A Simple Nest

Quote of the week

2012-02-15T18:02:00.000-08:00

My sweetheart brought me tulips for Valentines day. I love the simplicity of a tulip bouquet. I also have always loved this quote. I've been watching a documentary series about the universe and how it works. It's so complex......yet....so simple. Amazing.

Love Makes the World Go Around

2012-02-15T15:08:00.000-08:00

Happy (late) Valentines Day! It was a rough day for me which included no husband (night classes), sick kids and self, a spilled a gallon of milk, broken glass, no nap from the toddler, and....wait for it...grocery shopping....dun dun dun. I hate grocery shopping, especially with two sick tired kids. On the bright side it also included flowers and painting little hearts on little nails.

On another note: I made this globe for my kiddos recently and am very pleased. I made one for my Niece a long time ago and it pilled at lot! So this one has an ocean of cotton instead of acrylic felt. The land is wool felt. I'm working on a pattern for my (ever so empty) Etsy shop. It's turning out to be much more difficult than I anticipated.

XOXO to you all!

Quote of the week

2012-01-01T19:42:00.000-08:00

Or should I say, quote of the year! I also love the quote "a goal without a plan is just a wish", but this one is new to me and it really has a tough love attitude. It's the truth. NO EXCUSES THIS YEAR! I'm working on patience and inner peace this year. I hope you all had a happy new years day!

Blogger Journal

2012-01-01T19:35:00.000-08:00

Oh gosh, it is a new year, and if you subscribe to my blog you may have gotten my accidental journal entry that was meant for my journal blog but then posted here. It has been super convenient to use blogger as my journal. I can journal from my phone anywhere I am, I can edit entries, add photos, scan old journal entries and post them, I have unlimited room to add updates to things. You can make any blog private when selecting that only the author can view the blog in permissions. Then with the touch of a button I can print it all out to a blurb book some day. But now I've found the drawback...you could accidentally reveal your dark side to the world when posting to THE WRONG BLOG, oops haha.

But seriously. Blogger Journal. It's awesome.

Weekend Randomness: milestones

2011-12-02T14:33:00.000-08:00

I want to start doing a weekly post about well...my week and stuff I've been thinking about or liked...or....whatever. Here's #1 in Weekend Randomness. (title blatantly stollen from Jasmine Star)

My baby's been rolling around for over a month now, but I never seem to catch him actually doing it. I turn around for a second, then turn back, and there he is on his tummy pushing up and looking around. Sneaky baby.
I've been trying to "potty train" my toddler since halloween. And with zero (yes zilch) successes all the rewards (halloween candy) have somehow disappeared! *Looking accusingly at my husband now* Disaster after disaster in her bedroom at night, all ending with poopy messes on floors wall and furniture, have kept me strong in my drive to keep trying. Note: these disasters are caused by her wanting to clean herself up without help. Cute, but not so cute when I have to rent a rug Dr every week. Guess what? Success! I made another prize bag and finger painting seems to be even better motivation than candy. Throw in there some markers, nail polish and TV and we've almost got a full day of dry diapers! wooooot woooot!
Santa brought me my present early after hearing about another one of the above mentioned disasters. Hello iphone, I don't know how I have lived without you for my whole life.
I haven't done any Christmas preparations at ALL. Feeling nervous. At least I can find comfort in having canceled all cub scout meetings for the month. A momma bear's gotta do what a momma bears gotta do.
My two year old, Zoe, was running around the house chanting Christ-mas-time...Christ-mas-time.
Do you think Accuvue will honor a rebate after a full year has past?
Neflix added The Biggest Looser to movies you can watch instantly. I think this is going to change my LIFE!
I played my first 7 letter word in Scrabble and it made my week.
I made ornaments a couple years ago to sell on Etsy and still have a few left. I still LOVE the globes.

Bunny love

2011-11-27T21:41:00.000-08:00

My cute cousins did some quick posing for their family Christmas card in freezing cold and very windy conditions. Luckily we got a few quick ones before the cold got to them too much. My cousin Hanna earned the money to buy her very own bunny and was carrying him around all through Thanksgiving weekend at our Grandpa's. Isn't she adorable? (the girl that is, not the bunny...although the bunny's pretty cute too, haha)

Lauren on the ranch

2011-11-27T18:40:00.000-08:00

Lauren was such a good sport going out in the cold weather and mud to get these shots. But I love how the breeze gave a little motion to her hair in some of these shots. Wow isn't she lovely? As I looked through her pictures, I can't believe how much she looks like her sister Amanda. Something I never noticed as much in person.

