Menus

These are a little different than the Menus I usually make. I love them. They lay length wise across the plate and are 4" x 9.25". Remember the very detailed invitations? They match those :)

Thanks To Teren!

Teren had us over last night to let the kids play, watch Rio and for us to drink some wine and relax. I had such a great time chatting with my beautiful friends whom I miss so much (days fly by so fast!)...Thanks Teren for the adorable set up, going the extra mile for the kids, letting us ransack your house and for your love. Let's do it again soon!

Week # 2

We had a bright and early game this weekend. Had to be at the field at 7:30...yuck! Isabella is getting the hang of this soccer game and is improving in her defense. It is so much fun to watch her really go at it. She even pushed the 'turbo' button a few times and ran faster than I have seen her run.

It is really bugging me not to be able to take action photos. I am not use to the delay that little cameras have. BUT, with the delay I captured that totally cute picture of the Coach patting Isabella's head. I was surprised to see it :)

GO ROCKERS!

How We Roll

More of how "Vincent" rolls... Last week we meet Lauren and the boys at the park. No sand toys, so this genius used his boots as shovels and moved the sand back and forth. He was covered from head to toe in sand and straight to the bath he went when we got home! 
When we go to Soccer practice, I usually brings along snacks and the iPad. Since it is late, he is usually tired and this keeps him entertained and resting. Not sure if that makes me a bad Mom for not having him run around all over the park? But honestly, I don't want to chase him.























































It is hard to sprint forward and then run backward!

One tired, sweaty soccer girl!

We LOVE LA!

We finally made it down to the stadium for one of the last home games of the season. With the way the kids reacted, I wish we would have gone earlier.

The Dodger boys are hitting so much better, and I  must accredit that somewhat to their new Hitting Coach. He is wonderful and the kids LOVED seeing him in uniform. We had AWESOME seats (thanks Popi for the hook up!) and it was a blast to see Vincent yelling "Boooooo" and "Jerry, Jerry" and eating his first Dodger dog. Isabella was just as big a cheerleader and said a few funny things throughout the night like it was "very sad that Uncle David couldn't play!" and "Uncle David's batters AREN'T hitting!".

We will be sure to make it to many more games next season! We almost got to meet Matt Kemp...as we were coaching Vincent in the car to ask Uncle David, "Where's Matty?!"...but he disappeared on us. Next time!

I am also a little disappointed that I didn't have my good camera (flash still broken). These pictures would have been SO MUCH BETTER. But, they are our memories, none the less!

Kitchen - 31 Days to Clean

I have finished my 31 days to clean Kitchen portion. It was 8 days, but a few things I had already done and didn't need much work. I had to:

1. Clean out and scrub refrigerator and freezer. Wash exteriors.
2. Dust tops of refrigerator, cabinets and shelves. Clean and shine outside of cabinets.
3. Clean oven and microwave. Wash exteriors.
4. Wash window treatments and/or clean blinds. Wash insides of windows.
5. Clean out and organize all cabinets.
6. Clean out and organize pantry.
7. Clean out and organize all drawers
8. Sweep, Vacuum and mop floors. Add fresh flowers to brighten your day. 

Not too long ago I had organized the pantry and organized all my cabinets, so that didn't take much work. However, when I dusted the top of my cabinets there was dust all in my hair (ewww!). My oven looks brand new inside - it was also very gross.  I added a picture of our 'command central' with our calendar, soccer schedule, any pertinent schoolwork (as you can see Bella got 100% on her first spelling/dictation test), Dodger and UCLA schedules. Right there is also my coupon binder, Isabella's homework folder and our household binder. 

I am a very happy camper! I love my kitchen and am lucky to have it. Now moving on to the Living Room :)

Printing this...

...and sharing it with my kids over and over!

# 8 !

Little number 8 played her heart out today. She was so beat from her first soccer game, but had a blast and a huge cheering section (of course!)...

We are so proud of her. She has lots to learn, but for her first time playing, did really well. The family came over afterward for lunch and the two kids then went home with Grammy Alice & Papa Joe. Chris and I just got back from having some yummy sushi and looking forward to a quiet night!

Have a great weekend y'all!

31 days to clean

I started this new book/journey called: 31 days to clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way. Each day you are encouraged with some thoughts and ideas, and you put those ideas to action.

After each days reading, the two challenges are:

• The Mary Challenge -Something you do that encourages/engages your heart 
• The Martha Challenge – Specific cleaning tasks 

Day # 1 was "Why Clean". The Mary challenge was to identify specific reasons you want to make your home a haven and then to complete a mission statement based on those reasons.

This is what I came up with: To be clean, organized and efficient in order to prosper a calm, enriching and loving home life/living environment for my family that is full of love and positive energy.

One of the main reasons I wrote this is because I realize that if my home is totally out of organization and in chaos then I am also in chaos. This leads to me being short with my children and my husband. So if I can catch that now and continue to keep clean and organized, then I will be able to prosper a calm and loving environment.

Day # 2 was about women being created to give life. The specific Martha challenge today was to clean out and scrub down the refridgerator and freezer.

I did this along with getting the pantry back into organization.

 

I will try to keep you updated on the 31 days and my progress. If you want to check it out yourself, it is only $4.99 to download the e-book. www.31daystoclean.com.

Swamped

I have been swamped by this massive invitation job. You can't tell from the pictures, but these are 6x9 pocket fold invitations. EVERYTHING had at least 5 layers. The outside mailing labels were even 4 layers. The pocket held 6 inserts (this was the sample, so it was missing the breakfast insert which was the smallest). The RSVP's all had to be filled in with the corresponding number of seats. The envelopes (Mailing and RSVP) all included separate lining that needed to be glued in. Of course, crystals on the front monogram. Mind you I print and cut everything myself. Oh and she started out with 145 and it turned to 165 (which meant materials for 20 had to be reordered, printed, etc, etc.).

BUT I just adore these invitations and am very proud of them. I know I didn't charge enough if you broke it down into hourly (I never do); they were a labor of love. And once again, thank God for my Mom and Dad (he even got to help!) and Alice! I couldn't have done it without them.

Now I move on to the programs and menus. I am also the coordinator, so I will be doing the time line and vendor packets here shortly. 





































I had another invitation job for an 18th birthday party that I completed. I didn't get pictures of those, but the Mom just ordered 10, possibly 20, more. I will post those when I get them done!

Soccer Pictures

This morning we had Soccer pictures bright and early. I just love this little girl (Those top two teeth are coming out shortly)!

Isabella
#8
Team: The Rockers
 

10 Things To Smile About

What, how is it September ALREADY?!

1. FIRST GRADE
2. Family time and trip to the Desert
3. Girl Scouts (Daisy Troop # 9004)
4. Soccer - and the determination of my little girl
5. Medicine - and being on the mend soon!
6. My Husband
7. Meeting Bella Thorne 
8. Pinterest - and all things crafty
9. The Help book
10. Getting use to our new schedule