Sunday, December 26, 2010

VIDEO: Christmas Stories :)

The other day, my friend Christine aka 'Listgirl', also fellow designer at Little Dreamer Designs, posted these Christmas videos on her blog and I thought they were very entertaining that I just had to share!! It's sort of a THEN and NOW rendition of the nativity story and the birth of Jesus. Enjoy!







post signature

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Lunar Eclipse

Last night, I had THE WORST migraine headache ever. :( It hit me so hard that I had to vomit to feel better. I barely could move or talk or open my eyes. Rarely does it ever get this extreme, but maybe after being so busy this past week and over the weekend, I had to suffer the consequence somehow and so it came with a massive headache that left me feeling like I got hit by a mack truck. Ugh... Fortunately, I feel so much better this morning after knocking out early last night while everyone else got to enjoy the lunar eclipse that appeared shortly after midnight....

I missed out on it, but I do recall hearing my husband outside our deck lugging his tripod and camera in hand and hearing him say, "WHOAHHHHHHHH, THAT'S COOL!" I'm not sure if I was dreaming or awake, but I remember him barging in our bedroom turning on all the lights that my eyes hurt, to show me the shot he took. I couldn't really see because my vision was blurred, but I know I must of said, "Oh, that's nice...." and went back to sleep. But, now that I'm awake and had my morning cup of joe, I went on Facebook and saw that he actually took a REALLY great photo of the eclipse. Studies say that the last time this occurred was in 1638. Dude, that is like over 3 centuries ago....

So, without further ado... Just thought I'd share the photo that was took last night by my other half :) Enjoy!




post signature

Monday, December 13, 2010

Welcome Baby Ava :)

Hello,

Over the weekend, my sister gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Ava!! She was born 12/12/10 @ 1:22 pm, weighing 7 lbs 5 oz + 21 inches long :)  I am so blessed to be an Auntie to another lovely niece... I say this because this is their 4th daughter and not sure if they are thinking of having any more unless they are feeling up to trying one LAST time for a boy... Either way, they are so happy to receive another blessing into their family of all princesses :)

The morning of, my family and I were planning to attend the annual Christmas celebration at our church when I get a call around 6 am in the morning that my sister's water broke. So thankfully, it was on a weekend where I had my husband home to watch the boys. As soon as I got there she was dilated at 5 cm and within a few hours, it was time for her to push. Being able to witness such a miracle of life other than my own birth experience, is such an incredible feeling of awe and amazement of this new life being brought into the world. It's something that I don't think anyone can humanly explain which only gives us no other explanation, but that it is a gift and a blessing from God.

Welcome my beautiful niece, baby Ava Go <3

 Hello, my little love bug!

 Congratulations to my sister + BIL, Desma and Junior

 Sleeping Beauty

Holding a precious gift, fresh from heaven...


post signature

Thursday, December 9, 2010

[DIY Holiday Project] Paper Christmas Tree

Today I have a little holiday craft project to share with you! This one is basically the same technique I used when I created my Christmas Wreath last year, using the same scrapbook paper collection--Sweet Dreams Holiday Avenue by My Mind's Eye. I just adore the glittery + textured feel and gorgeous colors + designs of these papers, but you can use any of your favorite scrapbook papers as you like. This project was inspired by a post I read here and here, from Crate Paper on their blog, but also because I wanted to create these trees to coordinate with the holiday wreath that I mentioned above.

Anyways, here are a few photos of what I did and the final result only took me a little over an hour, but could take longer depending on the size of your tree cone. I also had a lot of extra pre-cut and stapled papers from last year, so that really helped keep this project shorter than usual. Either way, be sure to take your time and have fun with it!

DIY: Paper Christmas Tree

Supplies Needed:
  • Craft or Foam Tree Cones
  • Patterned Cardstock cut into strips (sizes between 1" x 4" inch to 1" x 5" inch), then ends stapled together
  • Hot Glue Gun


 1. This step I already had these pre-cut and stapled from the previous year, but what it really is are 1" x 5" strips of patterned paper with ends stapled together.


 2. Using your hot glue gun, add a strip of glue to the stapled edges. Be careful because when pressing these down, it can be too hot too touch. Also, you will probably need to hold them down for 10-15 seconds at a time for it to really settle and stick.


 3. Begin adhering the strips to the cone about 1.5 to 2 inches above the bottom edge. Do this by overlapping the corners, just a little tiny bit, all around until you come full circle. After that, for each layer move up 1/2 to 3/4 an inch.


 4. This first layer makes it hard for the cone to stand steady on its own, so I slightly bended the strips to help the cone lay flat on the surface. You may do this to the rest of the strips, but I found that it didn't quite look right to me, so it's really your preference.


5. Once you reach the very top, the tip of the cone is left uncovered. What I did was punch out a circle of similar size or you can cut it out with scissors and glue that on. The glittered snowflake I used was actually an ornament off my tree. :) But, you can think up your own tree topper ideas such as a paper punched star or circle w/your monogram initials, a small pretty bow or what have you...

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

6 Years Ago...

Our Story | Using Sweet Talk


...I gave birth to my first child, Josiah. In exactly one week, he will be turing 6 years old. Sometimes I don't realize how fast time goes by until moments like this where year after year, we celebrate another birthday... or when suddenly they reach a new milestone... or when they start pondering answers to questions such as "Mommy, were you happy to hold me when I was born?" The moment he said these words, I knew I had to scrap a page about it because it was one of those moments that made my heart ache with a realization that he wanted the assurance of my love for him and if his life was important to me... 


I know that it doesn't have to do with any lack of love or affection because there is not a day that goes by that we don't spend time together and express love for each other. But, I do recall a conversation we had previously about the physical pain that a mother goes through when giving birth to a child because he was asking so many questions about how a baby is born (Don't worry, no graphic details were shared, lol. Both my sisters are pregnant at the moment, so it sparked a little a lot of curiosity). When I told him that I felt like dying from the excruciating pain, he almost looked like he was heartbroken as his eyes slightly filled with tears and he just held on to me so tightly. I don't know what went on in his mind, but maybe he felt like his birth caused me so much pain that he must of thought he did something wrong. One thing he said was, "Mommy, I don't want anything bad to happen to you." , which I understand that out of his love for me, he was feeling a little remorseful of what I had gone through to give birth. Of course, I assured him that I can NEVER ever say that it wasn't worth it because he means EVERYTHING to me and though as painful as it was, he has brought me SO much joy to my life and a love that I never knew.


Everyday since then, I've thought about his question and it really touches my heart that we  were able to talk about it and hopefully he will always remember how happy I was that day he was born, that he will always be a gift to me, and that he is worth it all then, now, and always...



post signature