn't really picked anything up. He still want to play in the water. But I found him a float that has the two arm supports, but also has a float piece that goes across his chest. We tried it out this past weekend for the first time and he did awesome. He will venture out and actually swim around and turn around and come back while kicking. He is also starting to incorporate the arm movements. And he loves it!!
The title of this post comes from a one of our baby toys. I found it while I was cleaning up the baby items- car seat, bouncer, etc. It is a toy that when you squeeze it plays musical "you are my sunshine." Course Jackson didn't miss a single new item that found its way into the house, so he will play with that toy and get such a kick out of the fact that mommy knows the song and sings along.
Monday, April 26, 2010
The countdown
Less than 100 days to go until our due date. Course she can come after that I know, but it is still amazing to consider than in such a short time span we will become a family of 4. In one week I will be in my third trimester. I am still feeling pretty good. I can feel it in my hips and pelvic region if I sit at work too long without moving around or if I do a 30 min walk in our hilly neighborhood. I spent time this weekend getting her room together. I finally got all of Jackson’s things moved out and hung up the clothes that we already have for her. Jackson was helping- he would grab her clothes and hang them on the dresser in a row. I also washed her bedding, but need to raise the crib back up to newborn height and make the bed. Then all that is left to do is put her wall decorations up. I can feel her kick, punch and now roll. I think the rolling is the neatest feeling. I guess cause that is what I remember so much with Jackson- he was very much a roller.
Jackson is about one week away from being 2. I can’t believe it. My heart is so excited for the little boy he is, but hates how fast time is flying by. He is so amazing to us and is such a joy to our lives. His vocabulary is growing and his favorite thing to ask now is “What’s that or Who’s that.” It is so funny that from the moment he wakes up and we go and get him, the whats that game starts. Some times he asks it about so many things we can’t even answer before he moves on to the next item. My mom says he is like a sponge and is just soaking up all of the world around him. I think that is true, because while he has yet to repeat all of the words we tell him if you ask to point out something that you have told him what it is he can immediately find it. A recent trip to Home Depot for yard supplies taught him one of my new favorite words for him- flower – which he says ow-er. It is right up there with shoe which sounds a lot like chew. Something else I think it super funny, if you ask him to chew his food he squishes up his nose like he is smelling something. I have no idea why he does this but it cracks me up.
We have officially gotten rid of the pacifier. As always he amazes me with his ability to adapt without a fuss. It only seems to be Sunday afternoon naps that he struggles without paci. Other than that he is fine. He hasn’t even asked for it. My great trick- I just didn’t give it to him. It was out of his room, so when I layed him down I just gave him his lovey, blanket and a kiss and walked out. He looked around like um…aren’t you forgetting something but he didn’t say anything.
We still have potty training on his to-do list, but he still isn’t showing any interest, so I will hold off and not force the issue.
Jackson is about one week away from being 2. I can’t believe it. My heart is so excited for the little boy he is, but hates how fast time is flying by. He is so amazing to us and is such a joy to our lives. His vocabulary is growing and his favorite thing to ask now is “What’s that or Who’s that.” It is so funny that from the moment he wakes up and we go and get him, the whats that game starts. Some times he asks it about so many things we can’t even answer before he moves on to the next item. My mom says he is like a sponge and is just soaking up all of the world around him. I think that is true, because while he has yet to repeat all of the words we tell him if you ask to point out something that you have told him what it is he can immediately find it. A recent trip to Home Depot for yard supplies taught him one of my new favorite words for him- flower – which he says ow-er. It is right up there with shoe which sounds a lot like chew. Something else I think it super funny, if you ask him to chew his food he squishes up his nose like he is smelling something. I have no idea why he does this but it cracks me up.
We have officially gotten rid of the pacifier. As always he amazes me with his ability to adapt without a fuss. It only seems to be Sunday afternoon naps that he struggles without paci. Other than that he is fine. He hasn’t even asked for it. My great trick- I just didn’t give it to him. It was out of his room, so when I layed him down I just gave him his lovey, blanket and a kiss and walked out. He looked around like um…aren’t you forgetting something but he didn’t say anything.
We still have potty training on his to-do list, but he still isn’t showing any interest, so I will hold off and not force the issue.
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