Life Lately

Hello friends! I hope you are all doing well! Things have been just so busy lately that blogging has taken more than just a back seat, it's just plain non-existent lately. I would love to blog a little more, Summer has finally arrived here in Cleveland and I want to do better at capturing these precious moments with my family. My goal is to start blogging at least once a week, lets hope that works out!   I am at that point that I don't know where to start up again so this post is going to be full of the most random thoughts as I try to find my way back to the blogging world.  

Remember back in January when I wanted 2013 to be all about balance? Well, that just went out the window. I have been SO busy with both Thirty-One Gifts and Origami Owl lately that I don't have much time left to breath. I am so blessed to have two successful business but its been almost a little too busy!  Busy doesn't even explain it!  April was full of parties, vendor events and team meetings so I am trying to say no to any more parties this month and focus on both my teams.  Just trying to keep life at a more manageable pace.  It was just starting to burn my whole family out and that is not what I want at all for my businesses. Jeff enjoyed a lot of one on one time with the kids but he too was getting a bit burned out.

As you can see, this is what happens when Daddy baby sits and Mommy is out at a party for the night.

Daddy needs a break too! The beauty of being a direct sales consultant is that when things get crazy, you can make your own schedule and get a handle on things quickly. Which is exactly what I am now trying to do right now.

So what HAVE we been up to lately?

{The Babies}

Nicholas is walking and growing up right before my eyes. He is less baby and more toddler and its just unbelievable. I love this little guy so much and the feelings are clearly mutual. Although my little guy has found a new independence with walking, he is still Momma's boy and won't let me out of his sight for a moment. He is such a fun loving little guy, he loves balls and animals, especially dogs. He is just so sweet!  He also has the sweetest little curls in the back of his head. I haven't even scheduled his first hair cut yet because I don't have the heart to cut those little baby curls. So he will be a little on the shaggy side until he starts looking more like an 80's rocker than a toddler. Nicholas has also been teething a lot lately, to a point where I spent more nights awake then sleeping. This conveniently happened right in the middle of the Origami Owl Mother's Day craziness and my sanity was just hanging by a thread most days. Thankfully he seems to be more comfortable and sleeping better.

Jillian is such a big girl! She is finally at a stage where I can leave her be for a few minutes and not have to worry about her hurting herself or her brother. I can go upstairs and take a shower and not have to worry. What a great feeling for any Momma! Of course I have to take the little man upstairs with me but at least it's one less child to worry about and there is finally more showering going on. One of these days I can shower at a reasonable pace during the day and without the stress of wondering what trouble my kids will get themselves into.   Jillian is still not potty trained yet which is concerning but we are slowly taking baby steps in that department. It's not that she doesn't know how, she just too stubborn and doesn't want to be bothered with it. She is so like her Momma, hates being told to do something and has to do it on her time when she is ready. Oh boy, are we in trouble!  Jillian is going to pre-school in September so potty training is no longer going to be an option but a necessity very soon.   I am trying not to stress out about it and hopefully it all works out in time.  One thing I have learned that now that I am a SAHM is that Jillian doesn't see other kids going on the potty so there is no incentive for her to be a "big girl". We have tried everything to encourage her and she is just so not impressed. Stickers, new toys, extra privileges.....doesn't care. She doesn't want to be bothered with any of it.   Although we have been fighting the potty training battle lately, my little princess has been so sweet lately and too has been going through a but of a Momma's girl phase. I am so blessed to have two wonderful babies to spend my days with!

{The House}

Despite of being very busy, I have actually accomplished two house projects that I have been wanting to do.   A photo wall and my Mommy Command Center.   I really hope to do posts on each of these items but for now will just give you a sneak peek. My photo wall is still a work in progress, I need to order a few more prints and possibly change out a few frames but its up and I love it!

The second house project is my Mommy Command Center.   With all my parties and vendor events with Thirty-One and Origami Owl, the kids activities and appointments and other random events going on, this command center has helped us out tremendously. It is by far my most favorite thing in the house right now.  It also has a white board where I want to start using for menu planing.

So that is pretty much it, I feel like I am just trying to survive each day. I would love to start going to bed earlier because I have been so tired lately but night time is the only time I get anything done and find myself awake until 11:30. I am just plain exhausted in the morning then when my kids get up Please tell me I am not alone here. Any suggestions?

I hope you are all doing well, for those who have stuck around, thank you! I don't want to give up the blog, it will always be a part of me like it has been for years. I am just living life more lately than writing about it.

