Thursday, July 24, 2008

Off to the Beach

See you next Saturday!

Camera Woes

Woe is me. As much as I'm loving my new Nikon D40, I noticed a flaw yesterday. I didn't notice it in the first few days of pictures, but in every picture in the past few days there have been two spots in the frame that look like an oil based stain on fabric. I took it to Best Buy and they said there must be something on the interior lens. Thankfully, since it was within two weeks of my purchasing the camera they were more than happy to exchange it. Unfortunately, they didn't have any in stock and I'm leaving today for the beach! I'll have to stop at a Best Buy on the way to South Carolina and do the exchange there.
Has anyone else had this problem before? I bought the two year Best Buy warranty so I'm not too concerned but I'd hate to have to keep changing out cameras!

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

New from Tiny Prints

Tiny Prints has fresh, modern Birth Announcements & Party Invitations courtesy of the designers from DwellStudio.
They are so cute! Check them out...






I love how they've combined the traditional "Baby Theme" of animals and the more modern color scheme and design. Perfect for the hip baby!

We Have a WINNER!

432 of you voted in the inspiration board contest and with 37% of the vote A Southern Accent is our winner! She will receive a $50 gift certificate to the online store of her choice. Congratulations!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Let the Buying Begin!

Trunk show season is upon us. For whatever reason, it seems earlier to me this year. I'm helping a friend with the Beaux et Belles show this week. Cute, cute clothes! They have such cute boy/girl baby things it ALMOST makes me wish I had boy/girl twins! Maybe I'll just pack some up and send them to Brangelina...

I just placed my Boden order online yesterday in anticipation of being too busy to make the show. Picked up these cuties for the kids...










We leave Thursday for the beach. I'm hoping to be able to stop by Raleigh on the way home for the Chez Ami outlet sale that starts July 31st. I've tried to go for a few years and never made it. You can find info on their website. I'll be having my Chez Ami show at the end of August and I'm so excited! I love their fall looks. I'm especially excited for all my friends with older girls. They have really amped up their selections for "tweens". The extended baby line is adorable as well. Oh, and if you're still looking for initial sweaters over at Peyton Place, Chez Ami's got em!


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Monday, July 21, 2008

Favorite New Blogger of the Week

In my quest to read two new blogs a day I've come across some really great reads! I decided to do a weekly feature on my favorite new blog. This week's new blogger is C over at The Rauths. I love reading her blog. It makes me happy! Lots of great pictures and ideas. I asked her to give us an idea of who she is and how she lives.
Here's what she had to say..."I'm a wife, striving to "let [my] speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt," living each day with an attitude of gratitude, enjoying the simple pleasures all around and appreciating God's grace. Freshman year of college, I told my roommate that a certain guy on our floor was the "marrying type;" nine years later I married him. How blessed am I? So blessed. I treasure hand-written notes and I love you scribbles. I believe a fair argument only brings my husband and I closer. I eat peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat bread everyday. The sun, a smile and a song change my mood. Emptying the garbage bag and replacing a light bulb make me cringe. Please, thank you and yes ma'am are the oxygen of kindness. Sherbet ice cream makes everything better; we eat ice cream nearly everyday, usually in bed. I'm known to have about ten projects going at once and an insane ability to party plan. I love do-it-yourself living and work to minimize our carbon footprint as much as possible, without being too neurotic. I'm a people person but I'm not particularly fond of the phone. My blog is my thought suitcase, full of anything and everything that creates, nourishes and challenges my life. I hope you'll come along for the ride."

I'm lucky to have made a new friend! Check out her blog for daily inspiration...

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Inspiration Board Contest

I'm so excited to present you with our four finalists in the Baby Shower Inspiration Board Contest.

I've listed the finalists below. Please take a moment to look at each board and then cast your vote at the top of the page. The voting will end on Tuesday, July 22nd. The winner will receive a $50 gift certificate to the online vendor of their choosing. Good luck!

From Blue Eyed Bride: "Green Eggs and Ham"



Top row: michael norwood, pottery barn kids, amazon.com
Middle row: instyle magazine, michael norwood, instyle magazine
Botton row: GAP maternity, tiny prints, michael norwood


From Fostering Creativity: "Just Ducky"



Dress ~ Target
Cake ~ Edible Art ~ http://www.edibleartbakery.com/
Food ~ www.weddingstar.com
Invitation ~ www.tinyprints.com
Flowers ~ www.teleflora.com
Gifts ~ I saw them on multiple sites!


