Big Changes

Big changes are happening to our family. For the past several months, my husband has been going through the process of enlisting into the Air Force. A few weeks ago, he went to MEPs (the Military Entrance Program), and was officially sworn in. Now all we're waiting on is date for when he will be going to Basic Training. I am so proud of him for what he is doing. He is finally following his dream. Our life is going to do a complete 180, but we're ready for the changes!

Cherry Blossom Japanese Street Festival

We had the greatest time last weekend. We decided to visit my best friend who lives in in Northern Virginia (only a short metro ride away from D.C.). The Cherry Blossom festival was going on which was the best part of the entire visit! Being a little on th nerdy side - I was in absolute heaven being surrounded by all the japanese culture.

We were lucky enough to get a pretty good spot at the parade. All of the floats were so lovely!


There were a ton of cosplayers which was probably my favorite part of the entire experience. I loved seeing how much effort went into these beautiful costumes and it was fun spotting the characters I knew by name. ;) They even had a  J Rock Band playing on stage. Their name was Magverry and they were great!

 

And of course it wouldn't be a Japanese festival with out super cute character plushies! There was a ton of other cute things for sale as well. My hubby actually bought me a Kokeshi doll. I just love it!

It was all over to soon!
So hopefully all of you had as lovely as a weekend as I did.
Thanks for reading!

Easter 2013

**If you are looking for the PLS Nature Walk Reveal blog hop - CLICK HERE!**  We had such a wonderful Easter holiday! It all started Saturday evening when we started to color the eggs. Charlotte was absolutely amazed by the entire process. Of course the best part of the holiday was Easter morning when Charlotte woke up to see all of the goodies the Easter Bunny had left her.

We went to my parent's house and had a little egg hunt indoors (it was so nasty outside), played with bubbles, did a few easter crafts, and ate a delicious easter dinner.

Thanks for stopping by!
I hope everyone had just as wonderful of an Easter as we did!

Party Girl 8.5x11 Layout (...and a weekend recap)

This layout actually started as a 12x12 page....
It was one of those layouts that I worked on for several hours and just ended up hating. This morning, I ripped it apart and started fresh with a 8.5x11 base. I love the outcome! I especially enjoyed putting together the little wood veneer circles.
Supplies Used: My Girl 6x6 Pad by My Minds Eye, Winter Wonderland Layered Stickers by My Minds Eye, Flakes 12X12 Winter Wonderland Paper by My Minds Eye, Linen Paper - Memoir By Studio Calico, Wood Veneer Circles by Studio Calico, Amy Locurto Printed Party bag by Pebbles, Pretty Little Studio Word Flashcards - Birthday Party, My Minds Eye Enamel Dots, American Crafts Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Printed Chipboard Shape, My Minds Eye Winter Wonderland Washi Tape, Glitz Design Bokeh Washi Tape

The hubby and I had a great little romantic getaway. We spent our weekend at the beach (though it's still a little to cold to go frolicking in the water). It was wonderful falling asleep to the sound of waves, going out to eat at fancy restaurants, and all in all - just enjoying each other's company. Can't I go back there? These pending errands that I need to run are getting me down!

Thanks for reading!

The Never Ending Vortex of Essays and Exams

 

Oh, woe is me! The above picture of my daughter pretty much says it all. I feel like I am behind bars - though I must admit I'm not smiling nearly as much as she is. My days are filled with writing essay after essay and studying for exams. It will all be worth it in the end but I miss my days of having almost every hour of the day dedicated to my daughter and scrapbooking. I do hope everyone understands my lack of blogging. I'm hoping that now that I'm getting use to college life - perhaps I can fit more blogging and crafting into my life. We'll see. :)

Busy As Bees

We have been a little group of busy bees these past few days.

Saturday night was date night for the hubby and I. We were finally able to go to the movies and see Ted. The movie was filled with jokes about farts and other crude things that some may consider inappropriate. It was hilarious! I especially loved the Thunder Buddy song. Before the movie we grabbed a bite to eat at one of my hubby's favorite restaurants - Buffalo Wild Wing. This restaurant just happens to be right next to the local scrapbook store so I was more than happy with his choice. This lucky girl was able to buy plenty of pretty papers to play around with!

 

 On Sunday we had a family picnic/reunion. It was great catching up with people we haven't seen in a while and Charlotte really enjoyed all the attention. She also enjoyed playing outside. She just loves the outdoors. Mommy loves being able to capture photos of her being mischievous!

Today we went to Ocean Breeze water park in celebration of one of Charlotte's cousin's birthdays. Charlotte is not the least bit of a water bug. She hates it! I had my hands full at first. The most she seemed to want to do is play with a tiny puddle of water that was in the middle of the cement. She didn't want to step foot near the pool. Towards the end of the day, however, she got a little more comfortable. She slid down a few slides (in grandma's lap), rode on the lazy river, and even sat in the pool with me. I think the next time we go - she will be more then ready!

