Listening and 15 things that I love.

You know what? One thing that I am really bad at is listening to myself. I am so busy listening to other people, trying to impress them or make them happy. I have always been that way. I am a mediator; need a compromise? Come to me. I see both sides of the story and am always trying to make everybody happy. It is just who I am. I have accepted that.

The problem with trying to make everybody happy is that I don't always realize until later that my decision didn't exactly make ME happy. I am in charge of me. I am in charge of my happiness. I am a pretty darn happy person and it takes a lot to wear me down but when it does, I crash. I eat chocolate and ice cream in the bubbly bathtub watching marathons of sappy television shows for multiple nights in a row until I break out of the funk and become my usual peppy person.

So I haven't done a happiness list in a while. This is to remind me why I love life.

15 Things That Make Me Happy

1. My husbands hug.
2. Bubble Bath's with chocolate, hot tea, and a sappy drama filled television show (or a good book).
3. Big fluffy snowflakes; I am talking BIG, like quarter sized snowflakes. So beautiful.
4. Dressing up 'Just Because'. It always brightens my day when I look good.
5. My son's baby giggle.
6. The quiet peaceful time during devotions when I remember that God is always in charge.
7. Jamming out and dancing to the perfect song for my mood. (Whether it is Taylor Swift, Blake Shelton, or Katy Perry)
8. A clean apartment. Cheers me up and just makes me happy.
9. Finishing a project and seeing the final result.
10. Visiting with family whether on the phone, via facebook, or in person.
11. The little bit of time before bed when I sit and relax in bed with a cup of tea and messing around on my Kindle.
12. Fresh bread with butter.
13. Board games.
14. Nice warm leggings under my winter clothes. Makes things "Oh, so cozy."
15. My memory foam mattress. It's rare that I have had a sore nights sleep (not counting pregnancy, and post pregnancy sleep).

One thing my little man loves is pancakes. Another, is his Daddy.

Go on out and Live and Love.

An Owl Diaper Cake

I have a friend who is expecting a baby any day now. She had a shower a few weeks ago and I wasn't sure what to get her. I love looking at baby gifts on Pinterest and I saw an adorable little owl. So I had to reproduce a cute little doo-dad for her.

Ain't she cute.... lets call her Who-phia.

Instead of purple eyes, I swapped the purple cloth out for a couple of onsies. There is a bib that I serged up, a rubber ducky for the nose, a receiving blanket for the wings, and little viking socks for the ears. Then, of course there are diapers. Adorable cute little newborn diapers. I am sure they will be well-soiled.

Live and Love

Meal Planning Monday, less structured

I missed a few meal planning Monday's. With my new job I haven't been paying much attention to it. I cook when I'm hungry with what is in the cabinet and when I am at work they feed me. How nice is that! Anyways, I still want to kind of meal plan because it keeps me focused to use what is in the cupboard just not by the day.

Meals that we plan to eat this week:
-Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches (we are on a philly cheese steak kick, at least once a week)
-Waffles with applesauce (another kick)
-Cornbread Casserole (I should blog this one, this recipe is amazing)
- Hamburgers with a/or on a salad
- Cookies........mnmm or some other dessert
-Leftovers of course
-And a fend for yourself night, whatever is in the cupboard or fridge.......

So good.

Live and Love

Red and Grey Stripey Butt

I haven't been very good at posting lately. With a new part time job at an assisted living center, I have been adjusting to my new schedule. I love my new job. Of course I have lots of spare time though, and what do I do in my spare time?

Watch the Olympics of course! Have you seen those crazy snowboarders! And of course I need to hide away in my sewing room once in a while.

The latest project coming out of the sewing room is a new diaper cover. My mother in law had an old shirt where the colors were bleeding into one another but the fabric was still wonderful. My first thought was "diaper fabric!".

A snip here and a stitch there and James has a new diaper cover. Which is a good thing because his cheap covers that I originally bought him are wearing out and leaking. Four out of five have been sent to my scrap pile. So one diaper at a time  to rejuvenate his stash.

Just a quick little update for you. For now just Live and Love

An Upcycled Sweater for James

Mr. Sir had a sweater vest that neither of us liked on him. So I took the fabric and upcycled it into a sweater for James. It consists of an upcycled sweater vest, some scraps of black wool for the sleeves and is lined with black fleece. I still need to apply the buttons but I had to post it because it was super cute. It is a Kwik Sew pattern.

 I don't have a picture of it on him because it is way too big for him yet. It might be a 2T. I am not quite sure. It should fit him this fall though.

 I just know that it is adorable.

Live and Love

Another beginning.

One thing I love about beginnings, is that you can have as many of them as you like. You can start a project, start a meal, start a new career; it is all up to you. Right now in this family's life, beginnings are a big thing. We are starting a ton of them.

This time, I started my own new beginning. My new job is at an assisted living center as a care specialist. Caring for the elderly. Toileting, bathing, feeding, reminiscing, cleaning, etc. I have been thinking about doing healthcare for some time now but never made the jump. It was never on my list because well frankly, I am not a big fan of bodily fluids. Snot, vomit, pee, poop.... not a big fan. But really its not that bad. Dealing with that kind of stuff is an acquired thing. I found that out after having a baby and changing diaper after diaper and cleaning up baby vomit. It is not so bad, just deal with it and move on. Like many other things in life.

I am starting my 3rd week this week at work which is why it has been so slow on the blog. I love it so far. Knowing that my job is making the quality of life better for those lovely ladies makes it worth it.

Just thought to give you an update. And while we are updating things......
James is 10 months old! He gets into all sorts of trouble.

Live and Love