From Kappa Prep: "Monogram Mommy"



Invitation: Whitney English; Nursery: Posh Tots; Car Seat: Posh Squeaks; Nightgown: Lilly Pulitzer for Pea in the Pod; Bib: The Palm Gifts; Diaper Bag: Domino Magazine; Napkins: Caspari at Paper Affair

From A Southern Accent: "Nesting Instincts"



Top: Japanese Tunic, Nordstrom; Cake: Martha Stewart Weddings; Place card holder: ShopforBabyShowers.com; Invitations: Mikayla; Bird Tree: Martha Stewart Weddings; Tins: FavorIdeas.com; Cupcakes: Martha Stewart Weddings; Nest Necklace: Etsy.com; Good Wish Birds: Flickr.com

Friday, July 18, 2008

Wedding Blues

My cousin, Emily is getting married next June. She originally wanted Tiffany blue to be her main color but now she's decided to go more with navy, pink, and Tiffany blue accents. She wants to use hot pink gerbera daisies and peonies. She's picked out bridesmaids dresses from J. Crew and a really gorgeous dress that she may or may not get based on whether my wedding dress works for her! You can't argue with free...although I do love the one she's picked out. I decided to do an inspiration board for her. If anyone else has any ideas for her, let me know! Send me your inspiration boards!

Pictures From My New Camera!

I got my new camera this week! I ended up getting the Nikon D40. I'm very happy with it so far. Of course, I haven't read the directions yet...just started snapping away. Here are a few of my practice shots...





He's No Bill Gates

The hospital that Dr. Daddy works at is using a new computer charting system. It's quite involved and everyone who charts at the hospital has had to go to a four hour class to learn how to use the new system.
Not a big deal for those who know how to use computers already. For Dr. Daddy, this is MONUMENTAL. Despite having graduated from MIT (that's right...the Massachusetts Institute of TECHNOLOGY), the man cannot use a computer to save his life. He barely knows how to check email and God forbid he ever has an attachment to open. He breaks out into a sweat and calls me upstairs to do it for him.
Dr. Daddy graduated from MIT in 1980. At that time, computers were just coming into the picture. He took one computer class the entire time he was there. This was back when the computers looked like little Atari games and the triangle "turtle" was your guide. I'm pretty sure anyone under 30 won't remember that.
Dr. Daddy likens taking this class to childbirth with no epidural. (remember, he's an anesthesiologist!) It was SO extremely painful that he simply cannot bear the idea of going back and doing it again because it can't possibly be easier the second time around.
I've tried to help him learn things here and there but to no avail. He's pretty resistant to change anyway (when we got married in 2000 he was still wearing socks and underwear from 1985) and this particular issue is no different.
Last night was his computer class. My best friend, who is also one of his fellow anesthesiologists, drove him to make sure he would get there on time. She was also taking the class. They decided to take it together so that she could help him if he needed it.
Four hours later, she calls me laughing hysterically. She'd just dropped him off at home (I had just heard him stomp into the house) and couldn't wait to call me and tell me how it went. Apparently, it was a disaster from the get go.
First of all, he forgot his reading glasses. He had to squint the whole time and got a big headache. Second, he didn't get enough to eat and clearly did not drink enough beer before arriving. So now he's crabby and has a headache.
He asked endless questions thereby driving everyone else insane. Most people had expected to be done withing two hours, but with all of his questions it took four. At one point during the class one of his partners raised his hand and asked if everyone (meaning Dr. Daddy) would stop asking so many questions so they could all get the hell outta there.
At another point in the class, the instructor was showing everyone how to admit a patient and make a diagnosis based on the information the computer gave them. Dr. Daddy raises his hand and says "Anesthesiologists don't even admit patients and wouldn't use this system anyway. You don't diagnose a patient based on what a computer says. This is ridiculous!"
The instructor replied, "Sir, some of the people taking this class are DOCTORS and may need this information."
Obviously, she had assumed that based on the fact he was so computer illiterate and so not enlightened that he must be a nurse anesthetist and not a doctor. Which is not to say that Nurse Anesthetists aren't brilliant...please no disgruntled comments...she just figured that an MD couldn't possibly be so computer dumb.
My friend said that he kept getting completely flustered when the instructor would use basic terms and he had no flipping idea what she was talking about. Terms like "minimize". You see, I've shown him how to minimize a window on a screen, but I described it as "making the box smaller or bigger" instead of using the terms minimize and maximize. He's so concrete that he just couldn't see past the actual words and just figure it out.
Needless to say, when he got home he was not a happy camper. And he didn't take well to my girlfriend and I getting a good laugh at his expense. I'm pretty sure that he learned absolutely nothing from the class. Thankfully, he still gets to do his anesthesia charting with paper and pen. He's quite proud that he has the best penmanship of anyone in his group. Lord help him when that's computerized, too!