Quote of the week 2

2011-11-22T10:45:00.000-08:00

My little Ethan at 2 weeks old

Christmas Lifestyle Portraits

2011-11-21T22:25:00.000-08:00

Christmas and babies. Two of my favorite things and I got to spend my Saturday with both! Heidi's girls loved the camera, and obviously the camera loved them right back. And that cookie recipe is one I've got to get my hands on. I think I ate 6!!! (Not something I should admit to the world, haha) I'm so glad I got to be a part of the holiday kickoff at the Elder's home.

Quote of the week

2011-11-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

via Pintrest

Petite Belle

2011-11-06T22:04:00.000-08:00

It was so fun photographing this little doll. She is such a cutie and quit a willing little model. I loved watching her parents adore her. It's so funny how she is the same size as my new Ethan, yet 4 months older! Because of her small size (or rather me being used to giant babies in my family), it was kind of surprising to me how much she could do, sitting up and flipping around. She had this cute little coughing cry when she got tired that just made my heart melt.

Kids and Candy

2011-10-30T21:57:00.000-07:00

Our playgroup got together for Halloween and it was frosting everywhere! They had lots of fun.

Geary Halloween

2011-10-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

The family Halloween party was so funny. I loved all the costumes, but my favorite is Mandy's "Masters in Chaos and Noise" Bahahahaha! I was a bat in case you are wondering WHAT that is, lol. Zoe has been really into dragons lately, so of course she's a dragon. Jake a racket ball player (last minute costume, haha) and our little Ethan is the scariest of all. Extra limb! I've had so many double and triple takes with his costume. It really throws people off and freaks them out even when they know its not real. Hahahaha, I loved it. Halloween is the BEST!

#2: Pure White

2011-10-26T12:07:00.000-07:00

For the Diva's and Dreams Challenge: "Pure White"

This is Zoe's blessing dress, (and was mine too). It's hanging on the wall in her room, but the photos of it against the wall were too shadowed and yellow toned even when correcting the white balance. I love the ghostly look of it hanging in front of the window. The backlighting also brings out the details.

Zoe is 2!!!

2011-10-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

I must have forgotten to click on the publish post button, because Zoe's been 2 for over 2 months! We had already celebrated at both grandparents houses, so on her actual birthday I told her we'd get balloons and chocolate milk (her two favorite things ever). Being 9 months pregnant with a full cart of groceries on a steep hill of a parking lot all contributed to the door coming off it's lock and slamming Zoe into the back of the car. She got this enormous fat lip! On her birthday! Isn't it the saddest thing ever?

#1: High Heels

2011-10-25T13:26:00.000-07:00

Divas and Dreams Challenge #1: High Heels

Our high heel photo session turned into a shoe fashion show of ALL Mommy's shoes. I couldn't help posting them all.

2011-10-24T10:46:00.000-07:00

I stumbled on this photo challenge while wasting time on Pintrest. If there's one thing I need to do it's spend less time on pintrest and more time with my camera. I've never done a photo challenge, and this one looks super fun! I'll start posting my pics tomorrow, starting with "high heels"...hmmmm...but I might cheat and do flats since I dont think I actually have any heels anymore and probly won't see any at the park today, bahahaha.

Backyard show

2011-10-24T10:22:00.000-07:00

Had a blast playing a show in Matt and Maggie's backyard. It was so magical playing on a carpet of just fallen leaves, some still falling while we played. Music, marshmallows, hot cocoa, friends. This was a great night.

Here is where you can listen to our band Adding Machines. And this is our facebook page.

Matt Weidaur (who we are lucky enough to have in our band) is pretty much my favorite musician ever. His lyrics are so engaging, and melodies emotional. If you can get his songs on facebook to play (which I cannot) listen to Funeral, it's my favorite. Here's his myspace, and below a rough clip from youtube.

And now for pictures of a wonderful evening:

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-10-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

Every time I give someone a plate of these cookies I get rants, raves, and of course asked for the recipe, so I thought I'd share my source. It makes for a caramel toasty flavor and perfectly chewy and soft texture.

My cooking notes and suggestions: It's important to check the accuracy of your oven. I've made these in multiple ovens and it makes a huge difference if its off by 5 degrees. It suggests Ghirardelli chocolate, but Guittard is far superior in my opinion. I have not found this brand at Walmart or Target, but Smiths has always carried it and I believe Whole Foods also has it. Use freshly chopped pecans and toast them for the ultimate cookie. (Make sure the toasted nuts cool before adding the chocolate chips or it will be a melty mess!)

A Simple Nest

2011-10-07T15:36:00.000-07:00

This entry is for me. A sort of exercise if you will. No pictures, lots of words, a bit journal like....a bit of a deviation...

