Weekend Fun

   On Saturday my husband and I finally got to have a grown up fun day! My mom came over and watched Sadie all day for us! (It was the longest we have ever left her)  We headed out with my husbands parents and made our way down to the little towns of Fairmount and Gas City, Indiana. People flock to these cities for two reasons around this time of year because they love two things. James Dean and cars.

   James Dean grew up in the tiny town of Fairmount (as did the creator of Garfield). And that little town sure is proud of one of their most well known residents! People come from all over the world to visit during the James Dean Festival. Lets keep it real, he was a total hottie. But, the main reason we made the 2 hour drive was to check out all of the cars! My husband and father in law are total car  dudes and it was fun to see them all excited!

This Big Bertha was my favorite.

 

The orange Chevy had burlap seats. The interior was awesome!

There was a handful of pink cars. This one was the prettiest!

     We spent 6 hours walking around and drooling about cars that are way out of our price budgets. There were thousands of them! It is cool because they all bounce back and forth between the cars shows in Fairmount and near by Gas City, which is why people also refer to this festival as the James Dean Run. I can now openly admit that I have an obsession with station wagons. Forget a mini van, I would gladly drive a Vista Cruiser.

   I think that the coolest thing that I got to see during our trip was the old Fairmount High School. James Dean graduated from there in 1949. It is a GORGEOUS building! Unfortunately the backside of if collapsed in July of 2013, so there is little hope of being able to restore it. However, a few years a go the stage original stage that James Dean performed on was removed from the building. There was a fundraiser happening during the festival so that the stage could be restored.

Fairmount High School. It bums me out to see cool old buildings falling apart.

   We had a wonderful Saturday! We need to get out and have grown up fun more often. However, I could not wait to get back to my little. We sure  missed hanging out with her! But, I know she had a blast hanging out with Grandma while we were gone.

My Picky Drinker

   When I found out that I was pregnant I decided that I wanted to give breastfeeding a try. My husband agreed, so when Sadie was born we hopped on the breastfeeding train and never looked back. Thankfully we got lucky. It turns out I am a milk machine AND Sadie fed like a pro. When Sadie was 2 months old school started. I had to go to campus once a week for 3 hours which meant 2 Hottie was on baby duty all by himself. That also meant that he had to bottle feed her. According to him bottle feeding turned into a circus act of sorts.

Milk coma! I sure do miss that squishy brand new baby.

   As weeks went by we came to that conclusion that bottles were not here thing. Which wasn't a big deal because I did not leave her much. When she became big enough to introduce water/juice my mom got her a sippy cup. You know, the old school kind with the little spout on it. She wanted nothing to do with it! So, I broke down and got her a cup with a straw. She LOVED it. She drank like a pro from her favorite fox cup for weeks. And then after much abuse it sprung a leak.

The fox cup that started it all. (Cup was purchased at Target)

  After looking around I finally decided to break down and get her a Munchkin Click Lock Flip Straw Cup. And it was wonderful! I loved it because it did not leak and the straw flips down so it doesn't get funky while it is not being used. Sadie loved it because it had a straw and it was brightly colored. She had a love affair with these cups up until a couple of weeks ago...

   She has not decided like she likes drinking out of the daddy-man's "big boy" cups and mama's water bottle. She would go into freak out mode if we suggested she use her usual cup with the straw. I cringed when she would drink out of our cups because it was super messy and usually resulted in a change of clothes. Then I remembered that she had a Wow Cup in the cupboard.

   What is a Wow Cup? It is a magical cup (with a lid) that allows your little to drink from it (like a regular cup) and not spill or make a total mess! My Aunt bought it for her back in May. She did not have much interest in it at first. But now that she thinks that she is really something when she drinks out of her Wow Cup. That poor cup has been used and abused lately and it has never leaked (nor does it have a scratch on it). I love it because it is super easy to clean and it makes her happy! I did just discover that Munchkin has their own version. It is called the Miracle 360 and it holds an ounce more than Sadie's beloved Wow Cup. I really want to get her one so we can compare them.
***This post was not sponsored by any companies mentioned. It is just for fun!***

Good Riddance Summer!

   Sayonara Summer! It's been real, but I am ready for you to leave. My memories of your 2014 visit will forever remind of one of those Sour Patch Kids commercials. However, you did things a little backwards. They started off sweet and then got sour. Our trip to Brown Country for my mother-in-law's surprise 50th Birthday weekend was a blast! We had so much fun celebrating with family and friends. And it was Sadie's first overnight trip which made things extra memorable. Then before we knew it Sadie's first birthday arrived. We celebrated her actual birthday with lunch at OG ( aka Olive Garden), a trip to Hobby Lobby (for party goodies), and we stopped at Whole Foods for a mini cupcake. It was a wonderful day, I didn't even cry!

Sadie at her Birthday lunch.

   Then things got sour. The next day my Dad had to make a trip to Chicago to see if the cancer treatments he had been receiving had worked. They didn't. He was told that he probably had two weeks to live. He made it two weeks and 2 days. Loosing him was sour. But during those last two weeks my family spent more time together than they have in the past ten years, which was pretty friggin' sweet.