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Feelin' the Love

I had to post this picture of an invitation that I found on Weddings By Socialites. This is absolutely, 100% how my future MIL felt the day Dr. Daddy and I got married. I've never seen it put into words so perfectly until now...

Tagged

Muffy Martini tagged me to create an invite list of any ten dinner guests - contemporary or from history, famous or non-famous. Wwho would they be, and what would your dinner theme be?

This is a no brainer for me. I would have my Mom, my Mom's Mom, My Great Grandmother, my husband, my two kids, me, my Mother in Law, my Dad's Mom and my Dad's Dad.

The theme would be "Getting to Know You". We've had so much premature death in our family...and unfortunately my kids never got to know their grandmothers. I never got to know MY grandmothers. The short time I had with them was so inconsequential to me at the time. Now, I would give anything to sit with them and talk and ask questions and I would SO love for my Mom to get to see my kids. That would be the greatest gift ever.

Oh, Lilly...You SLAY Me!

A sneak peek at fall...







And for BabyGirl...what will we do with this whole UNIFORM issue? We'll have to save this little number for Saturdays...

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

How to Start Your Celebrity Baby Off on the Right Foot



Good. For. Them.
Seriously. It freaks me out how all these other celebs sell photos of their new babies. Even if they say the money is going to charity. It's still whacked. (not that I don't buy US Weekly...I'm just sayin)

From Fox News.com:

While the world awaits news of a sale of official photos of the Brangelina twins — Vivienne and Knox — here is a nice revelation: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban are not selling pictures of their new baby, Sunday Rose. To anyone, for any price.

A Kidman insider told me: "If they ever release a photo, it will only be in an attempt to avoid the aggressive paparazzi who go after a 'first photo' for the tabloids and tend to endanger people's lives, or at least make them very miserable. They would never sell one."

The source added: "Never."

How to do the Inspiration Boards

I've had a bunch of you email and ask how to do the inspiration board. Here's a copy of an email that I send one of my readers explaining how to do it:

Right click copy any one of the boards on my blog
Go down to "save as" and save the picture in a picture file
Go through the internet finding pictures you want to use and as you find them right click and save them to the same file you saved the picture board to
Go into a photo editing program - you should have one on your computer. Most computers have atleast one
Open my inspiration board in the program
One by one open the pictures you've collected, crop and copy them and then paste them ON TOP OF the pictures I have on my inspiration board
It will take some time go get the right fits...you can stretch a little here and there as long as it doesn't distort the photos too much

I made my boards from scratch using photoshop. I just started with a blank project and sized it as a 5x7 canvas. I then just cropped and fit my photos on top of the canvas leaving spaces in between (that's the white lines you see)

Another way you could do it would be to go to picasa.com. Click on "try picasa now". It will automatically download any photos you have on your computer into its program. Play around with it a bit. It's a great way to edit photos. There's also a collage option that allows you to make collages. They won't look quite like my inspiration board because they are square and require nine photos, but what 's great about Picasa is that it crops the pictures for you to fit the collage.

I hope this helps and I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

A Little Sketchy...

So, we just got home from a nice dinner and quickly relieved the sitter. She then came back inside to tell me that she had given BabyBoy her sunglasses to put in her car and asked him to bring the keys inside and lock the car. Apparently, he got the sunglasses in the car and locked it...with the keys still inside.
I assured her that we've all locked the keys inside the car before. Hell, some of us have locked kids inside the car in the summer heat strapped into their carseats with no way of getting out. I'm not naming names...just sayin.
But seriously...expecting a six year old to be able to follow that many commands without screwing it up? While carrying (and trying to play while walking) his Nintendo DS? Nuh uh.
Then the clincher...not only are the keys locked in the car WITH HER PURSE, but her extra set of keys is inside the purse. Natch.
Sooo, I get a coathanger and within five minutes the door is open. She thanks me profusely and then looks at me and says "That's a little sketchy". Nice. So I get the car open, no scratches, we don't have to pay a locksmith...and I'm sketchy?
Whateva.