"A Simple Nest"...this is the title of my old blog and (still empty) Etsy store. The simplest I've ever lived was when Jake and I moved to New York for just one summer during his internship. We just brought one suitcase each. Everything else was stored away. It was refreshing to have less! It made me HAPPIER to have LESS!!! There were things I missed of course: a car to drive is sure nice, and real dishes to cook with and eat on are far superior than reusing disposables over and over. But for the most part it was liberating to have just the essentials. I didn't have as much to keep track of, to clutter our apartment, or to clean. When I got home I immmediately threw out almost all the other makeup that was waiting for me in utah. Got rid of all my never worn jewelry and kept just 3 necklaces and a hand full of earrings. I'm not completely reprogramed into less is more mentality. It's hard to be when everyone and everything have taught me and are telling me that more is more. But I'm trying. Here's some of the changes I've recently made:

-Paring down the cleaning supplies. So much can be cleaned with just vinegar and/or baking soda. It's better for the environment...and my family too. Here is a good guide to green cleaning.
-Cooking with raw ingredients more, and less processed food. This is not an overnight process, so I've still got a lot to learn.
-Limiting my wardrobe. I recently saw an organizing tip online on storing your drawer full of tank tops with the pile on it's side so you could see all of them and find them easier. While this is an awesome tip...I thought...Who really needs a whole drawer of the item that goes UNDER the rest? I stick with one white, one black, a navy blue, a red, and maybe a couple colorful ones. Pants? For me a pair of skinny's a pair of flares, a couple leggings and a couple slacks take up less than one square foot in my closet. I love it.
-Getting rid of and/or not buy new books....EVEN if they are nice books. If I want to get a new book I stop myself and think...can I get this from the library or find the same info on the internet? Will I need this book in my collection still after it is read?
-Letting gifts go. It's hard for me to get rid of something I was given. I feel sort of guilty. But I've realized that whoever gave it to me would not want me to hang on to something that was not making me happy. I still appreciate the gift, but if someone else will enjoy and use it more than me than that is better for everyone. There are much better ways to be sentimental than saving crap because someone special gave it to you. I keep some things for no other reason than sentiment, but it has to fit in a keepsake box...not a garage.
-Stopped my old blog. My old blog was really easy to use. I loved typepad....EXCEPT that I was paying a small monthly FEE for it! AAAAAnd....I felt guilty when I wasn't blogging. And it took up too much time to blog often enough to not feel guilty. I like it when I know someone is reading my blog, but I have stopped blogging for other people. It's officially only for me and if others read it that also makes me very happy. (comment and make me happy!). But I will never again feel guilty for not being a better blogger. It's just for fun after all right?

So I'm probly gonna use the name "A Simple Nest" for this blog. Not because that's what it's about, but because that's what I'M (trying to be) about, and this blog....well...it's about ME!

Small Notebook is the best ever blog for living simple. Read it if you can. Not just the new posts...go back and read the old ones. So good.

Ethan's birthday!

2011-09-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

Last week when I saw the Dr he was breech, so they turned him (from the outside) that night. I was supposed to set up an apointment for this week but forgot until Monday and when I called they could only see me Monday morning. I guess the check-up got me going cause I went into labor just on my way home.

I promised Zoe some chocolate milk if she was good at the Dr. I also needed groceries too, so we went shopping and I realized the contractions were only four minutes apart! I was telling Zoe (who was pushing the kid sized fully loaded cart around) "hurry hurry hurry!" I can't imagine what the other customers thought of my pushiness.

When we got home and put the groceries away I tried to message Jake on Facebook (his phone was not working) but he wasn't checking it. I had to track down his bosses phone number to get ahold of him.

We got to the hospital around 4pm and when they layed me down to check things out, my contractions almost went away, they were so weak! But I'm glad they let me stay, cause as soon as I stood up they were 2 minutes apart and coming on fast and strong.

Since I was induced last time with Zoe, I wasn't sure if I was going to want an epidural so I said hold off a little bit and we'll see. I'll spare you the details of the whole labor and tell you that a couple hours later when I was screaming for it they said it was too late! I was going to have to push now! Holy cow!

He was born at 7:08 PM on Monday the 29th and what a stud he is. 8lb 7oz, 21" long, which isn't too small for 10 days before his due date! He's got light brown hair all over. He came out crying of course, but calmed down after being wrapped up and held. What a sweet heart he has been.

Smoke Bombs

2011-08-12T10:44:00.000-07:00

I took family pictures for the first time of my brother Kevin's family. It's....hard. I need a lot more practice at that. I learned a lot though. I love taking candid action shots like the ones of the kids playing with smoke bombs. They always turn out well when the kids are truely having fun. But to get them all in the shot while all having fun is the real trick of family photography I have learned. It doesn't hurt that they are such cute kids. I don't think Zander can even take a bad shot if he tried. Maybe he's at an age where his emotions are always so authentic, or maybe he's just ultra cute, or maybe I'm biased being his Aunt.

