Florida Beaches...

...we miss you.

Our Last Day

On our last day in Florida we went on a dolphin cruise.  

 my mom

 new phase for george;  hamming it up for the camera

 magnolia and lily wait and watch.  

it was lily who spotted the dolphins first and yelled it for the whole boat to hear!

 aren't they breathtaking?  we sure were excited!

 snack time

 two hour boat ride and we were ready to get off for some lunch.  

that was definitely a highlight of the trip!

 we spent the afternoon on the beach one last time.

we all agreed that those were the prettiest beaches we've ever been on and we are definitely going back next year!

Welcome March!

My camera is still broken.  I am so bummed.  We are coming up on vacation and a little someone's 4th birthday.  I'm running out of time to convince George how much I need to get it replaced.  It's not going to be worth getting it fixed.  Anyway.  It's just one of those decisions that's easier to set aside than think about.  It's not a necessity but I sure do miss it.

In other news I put up Easter decorations.  It's early I know but we'll be on vacation so I wanted to have them up long enough for me to get sick of them by the time Easter arrives.  Besides, they really cheer up the house on the inside while we are buried in snow on the outside.

We had a trip to St. Louis a few weeks ago.  It was a perfect weekend getaway.  We did old time favorites like a trip to the Magic House and Botanical Gardens and of course, ate Imo's pizza twice.  I went to the fanciest consignment store I've ever been too and splurged on Kaycee Hughes dress for Magnolia.  I think she'll wear it to a tea party she has coming up soon.  :)

(Magnolia and I making our hair stick up at The Magic House)

George's room is finished for now.  I got halfway through it then got hung up on the dresser color, lamps, and bookshelves.  Thank goodness for George who came in and finished it for me.  I knew the minute I bought new lamps I would find even more perfect ones at Goodwill so I decided that there is no rush.  The paint color on the dresser will do for now and I cut up an old duvet to cover the back of the bookshelves.  George filled the shelves and in the end, it looks great.  

 The rug was a great buy and it's so soft and plush.

 Did you notice how long George's hair was getting?  Well, apparently George did.  As I was talking to the school nurse at Magnolia's school who was preparing me for a very swollen face I would see at pick up due to a collision on the playground, George decided to cut his hair.  When I rushed him out the door to go get Magnolia I asked him what animal he was around because he was covered in hair!  Then I looked up and saw it.  I had to turn and walk away so he wouldn't see me smile.  That stinker!  That little face looking at me with bangs cut like Dumb & Dumber.  I was so happy.  So happy it happened.  It's every parent's rite of passage and I'm so glad it was my son and not my daughter.  I didn't make a big deal about it.  I just told him we don't cut our hair and don't do it again.  He nodded his little head and that was the end of it.  Man, I love that little stinker.  Magnolia was fine and by the time I got to her school (the nurse urged me to get her as soon as possible) the swelling had gone down and she didn't even want to leave early!  The school nurse was seriously frazzled by Magnolia's hysteria,  calling her a very fragile little girl.  Well, she is seriously afraid of blood and if there is none I tell her immediately (even bought a red washcloth to disguise when she has bloody noses) and if she does see it, we just put her on our lap and turn on cartoons.  Poor thing, I'm sure she was hysterical for a long while in that clinic so I can see why that nurse was so frazzled!

(George's "haircut")

So happy it's March, we have a busy month getting ready for vacation, Easter, and Georgie's birthday!

I hope the next time I post, I will have a knew camera (hint, hint George)

This is what I've been up to around here.  Embroidering, well, monogramming just about everything.  I discovered that I could actually afford my own embroidery machine by reading about a fellow blogger's new embroidery machine.  I quickly pieced together all the money I could find.  I consigned a lot of the kids clothes and even sold gold jewelry from an old boyfriend!  I was so excited for it to arrive.

When I realized that I would now have TWO machines to find a place for I knew I was going to have to move into the guest room.  It worked out beautifully.  We kept the bed in there, unloaded the china cabinet of its linens and used it as a sewing cabinet.  We brought up our old kitchen table and chairs.  We moved the dresser into the closet and cleared out that closet which made a fine home for all of my fabrics.  We even moved the chaise lounge that was in Magnolia's room into this room.  We then brought a lot of toys up to the kids rooms to give them more enticement to play up there while I worked.  Now when they call for me I just tell them I'm in my "studio" which they are quick to tell me is not a studio because I'm not an artist.  Humph.

It's a sunny and warm room, the walls are a sort of blue/gray and I just love being in there.  I have found myself working hard everyday to get things done just to buy some time to be up there, monogramming, plotting, designing.  What a creative outlet for me!  I just love it.  My mom said it perfectly, "every woman needs a man cave."

To mark the creation of my "studio," I had a play date up there where I monogrammed a few things for my friends.  I am hoping over time I will get a good following of customers.  I think the word will spread quickly, there isn't a place I know of that monograms around here.  Until then, I have a lot of practicing to do and I'm certainly learning as I go.  This is only a small sampling of what I've done.  I would love to show you more but my camera just broke.  Off to get that fixed tomorrow.  :(