A Year Ago Today.

One year ago today I was 8 months pregnant. My dad stopped by for a visit and we went to downtown Fallbrook for a little frozen yogurt. We then went to sit in the town courtyard to enjoy our frozen yogurt, what I lovely day. Then I noticed Eric in our car turning left at the light, we flagged him down. I walked over to the car excited to invite him to enjoy some yogurt with us. When I opened the car door and saw my husbands face my stomach dropped, my mind raced, and tears quickly gathered in my eyes.

Eric looked seriously troubled and teary-eyed. He told me to get in the car. My dad quickly came over to see what was wrong, as he clearly could see from my body language that something was not right. Eric explained to us that there had been a terrible accident and his cousin, Tyson, may not have made it. The three of us prayed together and Eric and I quickly headed home, where we shortly received the call from Eric’s sister confirming Tyson’s death. We hugged and cried in our little apartment. Then we sprang into action, knowing we needed to get up to be with Eric’s family, 2 hours north of where we lived. The drive up was a mixture of quietness, sadness and lots of calls to and from family members. The next four days the entire extended family gathered together, supporting each other, allowing ourselves to be broken, and missing Tyson together. It is a time no one in the family will ever forget.

Tyson & Lindsey on their wedding day...almost two years ago.

A year later, we are all still sad about losing Tyson. I admit I did not know him as much as most of the family. But I remember his genuine kindness and the way he was always so sweet to anyone and everyone he came in contact with. We know God has a purpose for all He does, including tragedies and loss, and we trust in Him and His goodness and sovereignty in everything, this has made that truth so much more real. And we look forward to the day when we will all be reunited in heaven, thank the Lord for that hope as His children. It has been incredible to watch Tyson’s parents, siblings, and wife live out their trust in God this past year as they so dearly miss their Tyson.

There is so much more to say, but Tyson’s wife, Lindsey, and my husband, Eric, have both written blogs on Tyson and they have done a much better job than anything I could write, so I’m leaving the rest to them…..

Here is a link to a blog Tyson’s wife, Lindsey, wrote days ago, read it: Who Was Tyson?

And here is one Eric just wrote today, also worth a read for sure: Tyson Larson: One Year Later.

A New Emma Favorite: Animal Books.

Recently Emma has been very into reading her animal books! It is so fun that she is now at the stage where she will actually sit down (for about two minutes maybe) and look at the book as you read it to her! The animal books are the most fun because of the colors and, of course, the noises that go with the pictures. She has the “woof, woof, woof” of the dog noise down, which is currently the noise she makes for every animal…its a slow process but I think the lamb “baaa” noise just started appearing yesterday in her very large repertoire of sounds!

Here are two animal books Emma, Eric and I are currently spending a large portion of our time reading lately.

She especially likes this first one. She loves the colors and I have found it is the perfect amount of info for the animal noises, not to much and not to little and very fun. It has the noises right there (which I admit helps me out sometimes…you never know how to differentiate between the bear, lion and tiger noises..this books helps you out there!) Plus it has a little spinner in it so as she grows this book will just get more and more fun and become not just a book but also a game, two in one how fabulous!

Animal Noises

This second book will just become more and more fun as she grows as well because it includes all the different ways animals walk! Fun activity and learning all at the same time, another two in one…these books are winners!

 

Zoo Parade!

Ok so this last one is not actually an animal book and right now it is not the most entertaining book to little Emma, but I read it to her anyway cause I know someday soon she’s gonna love it! It is just too cute and sooooo how I would play “mommy” when I was a little girl. It’s just too adorable not to share with all you mommies of little girls out there…get it for your little girl, so fun!

Little Mommy (Little Golden Book)

All these books are $5 (or actually even less) a piece and so fun to read and interact with your little one, just thought I’d share, it’s always fun getting new ideas right?!

Two Cents Tuesday: A Friendly Reminder…Do It Now.

Today’s two cents, just a friendly reminder to follow through with the “Do It Now” principle that I introduced about 5 months ago when I started this blog. Click here to read more on what I wrote about this organizing principle…it is one you cannot do without when striving for organization!

A Couple of Vintage Weddings.

Over the past couple months, we have had the opportunity to attend some beautiful vintage styled weddings. So for today I thought I’d share some pictures with ya’ll from these two lovely events!

The favors.

The first wedding was back in March and I was honored to be able to serve as a bridesmaid to my friend Karis. It was also my pleasure to help her plan out some of the decor for her reception (as mentioned briefly in this previous post), so much fun planning out how she wanted to display some vintage pieces she had found, bought, and borrowed.