Big Tom and his "Little Booger Head".

   So, like I said earlier sayonara Summer! The 2 Hottie's are MORE than ready for fall. I decorated our house two weeks ago for Halloween/Fall. Winter is my favorite season, but Fall is my favorite to decorate for. I live for visits to the pumpkin patch, Halloween costumes, candy corn, crunchy leaves, bon fires made by my pyromaniac husband, and the festivals!

I may have an obsession with the movie Hocus Pocus.

  Fall festival season officially kicks off for my little when we visit the Blueberry Festival. We love browsing the fall crafts and the blueberry donuts. Those donuts are worth waiting in line for half an hour. On Friday we went to Falloween at a near by high school. There were carnival rides, games, a garage sale, and loads of yummy food. Falloween is especially wonderful because majority of the money raised goes toward scholarships for students. In the past five years over $94,000 has been raised, which is pretty awesome. Next weekend Sadie gets to hang out with her Granny Ronald while mama and the daddy-man go down to James Dean Day's. 2 Hottie is pumped about the car show! I am excited to get out of changing diapers for a few hours. Happy Fall!

15 Months

   Little Sadie Laine turned 15  months old on the 12th! Holy moly, time really does fly when you are having fun. She is a silly little chick and we wouldn't trade her for the world. We made a trip to the doctor's office yesterday morning for her 15 month well visit. We did not get to see Dr. W because she is still out on medical leave. We did score big time though because we got to see Dr. D! He rocks. Have you ever noticed how desolate the waiting room is at 8:15 AM? Sadie made a friend while we were waiting, they loved looking at the fish tank together!

Sweet little explorer!

   Once the nice nurse called us back to the exam room the shenanigans started! Sadie attempted to do her best gymnastics moves when the nurse was measuring her. After a few minutes we determined that the little chick is 31.25 inches tall. And her noggin is 17.75 inches (she has a peanut head like her Da-Da). She weighs 21 pounds and 8.5 ounces. According to Dr. D she is a string bean just like the Daddy-Man, she is tall and skinny. Once Dr. D left the real fun began. It was time for SHOTS! God bless that poor nurse. Sadie kept trying to ninja kick her to keep from getting her two shots. Which resulted in me having to hold her down (not fun at all).

She LOVES (to try and eat) dandelions.

  Thankfully Sadie is a champ after she gets her shots. She never runs a fever or anything. We made a quick diaper run and then headed on home. She spent the rest of her afternoon napping, playing, snacking and sipping on chocolate milk. Once the Daddy-man got home from work we ate supper and went on a bike ride. We have an inStep Sierra bicycle trailer and Sadie LOVES it. She just kicks back and enjoys the wind blowing on her. We made a quick stop at the church down the road to snap a few photos! There is a big open area on the edge of a corn field and I couldn't resist stopping to snap a few photos.

Bossing the Daddy-man around.

Wannabe Junk Gypsy

   I am a total wannabe Junk Gypsy. My husband and I love watching that show, but unfortunately we have Dish and it is cray cray and that channel comes and goes. So, as a result I have been having Junk Gypsy withdrawls (and it has been making want to craft/create like crazy). If we ever hit the jackpot and become ridiculously rich we are totally building a huge house out in the sticks. And those two gals are totally coming to decorate the place for us.

   Until then, I have to decorate our  house with some help from my husband/baby daddy/assistant/carpenter, Scottie 2 Hottie. We were pretty busy this weekend because we finished up several projects around our house. 2 Hottie has been working on a new baby gate to keep Sadie away from the basement stairs. It is about 97% finished and it looks AMAZING. He made it out of wood from some pallets and we have about $10 into the entire thing. I plan on posting a photo once she is 100% completed.

   I also finished up a few projects. I have been working on a bench that my husband found in our basement. ***For those of you that don't know, we purchased our house from my husband's Aunt and Uncle (almost a year ago) and they left some stuff that they didn't want when they moved out. Which, is why we did not know there was a rad bench hiding beneath the basement stairs.*** I sanded the ol' gal then covered her in some pink paint left over from Sadie's lemonade stand. Then I painted her again with a coat of  jazzy teal color and gave her a light sanding to make her funky.

It totally reminds me of a bag of cotton candy!

   While Sadie was napping I remembered that we had a ratty old wooden screen door laying out back by our bon fire pit. Naturally, I went back there and rescued it. I ripped out the screen and gave it a good sanding, and then I gave it a light coat of that same teal paint that I used on the bench. After it dried I gave it another sanding to funk up the paint and then it got hung on the big blank and boring wall in the living room!

The plan is to hang mismatched framed photos inside of it.

   After this was hung up I realized that we are developing an obsession with doors. This screen door is the third one that we have used to decorate our house. Our second door is from a set of french doors that were abandoned out in front of my father-in-law's work. Of course he rescued them because he knew that I would use them for something! One of them is now a shelf above our basement stairs (his brother is in the garage waiting to be used).