Toodles!

A simple 4th of July

I hope everyone had a happy 4th of July! Ours was very relaxing. This year we just didn't feel like going out and beating the crowds at the local parades, fireworks, or carnival. We decided to just have a simple little cookout at home with a few friends, family, and store bought fireworks. It was fun and not the least bit stressful. Exactly what we had in mind.

What happeend this weekend?

It was a rather eventful weekend for us. My best friend lives pretty far from me so we don't get to see each other often. However, she was down here for the weekend and ended up staying with us for a few days so on Saturday we decided to make a day of it and go to Chincoteague Island. We saw some ponies, relaxed on the beach, and enjoyed some ice cream at the Island Creamery. Good times were had! ;)

Of course Sunday was father's day. We did the usual going out to dinner (we ate at Smokey Bones) bit with the family. The best part of Father's Day (for me at least) is giving gifts to my hubby and father. I surprised my hubby with with a Xbox Kinect. He was very excited and did not expect such an expensive gift at all! My dad is a little harder to shop for. It seems that whatever he wants - he just goes out and buys himself. Needless to say - there is nothing ever on his 'wish list'. So this is what I decided to do for him...

 It's a little photo collage of Charlotte holding a sign that says "I heart pop pop!". The original plan was to have her holding the sign and smiling at the camera for one perfect photo but those of you who have toddlers know that nothing ever goes according to plan! She refused to hold the sign and just kept throwing it down. So in the end I ended up taking the partly decent photos and putting them together to get the point across. I framed it and gave it to him and he LOVED it!

Monday has been uneventful so far. Just a bunch cleaning, grocery shopping, and other boring grown up stuff. Toodles!

The Ups, The Downs, and All The Inbetweens....

As cliche as it may sound - my life has been a roller coaster ride. My emotions and expectations have been turning inside out and upside down. I've had fun and I've been scared. While I was on this metaphorical roller coaster, you may have noticed I wasn't around much (aside from my CMS DT post). Have no fear. I'm here to update you on everything. The ups, the downs, and everything in between (and I expect you to stick around because I am interesting enough....right? Not really but I'll still give this blogging thing a whirl.)

Those of you that have been reading know that I had decided to go back to school. My first day of class was a few weeks ago. A lot has happened since then. My life was completely dedicated to studying. Anatomy is no joke! I was enjoying myself though, being a student again and making a future for myself. You can imagine how completely devastated I was when I received an email from my school telling me that my loan check had been denied and that I had until the end of the day to pay for my entire tuition or my classes would be dropped.....
We just don't have the money to pay for school out of pocket. If we did - would I have asked for a loan in the first place? This is probably the fourth or fifth time this has happened to me. Money always gets in the way of me continuing my education. I think it goes without saying that after almost two weeks of studying my butt off....I am no longer a student. I cried. A LOT. In fact - I had a panic attack. Throwing up, unable to breath, sweating...the whole shebang. I'm still pretty upset about the entire ordeal but slowly making myself cope. I just admit I feel like just giving up and working as a waitress for the rest of my life but my husband is continuing to motivate me. I'm looking into other schooling options and hoping that they will work out. ...What a huge downward spiral, right?

As for the ups and inbetweens? Just small events here and there. A memorial day cookout with my family, dying my hair funky colors, and finger painting with my baby girl. My husband and I were lucky enough to take our little girl to the beach this weekend. It was actually her first time ever being at the beach. Surprisingly, none of us got burned (we are all very fair skinned) and we had fun! It was just what I needed to get my mind off of everything that's be going on lately. Charlotte seemed to enjoy herself although she was scared of the water.

As cheesy as it may sound - as long as I have these two in my life - I can get through anything. :)

Mother's Day and Other Life Updates

I nearly forgot to blog about Mother's Day. I hope all the mothers that are reading had a delightful day. I sure did! My husband took me out to lunch and showered me with gifts. Roses, a new necklace, scrapbook supplies....The best part of all? He surprised me by ordering me a Silhouette Cameo! I am a very happy girl.

Backtracking a little bit, on May 1st Charlotte got her first haircut. She handled it so much better then I thought she would. She didn't cry at all. Really...she seemed to enjoy it.

Pardon the giant kitty in the photo. His name is Chowder and he insisted on snuggling up right next to my books. My first day of classes is exactly a week from now and I have to admit I am freaking out a little bit. I have the majority of my textbooks and all the school supplies but I still feel unprepared. I guess it's because I just don't know what to expect. My stomach is in knots!

Off I go to play around with my SC. Hopefully I can figure it all out! I'm not exactly tech savvy. Nonetheless...I'm sure I'll be back with plenty of projects to share.