Wednesday, November 24, 2010

thankfulness



i wanted to do my thanksgiving day post on thanksgiving while i'm curled up on the couch enjoying my first real day off since october, drinking coffee, eating a cinnamon roll, watching the parade and scheming the pie baking for the afternoon. but...alas, the internet is still not working at the apartment so i'm posting early!

this has been a year of up's and down's, sometimes more down's than up's but it's ok. i am thankful that i have made some changes that really have helped me realize who i am. it's been difficult but i feel like i've really been able to grow up a lot in the last year.

mostly, i am thankful for the people in my life. they have supported me, carried me, listened to me, made me laugh when i wanted to cry, let me cry if i needed to and made me feel like i'm not alone when things are rough or great. i really miss my family. it's tougher than i thought it would be to move and to leave my parents in memphis. but at the same time i think it's given me some perspective on what my own dreams and my own goals are. i miss my friends in memphis but am thankful for their love and support that i feel through the internet! god bless facebook and twitter, right!?

i am thankful for the blanket of snow that has covered the twin cities! this is the third snow that i've experienced up here so far which makes me so happy! i have long missed the changing of the seasons and the bite of a cold fall/winter. of course, this means that tomorrow is going to be -10...it's like the weather is making sure i know what i'm getting into! my sweet mom and dad are sending me some much-needed snow boots! i can't wait until they get here, then i won't have to worry so much about falling on my butt on the way to the bus stop!

i am thankful for a new life. new surroundings in a city i love. the love of people in my life and the weather. mostly, i am thankful for all of it. i'd write more but then i might make myself cry! so, instead of me making me cry...here is something my sweet nana wrote when i asked her to talk about thankfulness:

"Thanksgiving brings many memories of all those turkey dinners, trips to the grandparents and later trips to our children to celebrate the occasion. My reflections dwell more on what I am thankful for -- for the 54 years of marriage to my dear sweet husband with only regrets that we couldn't grown older together -- for the six wonderful children that this marriage produced and the six in-law children that they brought into this family -- followed by nine grandchildren and three spouses and one dear little great-granddaughter. They now number 25 - each one so dear to my heart. I am so truly blessed and deeply grateful for all that God has given me."

how's that for thankfulness? :D i love my nana! here's a great pic of my mom and her mom (my nana)
hope everyone has a fabulous thanksgiving!

honestly,

-e

Friday, November 19, 2010

Guest Post - Consider Lilies DIY Fall Wreath :D


laura is one of my long-time friends (part of a group of six of us we've called "the lakehouse girls" - we've been friends since high school) and i am so honored and thankful to have her post on my blog! she is such a cute and crafty mom of two (with a third on the way!) who has the coolest ideas about home decor, grace and family. please visit her blog considerlilies and her etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/considerlilies

and without further ado - here is her fabulous guest post!


DIY Fall Wreath

Hi there! My name is Laura and I am a wife (my favorite thing to be!), a mom to two of the greatest little kids ever, and a homemaker. I like to make stuff when I have time and you can keep up with all of that over at my blog, ConsiderLilies.

I am digging the ruffle trend I see everywhere these days, so when I decided to change out the wreath on the door for fall, ruffles seemed like the thing to do...

For starters, collect all of the items below. For the ruffles, I bought some colored felt and whipped them out on the sewing machine (this takes just a couple of minutes) to the desired length. (To make ruffles, set your sewing machine to the longest possible straight stitch setting. DON'T backstitch. When you're done, pull on the loose strings at the end and it will gather.)
Then start wrapping the wreath base in yarn (it will take less time if the yarn is thicker) and glue it with craft glue on the backside as you go.
After that, place your ruffles where you want them and glue them down in the back as well. Affix your little bird (I used straight pins) and you're done!
Thanks, Erin, for treating me to a little spot on your blog:). I'm feelin' honored! And happy fall to everyone!!!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

booo internet!

i swear, i get all geared up to be a great blogger and then the internet at my apartment all but completely craps out! it's soooooo frustrating. this is the third time that a technician will be coming out to see if they can fix it. i've decided that this is it! if they can't then i'm switching!

so, that said - sorry for the lack of posting! it's so annoying. i have a guest post by my dear friend laura of consider lillies (http://lauracatemann.blogspot.com/) all ready to go but i can't get the internet to work so i can't upload it! boo! i swear, it will get done this week!

i'm also still planning on opening up the etsy shop either this week or next week, depending on if i can take some time to go to a caribou coffee or something to hook up online. so annoying!

but in good news - got christmas music playing, experienced my first minnesotan snow! (it was a record breaker apparently!) so the ground is white, the music is going, i'm bundled up with a new hat and i looooooove this time of year! what's your favorite thing about the holidays?

honestly,

-e

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!


hey guys!

thanks for your votes yesterday on the logo. it really helped and i decided to go with the horizontal one (even made the brown a little lighter). the logo is part of my big announcement for the month of november! ya ready for it?

i am opening and etsy shop! it's not ready just yet but i wanted to go ahead and tell you about it with the hopes that maybe sharing the idea will keep me motivated to finish up the last bits of it! i am designing jewelry, clay creations, knitted creations and any other number of handmade crafts to sell on it and it will be called, you guessed it - simple nature!


i chose the name because i like the idea of handmade things harkening back to a different era that was more simplistic in nature. whenever i make things by hand i feel like i am really owning my creativity and that my creations are really a part of who i am. so, i am aiming to open the shop next week. you can check out the store (although it's empty right now!) at this link: simplenatureonline

check back next week and there will be stuff up! i will post about the opening of it next week as well! thanks so much and enjoy life!

honestly,

-e

Monday, November 8, 2010

logo design - which one do you like better?


hey guys, so, here is a logo i'm working on and i seriously can't decide which one i like better. do you have an opinion? (please ignore the odd white space issue with #1)

logo 1:


logo 2:


so, leave me a note and lemme know!

honestly,

-e

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Guest Post : The Reel Momma!

i have been truly blessed in my life to have wonderful friends! one of them is my dear friend lee ann from the reel family ( http://www.thereelfamilyblog.com/ ) - she's hilarious and amazing and i have had the sheer pleasure of knowing her since the 11th grade! she has agreed to do a guest post for this blog today. enjoy her candid thoughts on thankfulness and go visit her blog! you'll love it!