The programs.

My talented mother-in-law and her best friend contributed some of their fabulous work in printing the “CARDS” banner, “Please Take One” tag for the favors, and the “Programs” banner….aren’t they so pretty (they always do go above and beyond with their work!)!? Check out their site www.thepombasket.com.

The card suitcase.

By the way…..plans are currently in the work for Emma’s first birthday party including the banners and other printing products that The Pomegranate Basket will be making (I’ll post the pics of the party for sure, so you can see the pretty paper productions)!

Our little family at the wedding in May.

Next up: the wedding in May, just a few short weeks ago! Both the bride and groom were old family friends and it was so special being a part of their special day! As I mentioned here, the bride did indeed handcraft nearly 90% of her wedding decor! All the flowers were fabric, so soft and pretty!

One of the table centerpeices (each was different)...note the handmade flower.

And these wedding favors were the best idea I’ve ever seen at a wedding. So fun to use for your own decor at home somehow right (unfortunately…I totally forgot to take mine home!)?

My favorite favors.

I only got to snap a few pictures of the decor between all the catching up with old friends we were doing the entire night, very very fun! Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed these pretty pics of some beautiful weddings for two very beautiful couples (inside and out)!!!

Eric & Ashley: Eric Helps Fold.

So, I thought you might enjoy this little insight into one of the many laughs Eric and I share daily in our home. Most of the time it’s over nothing particularly interesting but to us it can be hilarious. A simple joy of marriage, laughing together!

This one happened a couple of nights ago. Eric had just gotten in bed and I was finishing the nightly routine of washing my face, brushing my teeth, etc. As I got ready to get in bed I noticed one of Eric’s shirts oh so neatly “folded” on the end of our bed. I smiled and then laughed as I walked toward the “folded” shirt. Eric started laughing then too as he saw me approach his folding job. I then said (through our laughs), “there are three things about this that make me laugh…”

1) The fact that out of the few items of clothing on the floor for some random reason you decided this particular shirt needed to be the one item that should be folded (to explain this first point you have to know that this particular evening was a night where I did not put our clothes from the day away until the next morning, I know goes against my two cents….but like I always say there are just some nights where it cannot all get done).

2) The folding job is classic (it was creative no doubt, haha, and interestingly enough it could actually not even be replicated by Eric as we laughed when he tried to demonstrate to me the steps in his shirt folding process).

3) The fact that the shirt didn’t quite make it all the way to the drawer, but rather just to the edge of the bed….less that a step away from the drawer (its designated place).

Then I added in a fourth point the end. “Fourth, Eric can I blog about this?”…….Which as you can see he answered with a “yes”,that being the reason you are reading this now!

I so LOVE my hubby for so many unending reasons. In this particular situation I was reminded how much I love the way he really does help out around the house, how he encourages me by letting me know how much he appreciates my work around the house, how he never gets annoyed at my (sometimes OCD) extremely organized ways of doing things, and especially for how he keeps me laid back about things when they aren’t always so organized. I love laughing with him.

together!!!!

laughing

fun

Soooo

Two Cents Tuesday: The Paper Pile.

Hopefully you have a smaller pile than this one.

When there are multiple piles of paper are cluttering up your counter tops and tabletops, the fastest, simplest solution: put all those piles neatly into one pile. You know how I like to tidy up the house before bed, so it should come as no surprise to you all that when I see different paper piles  cluttering our counter on some nights I often place them all in one neat pile, waking up to a much less chaotic counter top and making me feel a little more confident about attacking one paper pile rather than the three that were there last night!

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad.

Today is my parent’s 33rd Anniversary and I just have to let you all know what a blessing it has been to witness their marriage firsthand as one of their kids!

My wonderful parents, they love each other.

They love each other so well, so selflessly and so enjoy one another. Eric and I have learned so much about a God-honoring marriage from them and are so thankful for their example. Thanks mom and dad for what your 33 years of marriage has meant to so many people and for how you continue to love God first and each other second always. We love you!

If you want to read more about my parents they have actually written a book, Friends Forever, giving their story from when they met to their wedding day and included many important dating principles along the way. I’ve read it and of course, I love it!

Here’s the link if you’re interested:

Friends Forever

My New Craft Corner.

Some tins for buttons & beads.

