bliss & tell { giveaway!!!}

Guess what?  I have a super fun giveaway to share with you all today!! 

When Reni from Bliss & Tell contacted me about partnering up for a giveaway for my readers, I was thrilled at the idea!  I think you will be too!!

 

Reni is another local San Diego mom who created Bliss & Tell, and she designs all sorts of fun goodies.  She created these chic tags and cards for the very fabulous Miss Mustard Seed:

She also designs all kinds of invitations and other event related stationary.  Check out the draft of these super fun invites:

And how sweet is her shop front? 

And, guess what?  She is going to give one of you lucky readers 100 custom designed business cards!!!  If you don't have a biz, she will design your personal custom calling cards, which I think is the cutest idea ever. 

Here's the deets:

- 100 personalized calling cards

- custom design & printing

- standard size, 16pt. cardstock

- single side color offset printing

- matte finish

- or $100 dollars toward any design/branding service

Woohoo!!!!

All you need to do to enter is like her facebook page.  If you'd like an additional entry, you can also follow Reni on her blog.  Be sure to come back here and let me know you entered!!  Please leave a comment below for each separate entry.  The winner will be announced here on Friday!!

Thanks Reni, for such an awesome giveaway!! 

Good luck!!

yes, I did have a shower

{via}

This time of year makes me want to start fresh and make positive changes.  September feels like a fresh start, a whole new world of possibility right around the corner.

The year Reid started Kindergarten I was a mess.  I had a newborn, I was breastfeeding every 2 hours and getting very little sleep.  I arrived to school to drop him off every morning at 7:40 with my hair in a ponytail, sometimes I had makeup on, but mostly not, and usually I hadn't yet had a shower.  It was a hectic and groggy start to every day.

When he started first grade last year, I promised myself that I would do whatever it took to make it to school every day, fully showered, dressed and made up.  I also made it my goal to have Grant dressed when we left the house and not in his pajamas.  And, you know what?  I did it.  Every.single.day.

Because, here is the thing.  If I don't get a shower before the day starts, chances are pretty slim that I can find the time to get one later in the day.  It usually means waiting until the kids go to bed and that means going through my entire day feeling grumpy and groggy and not very cute.  No thank you.

I get up before the kids and before I ever head downstairs, I have showered, blow dried my hair, dressed and put my make up on.  By the time I drop Reid off at 7:40, I am ready to take on the day.

This means a little less sleep and on occasion it means being a few minutes late to school.  Because I am willing to be a few minutes late to school so that I can get my makeup on.  There, I said it.  Sometimes mommy comes first.  And, when I am put together and showered, I am a better mom, a better wife and just a better manager of my life in general.  No one wants to go through the day in a fog feeling like you just rolled out of bed and no husband wants to come home to find you in the same sweatpants you were in when he left {I know this from experience}.

With the start of the school year just around the corner, I have been thinking about adding something new to my routine that I can take this year to master.... exercising in the early am, maybe?  I'll keep you posted on what I come up with.

we're back!!

We had so much fun vacationing with my brother and sister-in-law last week.  We just got back and although I am so happy to be home, I really miss them and it was sad for me to say goodbye.  It has become a little August tradition for us and I am already looking forward to next year. 

I am hoping to post more pics from our trip later this week!  Happy Monday and Happy start to a fresh new week ahead! 

what i've been wearing...

Hi friends!!  Happy Friday!! 

Do you ever get curious about what necklace I wear from the shop?  You may think that I have one of everything for myself and I just alternate through my endless jewelry box.  But that's not true.  I am actually really boring when it comes to jewelry.  For some reason, I seem to pick a favorite every few months and then I wear it every single day until I get bored.  Then I pick something new and you can find me wearing it every single day.  For almost a year, I have been devoted {almost} exclusively to my Lauren necklace.  But, there is a new girl in town and my Lauren hasn't been getting much action lately. 

If you've been reading for awhile you may remember this post.  If you haven't been reading long and you click on the link to read that post, just have your tissue ready.  You've been warned.  It's not an easy read.

Moving on...Since I posted about that little angel necklace, I have had many requests to make similar ones.  And, although not in the shop, I have shipped out these little beauties on custom request only.

I always refer to it as the Angel necklace, so when it joins the shop, that is what it will be called.  I made one for myself with the names of my little angels and strung it on a 24" sterling beaded chain.

I thought you guys might like to see a sneak peek at the new design.  This new angel wing is a bit larger than the original version that I used for Carrie Ella. 

I am seriously loving this necklace and I hope you guys like it too!!

Keep an eye out for the Angel necklace in the shop!!

Happy weekend!!

Summer Snapshots Week 9 {linky party!!!}

I am excited about Summer Snapshots this week, especially because I have a fun little project to share.

For Valentine's Day last year, I created a little scavenger hunt for Reid and he had an absolute blast.  I could have never guessed how much he would love it.  The whole time he kept saying, "Oh thank you Mom.  Thank you."

Naturally I decided to add it to our Summer List and Reid has been anxiously waiting to check this one off.  I have collected treasures for him over the last few weeks and finally had some time to get it all together. 