Love & Marriage: In The Beginning

Hello friends and Happy Monday!  I hope you all had a great weekend, the weather actually warmed up here in Cleveland and we enjoyed some time outside.  It was wonderful, the Winter just didn't seem to want to leave us this year! 

To all of you still reading my blog, thank you!  It's been busy here and again, blogging seems to be taking a back seat to pretty much everything these days.   However, I really wanted to participate in the Love and Marriage series that a few of my long time favorite bloggers have put together.  I feel that focusing on a strong marriage is so important, especially with kids, and I thought it would be fun to write a few posts about Jeff and I.  After all, Jeff and I were the focus of this blog in the very beginning!

 

The first post in the Love and Marriage series is all about how you began as a couple and to share your history.  I have talked a little bit on the blog about how Jeff and I met but wanted to give you in the depth scoop for those of you who may not know! 

 

Jeff and I met in the Fall of 2000.  I was 26 and he was 27.  I had just left a two year job with Ernst and Young that involved a hectic daily commute to downtown Cleveland and a lot of client travel to other areas of the country. I was really looking forward to a job where there was little travel and I didn't have to pay every day to park!!!  I was also entering a time in my life where I wanted to be more settled.  I enjoyed my early twenties as a new college grad and loved the lifestyle as a single, career gal.  I spent a lot of time shopping and hanging out with friends and felt myself finally growing up and longing for a more simpler lifestyle.   I decided to leave my job at Ernst & Young and was hired by Progressive Insurance as a Corporate Accountant.   I was really looking forward to a new beginning in my career with a new company. Little did I know that it would also be a new chapter in my life for other reasons!

The first day of my new job, my co-worker took me on a tour of the building and introduced me to all of the individuals that I would be working with.  One of those people that I was introduced to was Jeff!  I specifically remember meeting Jeff that day.  He was the total package: good-looking, smart and successful.  I thought he was simply adorable and remember looking at the picture of the baby girl on his desk.  I also found myself looking for a wedding ring on his hand as he shook mine, hoping the baby girl was not his.  Sure enough, no wedding ring and I later found out that the baby was his new niece.  The funny thing was, I already had a boyfriend so I was surprised that I was so drawn to my new co-worker anyway.
 

Over the next few months, I had gotten to know several of my co-workers.  There were a group of us who were unmarried, in our twenties, and enjoyed going out for happy hour after a long work week on Friday's.  Jeff would often be a part of that group and I got to know him a bit through working together and at happy hour.  I found myself becoming more and more interested in him.  It also helped that my current relationship was not going well at all and it was only a matter of time before I decided to end it.  Looking forward to living the life of a single girl again, I focused on my career and renting an apartment with my sister who had recently graduated from college.

 

A few weeks after breaking up with my boyfriend, Jeff had stopped by my cubicle to chit chat like he normally would and out of the blue asked "Can I take you to dinner this weekend?"  I was completely blown away, so shocked that I asked "What?"  Not that I hadn't heard him, it was just my natural reaction of both shock and disbelief.  So he repeated himself and asked me again.  Little did I know that he had been interested in me too and was just waiting for me to break up with my boyfriend.  To this day, Jeff still gives me a hard time that I made him ask me out twice.   He was so nervous, asking me the first time was hard enough!  He told me that he thought I was buying time to come up with an excuse to turn him down which was so not the case!  Ha!

 

 

Jeff and I had a wonderful first date and were together ever since.  We both shared the love of Cleveland sports, trying out new bars and restaurants, skiing and traveling. This is a picture of Jeff and I at a rooftop bar on top of the Palm's Casino in Las Vegas.  We loved traveling together and spent a lot of time planning fun little trips for us to take.  Jeff and I also shared similar values and how important our families were to us.  Needless to say, Jeff and I had a wonderful time dating.  A little too much fun.  We dated for almost four years before we FINALLY got engaged on my 30th birthday in 2004. 

Jeff and I were married on August 27th 2005.  It was a long time coming but so worth the wait!!!  It's hard to believe we will be celebrating 8 years of marriage this year.    Life with two kids is crazy but wonderful!  Marrying Jeff has literally made all of my dreams come true.  A few of my favorite memories of our marriage so far is building our dream home in 2007,

the birth of our daughter, Jillian, in 2009 after three years of infertility,

and the birth of our son Nicholas in 2012.