   Our first ever door came from the local Habitat For Humanity Restore shop. It is tall and we think it is from an old school or church. After some Pinterest surfing we decided that it would make a perfect corner shelf. Our old house was only 600 sq ft, so we needed something that would not take up tons of space.

It is a terrible picture, but you get the idea.

Super Fun Weekend

   We had such a fun weekend! It started out with a sleep over at my house with my Aunt Pam and Cousin Presley (she is 8). They live two hours away and we do not get to hang out with them that often. They came into town early for my future sister-in-law’s bridal shower, which was on Saturday. Sadie had soooo much fun playing with Presley and eating pizza with her on Friday night. She got to stay up WAY past her bedtime, so she slept really well.

    Once every one was up on Saturday morning we made breakfast. And then Presley and Sadie played until it was time to get ready to go. The shower was really cute! It definitely reflected the personalities and lifestyle of my brother and his fiancé. They spend a lot of time outdoors and my brother is an avid hunter. The decorations were very rustic and reflected their interests. It made me even more excited for them and the upcoming wedding. They have been together for ten years so it has been a long time coming.

   Of course, I stressed over what to give them for their shower gift. I looked over their wedding registry a thousand times. Nothing really spoke to me. They have been together for years, and just built a house last year. After much thought I decided to make them something instead. I have a phobia of people getting multiples of whatever I have given them. I think it stems from the fact that my husband and I received four or five tents at our wedding shower (I think people forgot to have the cashier scan our registry list at check out).

   I ended up making them a bubble wreath. I have always thought they were adorable and I found a really easy tutorial (via Pinterest) on the Craftaholics Anonymous website (here is the link: http://www.craftaholicsanonymous.net/burlap-bubble-wreath-tutorial-easy). It only took me two trips to Hobby Lobby (on the hottest day of the year), an hour, and repeating the words “Seriously, Sadie?” about 158 time (she kept trying to steal my supplies). It actually turned out cute and it is already hanging in the happy couple’s house.

   After the shower my Aunt and Presley had to head home. So Sadie and I went home to wait for the Daddy-Man to get home from work. After some dinner we went into town with his parents to get ice cream. And then we came home to watch Michigan (our fav team) play their last game against Notre Dame (our hometown team). Sadie had a blast staying up past her bedtime (for the second day in a row) and running around the living-room yelling at the TV.

Reppin' the Wolverine's in her new headband (made by me). GO BLUE!

 

Sunday definitely turned into a Sunday Funday. After a quick trip to the grocery store, I was able to start refinishing an awesome bench that we discovered in our basement. And then Sadie’s (puppy) cousin Walter came over to play. Walter is Pete’s (my sister-in-law’s boyfriend) pit-bull. Sadie is obsessed with him because he actually pays attention to her. Daisy, our beagle, ignores her 95% of the time. Sadie was so tired that she was in bed by 6:45 pm. It was a GREAT weekend.

Kisses from Walter. Photo Cred: Aunt Tabi

Commercial watching and cuddles. Photo Cred: Aunt Tabi

Insta L-O-V-E

     I LOVE Instagram. I REALLY REALLY love Instagram. It started out as a way for me to keep up with family and friends that I don't get to see on a regular basis. Then Sadie Laine came along, and Instagram became the way to share her with her Uncle Gus and Auntie Sam Sam that live all the way down in Florida. And in the past few months it has become a place that fuels my shopping addiction for Sadie sized clothing and other baby decorations.

     We have discovered so many cool little shops via Instagram. Heck, Sadie has even been chosen to brand rep for two shops (Maddie Rae's Closet and Sara Ellie Bows). What is a brand rep? It is when shops send pretties (for free or at a discounted price) to us and I dress Sadie up and snap pictures of her in that shops goodies. In return I post those pictures and tag the shops to help spread the word about their products. And they get adorable photos to use on their social media outlets to show off their products. It has been a great experience and I have had to chance to "meet" some awesome mommas!

Sadie reppin' Sara Ellie's Pink Giltter Bow.

     Lastly, these awesome shops are always hosting amazing giveaways! Usually you have to repost a specific photo along with a specific hashtag to enter. I have been lucky enough to win a few of these giveaways. The latest giveaway trend on Instagram is the "round robin"/"giveaway trail"/"shop hop". It is where you complete a specific task and then follow the instructions to the next shop. I have seen these "round robin" giveaways have anywhere from 10-50 shops involved in them. Which rocks because that means there are 10-50 chances to win some cool stuff! I am happy to announce that our #fanclubpresident Trisha or "TT" from one of our favorite shops Beau Lis (@BEAU_LIS_ACCESSORIES on Instagram) is hosting her first "round robin" giveaway tonight. It runs from 6PM (EST) today (9/4/14) until 6PM (EST) tomorrow (9/5/14). Set your alarms and go enter!

Look for this photo at 6PM (EST) on @BEAU_LIS_ACCESSORIES Instagram account.