Baby Shower Board contest extended

Okay, slackers. I've received some great contenders for the Baby Shower Inspiration Board contest, but I'd love to have a few more!!! I'm extending the deadline to this Friday. Won't you please send me some more boards? Remember, there's a $50 Gift Certificate to the store of your choice for the winner!

Here's a preview...this board was submitted by A Southern Accent, and is aptly named "Nesting Instincts".

From 5 Bickies...Damn I'm boring!

1. What is in the back seat of your car right now? A Scout foldable storage box.

2. When was the last time you threw up? Probably a few months ago...most likely when I was hungover.

3. What's your favorite curse word? Easy. Goddamnit.

4. Name 3 people who made you smile today? My kids, my aunt, and my kids camp counselor.

5. What were you doing at 8 am this morning? Making breakfast and getting 2 kids ready for camp.

6. What were you doing 30 minutes ago? talking on the phone to my aunt and internet surfing.

7. What will you be doing 3 hours from now? Ugh. Sewing.

8. Have you ever been to a strip club? Um, yeah.

9. What is the last thing you said aloud? Oky doky.

10. What is the best ice cream flavor? Espresso.

11. What was the last thing you had to drink? Diet Coke

13. What was the last thing you ate? Yoplait Blackberry Harvest yogurt.

14. Have you bought any new clothing items this week? Yup. J. Crew: Jenelle short dress in geranium, ruffled pique shift dress in black, lightweight chino short in bright pink.

15. When was the last time you ran? Yesterday around noon at the Y. Four miles on the treadmill.

16. What's the last sporting event you watched? Olympic trials for gymnastics.

18. Who is the last person you emailed? An EBay customer.

19. Ever go camping? Sadly, yes. I borrowed a sleeping bag from the campus rec center in college and got scabies. EWW.

20. Do you have a tan? Sort of. I mean, for me, it's a tan. For the rest of the free world, it's probably more like a tint.

24. Do you drink your soda from a straw? Not usually.

25. What did your last IM say? I haven't IM'd in FOREVER.

26. Are you someone's best friend? Yes.

27. What are you doing tomorrow? Ugh. Sewing.

28. Where is your mom right now? Looking down on me from heaven and laughing her ass off as I try to raise my kids, run this house, and ugh, sew.

29. Look to your left, what do you see? A bookshelf with a bunch of random crap on it.

30. What color is your watch? stainless

31. What do you think of when you think of Australia ? Nicole Kidman.

32. Would you consider plastic surgery? Hell yes.

33. What is your birthstone? Lucky me. Diamond.

34. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? Mostly the drive through, unless we're at the chick, then we go in.

35.How many kids do you want? 2. Done

36. Do you have a dog? a miniature dachsund.

37. Last person you talked to on the phone? My aunt.

38. Have you met anyone famous? Yes.

39. Any plans today? Work out, sew, go to the bank, pick up kids from camp, date night with Dr. Daddy.

40. How many states have you lived in? I think six.

41. Ever go to college? yes

42. Where are you right now? my attic/playroom

43. Biggest annoyance in your life right now? Ugh, sewing.

44. Last song listened to? Something Hanna Montana in the car.

46. Are you allergic to anything? Really bad seasonal allergies.

47. Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time? J. Crew flip flops...so comfy

48. Are you jealous of anyone? Not really people I know, but definitely other people who seemingly have endless money. Then I just remind myself that they probably aren't happy anyway.

49. Is anyone jealous of you? If they are...they're crazy!

51. What time is it? 10:34 am

52. Do any of your friends have children? yes.

53. Do you eat healthy? for the most part

54. What do you usually do during the day? drive my" family taxi", clean, cook , do laundry and keep us all busy and out of trouble.