 

I am living the life I have always dreamed of.  Although life does not always go according to plan, I can truly appreciate how everything came together in God's time.

If you are interested in participating in this blogging series of Love and Marriage, please visit here to link up.

Have a wonderful week! 

 
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Easy Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

Hi Friends, did you all have a nice weekend?  We had some beautiful Spring-like weather here on Sunday and were able to open the windows to air out the house for a few hours.  It was heavenly and really got me in the mood for what was to come.  We also walked around the neighborhood all after noon catching up with the neighbors and getting some exercise.  It felt so good to be outside!!! 

 

On Friday, I made one of my family's "go to" meals for Lent - Home made Macaroni and Cheese.  This meal is the ultimate in comfort food and perfect during the Winter or for any Friday during the Lenten season.  It is also SO good and really easy too!

 



 1 lb Elbow Macaroni
1/2 Cup Chopped Onion

1/2 Cup Melted Butter

4 Tablespoons Flour
1 Teaspoon Salt
4 Cups Milk
2/3 lb Velveeta
Deep Dish Pan

 

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook your Elbow Macaroni el Dente, drain, and set aside.  While the macaroni is cooking, saute butter and onions until lightly brown in a deep dish pan on stove top.  Lower heat if needed.  To make your cheese sauce, slowly add milk, salt and flour to the browned onions.  Add the Velveeta cheese by cutting into strips for easy melting .  Stir thoroughly and often so the cheese sauce does not burn or stick to the bottom of the pan.  I will often use a whisk to stir the sauce to keep the flour from clumping.  Grease a 9x13 glass casserole dish and add your pasta.  Then add your cheese sauce over the pasta, stir thoroughly.  Bake for 20-30 minutes until you see your casserole bubbling in the middle. 

 

Enjoy!!!
 
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Origami Owl Giveaway

I am so excited to be teaming up today with Sheaffer over at Pinterest Told Me to Blog for an Origami Owl giveaway!  As you know, I signed up two weeks ago to sell Origami Owl and I have been blown away by the positive response that I have received so far.  Origami Owl is one amazing company and everyone can't seem to get enough of these beautiful Living Lockets and Tags!  I have been having a blast creating beautiful lockets for people and would love to help you create one to with a $40 Gift Certificate.  Head on over to Pinterest Told Me To to enter!  Don't forget to check out my new blog Hoot Mama Lockets to follow my journey as an Origami Owl Independent Desginer.

 

Please contact me at hootmamalockets@yahoo.com to Create a Living Locket, Host a Jewelry Bar Party or Join Origami Owl and become an Independent Designer!

 
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My Favorite Make-Up Products

Hello friends, I hope you all had a great weekend!  I thought it would be fun to talk about make-up today and wanted to share with you my favorite make-up products.  Even though I stay at home with my kids, I always try to at least put on my make up at some point during the day.  It just makes me feel a little more put together even though the only people that see me love me all the same without makeup!

 

You all know that when I find something I love I get so excited to share it with all of you! Favorites are more fun when you share them!  Here are some fun beauty products that I love and use everyday.  I would be lost without a few of these!

 

{Favorite Make-Up Products}

I am in love lately with Revlon's Lip Butters! They are the perfect combination of lipstick and lipgloss. You may have even seen this picture on Pinterest at on time or another.

Clearly I am not the only one that likes them!

I have also been wanting to try Maybelliene's new Color Whisper. Have you tried this new product yet? It looks to be quite similar to the Lip Butters.




I just recently bought the Pore Professional for the first time this year and I am in love! I have large pores on my cheek area and it does an amazing job as a makeup primer camouflaging them! It's a little on the pricey side at $30 a tube so I try to use it sparingly on day's that I plan on leaving the house.


Speaking of primer, I love MAC's Painterly as an eyeshadow base. My eyelids have a tendency to get a little oily and this product really sets the shadow to your eyes.


I have blogged about Make Up Forever Mat Velvet+ foundation and I still love it! I wear it under my most favorite make up product ever....



MAC's Studio Fix! I have used this product for years. I have tried other powders and loose minerals and I always go back. This is an amazing product! You can use it for more heavy coverage by using the sponge provided or lightly dust it on with a kabuki brush for light coverage.
So these are a few of my favorite make-up products that I couldn't live without. I would love to hear if you use any of these or what your favorites are!

Anyone else looking forward to the Bachelor tonight?  It's my favorite day of the week!  Have a great day!  

 

 

   
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