Tall Dolls in progress

2011-07-21T08:37:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited about my first set of dolls. I started them ages ago in December, but got very burned out by the stuffing process and stopped. Dolls are FAR more time consuming than you can really imagine. I am having so much fun though. I feel like a little girl. I love to imagine the lives and personalities of each doll as I'm making them. My favorite part is sewing on hair....I feel like a mini hair stylist. I need help with mouths still. They need to be a little happier, but I cant quite get the smile. I can't wait to deck them out in their own special outfits. (Excuse their nakedness.....and in some cases limblessness haha..yes blondie is missing an arms still)

Rexburg Mud Run

2011-07-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

My whole family (except me and my mom) ran in the ~~Rexburg Mud Run~~ (Actually called "Hurdle for Hope") this weekend. There was a lot of scrapes and bruises afterward, but a lot of laughs and stories too. We camped out the night before and The lessons I learned were that I will not camp when in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy EVER again. And Zoe MUST have her own sleeping bag. Here's a few pictures from the race:

Geary Swim 2011

2011-07-12T14:37:00.000-07:00

The swim party is a yearly tradition for my mom's family. I got a chance to test out my new lens (a 28-75mm f2.8 zoom) at that party and love that I can get somewhat candid photos with the long end of the zoom.

Grandpa taking his candid photos of the gathering

Zoe loved showing off her frilly swim suit to anyone who she could.

Bringing flowers (or leaves) to her daddy.

My "baby" brother, John.

We played tag, where he hid from my camera. It made for some great smiles.

So photogenic. I love his messy face. It makes the photo for me.

Family Reunion

2011-07-07T09:12:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we had the first in a string of family reunions going on this month. This was with my Dad's family. Note to self: never take a huge group shot indoors without studio lighting. So bad.

All these cute pictures by the slip and slide were taken by my sister-in law Sara:

This is precious to me, 'cause I hardly have any picture of myself, especially candid. Thanks Sara.

Fine Art Museum

2011-07-06T09:12:00.000-07:00

We went to the Fine Art Museum at U of U the other day. They have a wide variety of cultures and time periods. I find myself especially drawn to neoclassical sculpture and European paintings, but The Chinese exhibit was quite amazing as well. They had China that was 1900 years old, but it struck me how very modern and classic it felt! Alas, my favorite piece of the day was this random photo in a collection of depression era photos. Ha!

Pregnancy Changes Everything...EVerything

2011-07-06T08:58:00.000-07:00

You know what I hate about pregnancy? That everything is blamed on it. I go to the ear nose and throat Dr today about an ear that plugs up with every intake of breath and every swallow I take (for the last few months) and of course he says I'll have it until I stop nursing. Also, about the chronic cough I've had since last July!? Oh that's probably pregnancy too....wait it out. Except that I got pregnant in December! Why was I coughing for 5 months before that? He also tells me, "Wow, you can't hear anything. I bet that is hard for your husband." Hard for him??? It's hard for ME! To top it off, the Dr says, "You are huge! You are going to gain like 20-30 more pounds still if you have 2 months left! You better try to loose that quick when you are done." Oh, gosh, thanks for the helpful advice Doc.

In other news: I'm baby free for a whole week! At our Dupree family reunion Mandie volunteered to take Zoe home until we see her this Saturday at the Geary reunion. I totally cried all day on Sunday from missing her so much (and being pregnant). This is funny because I totally cried all day the Sunday before from being over exhausted due to a string of Zoe related disasters (and being pregnant). I definitely needed this, but I can't wait to see her again now that I've got some overdue projects under my belt. Thanks Mandie! You are an angel.

Hopefully she's sleeping this peacefully for Mandie at nap and bed times!!!!

Sunny

2011-06-30T10:02:00.000-07:00

My best friend, Sunny, came to visit me all the way from Texas! Isn't she beautiful? She has already spoiled our little boy with loads of adorable clothes and he isn't even born yet! In a perfect world we would be neighbors and see each other every day. Is there anything more special than a true friend? Thank you for being there for me Sunny, I love you!

Cousins

2011-06-29T14:22:00.000-07:00

A couple of triple sets of Zoe with her cousin's. The bottom one shows each of them with a genuin smile, but the top set tells more of a story. I think I like the top three best. Which set do you like better?

New Blog

2011-06-28T15:22:00.000-07:00

A new blog feels like new years day or the first day of school. I don't know what this blog will evolve into, but for now I'll be posting a lot of pictures and a little bit of whatever's going on in my mind and life. Right now what's going on is I'm super pregnant and ready to be done with it! But really, I've got a waaaayyyys to go. Can you imagine how big I'll be in three months?

And my lovely little Zoe has started her terrible twos a little early

Growing up so darn fast! Here she is with her new (crooked) baby bangs.

Here's the "before bangs" photo