In case you want to do this little project with your kids, here is what I did:

Step 1: Use paper punches to punch out 2 different shapes.  You will need 1 punch of each size for each goody bag

Steps 2, 3: Stamp the larger labels with numbers to attach to each of the goody bags.

Step 4: Print clues onto labels

Step 5: Attach clue labels to smaller shapes.

Step 6: Wrap up the goodies in treat bags and place a clue in each bag.  Attach the numbers to the outside of the package.  Hide the packages in order and have fun with the scavenger hunt!!

If you don't have the time to shop for goodies, another fun option would be to put a dollar in each goody bag and then offer to take your kids to Target or their favorite store to spend the loot on a little treat for themselves.

Here are a few snaps of Reid that I took during the hunt:

Sometimes Reid doesn't always get my undivided attention because he is not the only child in this house, so it was really nice to do something special just for him. 

Want to link up and show us what you've been up to this week?

just in time for back to school

I have mentioned my friend Rae here a few times before.  She is the co-creator of the genius mommy solution company, Armommy.  I love just about everything Rae and her mom Jane come up with, but I am particularly smitten with these lovelies:

Custom iron on labels.  I have added them to my packaging, but the original use is for ironing your kid's names into their clothing.  So smart!!  Especially because so many brands no longer have labels to write on. 

With both my boys heading off to school next month, I am definitely going to be ordering up some of these tags.  She has so many fun styles that it's seriously hard to choose!!

And don't worry about the ironing either.  It literally took a few seconds to iron each one on.  Easy peasy.

And look how fun my new packaging is now:

September is just around the corner...Happy labeling!

PS Rae also has a super fun, creative blog that you'll definitely want to follow!  Go check it out and tell her I sent you!

buy some shoes and do some good

Over the weekend, I got my first pair of TOMS.  By now you've probably heard of them.  They are the shoe company who started the One for One Movement.  For every pair of shoes purchased, they donate a pair of shoes to a child in need.  Pretty incredible, right?

Of course this means that you pay a bit more for canvas shoes than you normally would.  {These wedges were $68.}  But, they have a cult like following and now I understand why.  They are super comfortable and there is something about looking down and knowing that the shoes you are wearing put shoes on a child in need.  That kind of feel good vibe is addictive.

Included with my shoes was a TOMS flag with a note that said: "Send us photos of you and your TOMS flag and join others from around the world in supporting our One for One movement".  I couldn't resist.  Here is the photo I sent:

I swear, these wedges are so cute with jeans and I even wore them with a cotton black dress to go out to dinner that night.

Love those shoes.  I already have my eye on my next pair...

Summer Snapshots Week 8 {linky party!!!}

 {hydrangeas from the sweetest little neighborhood girls who were selling them for $1 a stem}

Last week, I took some time to smell the flowers.  Reid spent the majority of the week at Scout Camp and Grant and I just hung out.  I had some much needed downtime and it was wonderful.  Then both kids spent 3 days with my parents and Mark and I had a little staycation to celebrate out anniversary and his birthday.  We walked around the harbor, picked up abalone shells, kayaked, went out to dinner at 9:00, slept late {7:30 counts right?!}, relaxed on the beach and drank margarita's by the pool.  It was lovely.  Honestly, I don't know the last time I felt that mellow and relaxed.  It was just what the doctor ordered and I didn't even have to pack! 

I hardly pulled my camera out at all and I'm totally feeling fine about that.  Sometimes I just want to relax and enjoy the moment and not worry about getting a photo of it.  

Mark took the photo above one night when we were about to go out.  I said "honey, can you take a pic of my shoes?" and this is what I got.  Um, honey?  The shoes babe, a picture of the shoes.  Oh well, more about those shoes tomorrow.

So, even though I have almost no photos to share this week, I hope you do!!  Link up your photos below and show us all what you've been up to! 

Summer Snapshots Week 7 {linky party!!!}

Last week was all about Surf Camp!!  This is a summer tradition in our house and Reid really looks forward to it!!

Reid has gained so much confidence in the water since last year and he had a blast!! 

{Reid is front and center with the red hat on}

If you are a local San Diegan, this camp is amazing.  The counselors are all super awesome and they make it so much fun for the kids.  Reid has participated in this camp since before he started kindergarten.  In addition to surfing, they kayak, boogie board, and stand up paddle.

The kids earn beads each day that get strung together to make a necklace.  They earn a bead each time they participate in an activity like surfing or kayaking, but they also earn them for things like picking up trash and being a helper.  At the end of the week they have a cool necklace that represents their week and if you ask Reid, he can tell you what every single bead is for.  He has his necklaces from previous year's hanging from his bunk bed and they are very special to him.

This is Reid's third year of Surf Camp and each year I like to take a photo of his first day of camp.  Just for fun I thought I'd put last year's pic next to this year.  {Gasp!}  Where did that little baby face go??

{PS...That awesome in water and professional photography is by this talented guy}

I hope you'll join me for week 7 of the Summer Snapshots linky party and link up your photos below!!  I can't wait to see what everyone's been up to!!

 

eight years ago today...

Eight years ago today I married my best friend and we started out life's journey together. 

In the last eight years, we've built a home and a family and a love that I'm proud of.

I made promises that I still mean and I said vows that I don't regret. 

I love you babe!  Happy Anniversary!