As mentioned in this previous post, I became very focused on finishing up a reorganizing project in our own home one Thursday a few weeks ago. I am happy to report that that project has now become my own little “Craft Corner” (actually a bookshelf but saying corner just sounds so much cuter than bookshelf, right?)!

Anyhow…I have always wanted to get my paper, fabric, ribbon, stickers, buttons, etc., etc. all stored away in a stylish and fun way while also making it easier and practical for me to work on different projects without making a huge mess. And I have done just that. You may sometimes find me just opening Emma’s closet door and staring at this new “craft corner” of mine, just imagining all the fun projects that await!

The basket....."projects in progress."

Also…another important part I knew I wanted to include in this “craft corner”, a basket for my “projects in progress.” You know how you always have different things you are working on around the home? Whether decor for your home, a gift for someone else, something that needs fixing, or just a sweater that needs to be mended…I now have a basket to keep them while in progress.

This basket is helpful both in reminding me to stay focused on the few projects at hand (so they actually get accomplished) and in keeping me from taking on too much (allowing me to really enjoy the projects at hand without getting overwhelmed). It is also great to be able to just throw the projects back in the basket when you are done working on it for the time being. Keeps things neat without taking too much time taking it out and putting it away every time you get a moment to work on it! ….you all want one of these baskets now don’t you?!? :)

Close up of the boxes, tins, and basket.

Quick rundown of what I used & how I used it: a bookshelf I got for $10 (thanks to my sister’s sister-in-law), a couple coffee cans & one formula can wrapped in adorable old vintage owl printed wrapping paper (holding the ribbon), a few cardboard boxes from Ikea (Two medium sized boxes – one holds colored & patterned paper, one holds fabric. Two large boxes – one holds extra home decor and one holds scrapbooking stuff), a few mason jars (holding markers & colored pencils), a few tins (holding buttons, beads, clothespins, gift tags, etc.) and a white basket (which you can see in the picture here that my current “project in progress” is reworking Emma’s mobile to something new for her nursery walls).

The whole bookshelf.

Just goes to show ya…you don’t need a ton of money or a ginormous house with an entire room dedicated to storing your craft supplies (don’t get me wrong…that’s gotta be fun!) to have a pretty, practical and pleasant solution. Make the most of what space and supplies you do have. For me, this closet corner is now just another simple joy of home to me where I am sure Emma and I will collaborate on some pretty fun projects in the future (Eric doesn’t seem to get as excited over this as us girls do!)!

Emma’s Nursery Mobile.

Newborn baby Emma sleeping under her mobile. Photo by: t & h photography

Anybody looking for a little nursery inspiration?? Well, as promised here are some pictures (along with the few simple steps it takes to make) of Emma’s nursery mobile that my sister and I made, just hours before I went into labor with Emma (nope, not joking)!

I love it. It captured Emma’s attention when she was a tiny baby, looked pretty and unique in her nursery, and now that it is no longer over her crib (due to the fact that Emma now stands in her crib and would pull it right down on top of her) I am planning on using the materials from this mobile for other cute decor in Emma’s room!

The boy version...Jackson's mobile.

Before we move onto the steps to making this just let me say…I can take no credit for this one, although yes I did help make Emma’s mobile, my sister Emily is the real genius behind this one. I did include a picture of the mobile she made for her son, Jackson’s nursery, so you can all see a boy version of this project too!

Now onto the steps….once you have found fabric & ribbon that fits with your babies nursery, here are the very simple steps to completing this project:

1) Cut the fabric into the decided shapes (can be whatever shape you want!), remember to cut out two shapes of each pattern so you can later sew the two together.

A closer look at the mobile.

2) Sew around the edges of the cut fabric shapes, leaving a small hole at the bottom of the shape (to use for stuffing some batting into the shape next).

3) Stuff the batting into the shape and finish sewing it up.

4) Now for the ribbon: hot glue the ribbon onto the embroidery rings (that’s the pink rings in the pictures…in case the name lost you there!) to make it look like the pictures shown here.

5) Ask your husband to hold up the mobile to the ceiling so you can see where to cut the ribbon to have it hanging at just the right height for your babies nursery!

One more close up of the fabric patterns and tulip shapes.

6) Cut the ribbon and hang it from the ceiling by tying the ribbon from a ceiling hook (which you can find at any hardware…or even maybe some craft stores).

7) Attach the ribbon to the top of the shape (looping the ribbon through part of the thread sewed around the shapes edge).

Hope this gives you some fun ideas!