55. Do you hate anyone right now? No. I try not to hate.

56. Do you use the word 'hello' daily? yes.

58. How old will you be turning on your next birthday? 33

59. Have you ever been to Six Flags? Yes.

60. How did you get one of your scars? Wrecked on a moped when I was 12.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Eye Candy

I love interior design. I especially love interior design books. They're quite a weakness of mine. My all time favorite author of interior design books is Betty Lou Phillips. She is my favorite designer hands down. I love her work because she is able to mix classic, preppy, whimsical, antiques, exotic and eclectic and still make it look completely put together and beautiful. My personal style design-wise is classic with a touch of whimsy. So many of her designs hit the nail on the head. The first book I purchased by Betty Lou is called Inspirations from France & Italy.
I LOVE this book! It has the most gorgeous pictures. It also has really great advice and ideas.



One of the homes featured in the book was also featured in this month's issue of Veranda Magazine.






The first photo is a split page of the magazine that I had to scan, so it's a little odd looking, but I just love the chairs and the adorable "Tide In, Tide Out" pillows. The classic chairs with the whimsical pillows are so charming! I also adore the pink bathroom. So classic and Old Hollywood and yet a little preppy at the same time.

Other books by Betty Lou Phillips that I own and love include French Influences and Secrets of French Design. I can't wait to collect the rest of her books as well. Everytime I get a new one I find a great idea that I can use in my own home. Unfortunately for me, that usually involves sewing! Someday I'll have the time...

Sunday, July 13, 2008

We Made It!

Passed the seven year itch, that is. I'm proud to say that Dr. Daddy and I are celebrating our 8th wedding anniversary this week. July 15, 2000 we gathered with friends and family at the Cactus Hotel, one of the first Hilton Hotels, to be married into wedded bliss. The wedding itself was not so much blissful, what with the mother in law going nuts the night before at the rehearsal dinner, but we managed to make it through the weekend. 107 degrees it was that day in San Angelo, Texas. San Angehoo? you say. That's right. San Angelo, Texas. You can literally drive around Texas for days and you'd have to get really freakin lost to find this town. We both just happened to end up there and we both just happened to really want to get the hell out of there! Thank goodness we did it together.

And here we are today...



I won't bother to post a wedding photo...it was before the days of digital and Dr. Daddy was sporting the Hair Club For Men piece, so it's really just better if we stick with the here and now. For the record...I seem to have mastered photoshop today in my boredom and the fact that we don't look 17 years apart in age (even though we are) is no coincedence. I'm just sayin...

He's a good, good man. Tolerant, loving, doting, patient, passionate, and to my utter surprise, a super Dad. When we met he was the consumate bachelor. Not sure if he wanted kids but not willing to marry someone that didn't want them. Lucky for him, I wanted them...and right quick.

We seem to have lived happily ever after and it just keeps getting better (and crazier) everyday.

Ironically, when we gave each other our wedding bands on our wedding day, we ended up having the same thing engraved in one another's rings. Mine to him said "Love you more every day". His to me said "I love you more". As it turns out...it's true. I love him more everyday. Even on the days he wakes up and spends FOREVER reading the paper, watching FOX News Sunday, dallying in the kitchen with the dishes, screwing with the lawnmower, eventually mowing the lawn, complaining about the weeds, deciding at the last minute to work out right before supper, getting the kids all fired up right before bed and then insisting he has to do the dishes and doesn't have time to put them both to bed...yadda, yadda, yadda.

Just like I said...better everyday.

EBay Deals

Someone's just back from Lynchburg and you know what that means! Good stuff on EBay. Please check out these great finds and also a few DVF dresses that are to die for!








Friday, July 11, 2008

Ready to Shoot Someone

With a camera, that is! I'm really getting antsy to buy a new camera and I need advice! I LOVE all the beautiful photos I see on so many other blogs like this one from 3 Peanuts...



and this one from The Shooting Allens...



They're so crisp and the colors so vivid. I used to have a cheap little Kodak camera which actually allowed me to take some pretty great (I thought) pictures:





Unfortunately, that camera found itself inside a pool and never worked again.

I then purchased a Canon Elph. I have NEVER been able to get that camera to take good pictures. I've tried all different types of settings. The pictures come out OKAY if I never zoom. When I zoom, however, they're grainy and dull. I have to photo shop almost everything. VERY frustrating, especially when I'm trying to photograph things to sell on EBay.

SOOO, I'm looking at buying a Nikon D60 and I need input from you all! I know it's not the top tier of the Nikon cameras, but I don't really know if I need all that. I really don't want to spend more than around $700 to $800. You can see the Nikon D60 here
It seems like what I'm looking for...the price is definitely right. Does anyone have a good recommendation?

Thanks!