As a child I was lucky enough to meet an amazing group of girls that together as we grew up instead of growing apart we turned into dear friends. When Erin asked me to stop by for a visit at her home in cyberspace I was truly honored that she thought of me. Erin is one of those girls turned dear friend and I truly cannot remember life without her.

On daily basis you can find me over at The Reel Family Blog where our life revolves my attempts to battle a messy toddler and husband with my OCD cleaning habits and all that lies in between. We talk party planning, cooking and parenting as I entertain you with stories of my “all-boy” child and our attempts to navigate this great river called parenthood.

For me, parenthood was an “AHA” moment in truly understanding the depths of thankfulness. Sure, I have always been thankful of my many blessings. But, there is something about motherhood that for me was soul changing.

Waking up to each morning to pitter-patter of feet and a soft call for “Momma” overcomes me. I am overtaken with love and gratitude that I was chosen to be his Momma. It makes me thankful for each and every day I have been given. My heart now walks outside my body and love so much deeper.

My husband is the light of my life; he is my person. I have always loved him but now my love grows daily. Each day I swear I couldn’t love him more until I see him interact with our son or go about our daily partnership in this life we have made. To an outsider our daily world may seem mundane but together we tackle life. And, to me, there is nothing like it. There truly is nothing better than us.

And as crazy as it sounds it even makes me more thankful for my past. Hindsight is always 20/20 and I can look at my life and see how each path lead me to road I am on today. I found my person; he’s my perfect match, my soul mate. I found the job I was made for. I spent a lot of life chasing dreams of professionalism. Along the way I realized, work to me is nothing more than a means to pay the bills. I was made to be Craig’s wife and EJ’s momma. And when the world seems dark and life is heavy I try to focus on the reality that this is best times of my life thus far. I am thankful for each day, for each quiet morning in PJ’s with a cup of coffee and Sesame Street playing the background. I am thankful for the blessing my husband has given me by shouldering the weight of finances and working hard for us everyday. I am thankful for family, the one that made me and the one that I have made.

So as we embark on yet another Holiday season I find myself not thankful for things that I have in my life but the people. My friends, the old and the new, who without them my life would be so incomplete. My family who loves always and supports unconditionally. My husband, my best friend who makes me laugh and smile and loves me through raging hormones, childbirth, and both good and bad times. My son who taught me what love really is and reminded me who and what are really most important in life.

Monday, November 1, 2010

i am thankful for...

sitting around the campfire last night with my friends got me thinking about thankfulness. i guess that's a good thing considering what month is now upon us, huh?

well, i have some exciting stuff coming up this month on this blog!!

it's all about thankfulness.

i am very excited that some of my best friends are going to write a couple of guest blog posts for you lovely readers to soak up! some are going to be about crafts, others about traditions and some about thankfulness and what that means to them. i even hope to have a very special blog post from my most favorite woman (or maybe even two of them) ever!

i will also be doing another give-away this month so keep posted to win some fabulous goodies!

there may also be an exciting announcement coming up later this month that i can hardly wait to share with you guys but i really need to just be patient for a bit! so that's my november teaser! it's going to be a great month!!

and thanks to all who voted on my poll - looks like this dorkus is going to keep the blog more-or-less the same as it's been. much love to all!!

honestly,

-e

november already!?!?!?!?!

it's tough to believe, isn't it? it feels like yesterday should have been summer to me, although here in minnesota the temps are far from summer temps! i absolutely love the cooler weather here, and yes, i do know it's about to get a whole lot cooler and snowy! i'm excited, ready and a little apprehensive.

halloween was pretty uneventful for me this year - seems like that's been the trend for the past three years, sadly. three years ago i had a horrible bronchial infection which caused me to cancel my annual party, last year, well, that was the whole beginning of the divorce thing and i didn't really think a celebration was in order. this year, well, working seven days a week definitely lends itself to a bit of unpreparedness (that's so a word!) and having a tiny apartment kind of aids in the whole inability to throw a party! i guess i'll just look at these last three years of no-party-ness as preparation for a gigantic party next halloween! i literally cannot wait!

we went bowling on saturday night, i dressed as a modern day demeter (goddess of fertility) and my boyfriend was a modern day baccus (god of food and wine). it was pretty fun, i even almost broke 100 on my second game which cracks me up - but i still beat the boy so that's what matters! last night i got to tag along with my best friend, jill and meet a new friend, megan, who was amazing! we hung out at her house in the front yard, roasted marshmellows and handed out candy to little trick-or-treaters! it was fabulous! then we followed it up with a bonfire at jill's house with friends and family in attendance. i even got to see my friend, naja, who moved up here from memphis some years back.

well, it was amazing and i hope you had a great halloween! we are going bowling again tonight because we obviously like torture! have a wonderful first day of november and look for another update this afternoon about the month of november and this blog!

honestly,

-e