No regrets

So it's been a not-so-easy week for me, but it's been sweet too. The two-year-old of the house has been on a nap strike, and the momma of the house is a feeling a bit beaten down. But you know what? It's okay. That's what two-year-olds are supposed to do. I've just got to figure out what I'm supposed to do in response to help grow him into the best human he can be. Wishing you much rest this weekend!

Editing

I spent a heavenly 2.5 hours by myself at the coffee shop on Sunday afternoon. I carved the time out to plan my days. Right when I sat down (Did I mention I was by myself?) I kind of just meditated on what my focus should be... This is what I scrawled:

I want to be better. More present, More inspiring. Focussed. More involved in my life. This in turn should actually help to make my life easier and less complicated because the answer is to do less and be more.

I'm allowing stuff to get in the way of being ever-present. It's taking my time and zapping me of my patience, and I'm letting it happen. I'm a mom and a wife, a reader and a bargain-hunter, a small (okay, very small) business owner, friend, sister and daughter. These roles are all important and make me me, and I've been allowing them get a bit squeezed out. I need to edit (as the oh-so-cool Tim Gunn would say).

So as a result of my little planning session, I'll be trimming off the excess, simplifying, and trying to stay true to who I really am. So...

What's important in your life?

Are you allowing stuff to get in the way of being ever-present?

Do you need to edit?

Memorializing these Furry Babies

Look at this custom painting (It's our very first!) that just arrived in the mail:

Lara Harris is the uber-talented artist who created it for us. I was so very excited when I won a giveaway on her blog. I just really couldn't even believe it. And now that I get to see her work in person, I am even more in awe. She does paintings of many different subjects, but it was her work on dogs that just captivated me.

We chose to send her a photo of our sweet Miniature Schnauzers. They are no long with us, but they were our first babies after we were married and will always hold a special place in our hearts. Sherman, the chubby, oh-so-lovable, big guy, died while I was pregnant with my son. And Ruthie, that petite, spit-fire of a princess, was with us until a year and a half ago. I sent Lara our favorite photo of them in their playful prime:

And she captured their spirit so perfectly. Talent like this strikes me with awe.

I cannot wait to frame it and find the perfect spot to hang it in our home. What a wonderful way she's memorialized these precious pups for us. Thank you, Lara, so very much! To see more of her incredible work, visit Studio Lara and A Vintage Touch.

Meal Plan Monday

I enjoyed reading this article from SimpleBites when I came across it recently. It reminded me of reasons why I "like" to menu plan, and also offered some helpful tips. I especially like the suggestion to think about meals in categories. Let me know what you think.

For now, here's our week... It's a strange one, as my hubby has a late night/early AM work night, I have one night out and then a weekend event. It made me appreciate the planning process even more. Due to sitting down and planning, there will be no surprises (or at least fewer) and less of a chance to over-purchase at the grocery store. It's the little victories that make it all the more worthwhile.

Monday:

soft tacos

(with leftover ground meat from taco pockets which were a hit, even with the small peeps!)

Tuesday:

breakfast for dinner

Wednesday:

grilled chicken

spinach & strawberry salad

Thursday:

hot dogs

carrots & ranch

Friday/Saturday:

sandwiches perhaps

(It's just me and the little guy, so there won't be much cooking going on.)

Sunday:

out

What's cooking at your house?

Makin' Plans

{Loved this page from She... when I found it here.}

Confession: I haven't made my resolutions yet. True, I've been mulling them over. Quite a lot. They are swirling around in my head, but I've yet to put pen to paper. It is a big case of procrastination. I've been telling myself that I keep putting it off because I'm really taking it seriously this year. And that I just want to be completely sure I've settled on the right things. Well, no more excuses: I'm writing things down this weekend. I'm taking all the virtual goals and would-be-plans, and I'm making it official to myself. I had a sort-of-mini-epiphany this week while reading Steady Days (completely awesome book, by the way) that I'm not really leading my days the way I want to. I've been waiting until I've got my priorities in line. No more waiting. I need to make time to make a plan for my desired goals. Remember this bold statement? Yah, me too. Doin' something about it. I'm making time (even though there seems to not be any to spare), and taking some advice from It's Never too Late...

to make plans

Looking ahead takes you out of the daily grind.

Planning ahead brings hope.

Small plans first, with realistic goals.

Build confidence.

Then make bigger plans with bigger goals.

Always have plans.

If you've been procrastinating right along with me, it not too late. It's never too late, really. Today is just as good of a day as any other to set goals, make plans and get started. Who's with me?

Dreaming of... Mudrooms (again!)

Okay, so I'm a bit fixated on this type of space. (Remember back when I was caught dreaming about mudrooms awhile ago?) I just think it's the answer to all of my organizational issues. I've been searching around my 1500 square feet to find a nook to create a little slice of mudroom heaven, especially after finding a few more of these spaces to ogle at.

I think I need one! You?

Snow Day(S)!

{It may look ho-hum to most, but this is some major snow from where I come from!!}

It snowed like I've never seen here before, literally. We had tons of fun playing in it, but I have to say that I'm happy to see it melting away. My daughter missed 2.5 days of school, which was nice... But today we're back to the norm and that feels good too. I'm digging out of the piles (and piles) of laundry, nursing a cold, and working on prioritizing stuff. Why is it that things get so jumbled so very quickly. Prioritizing should be easy... What do you think?

Mini update: Okay, after writing this little post, I visited Simple Mom. Wonderful read related to setting priorities. (Thanks, Erika, for the head's up to this!)

Monday Meal Plan

{image... Doesn't this coordinate with my little space so nicely?}

It's a yummy week over here! If all goes as planned, this is what's on the menu:

Monday:

leftover pasta heart pasta

Tuesday:

grilled chicken

asparagus

Wednesday/Thursday:

white chili

kids don't care for this, so they are getting:

cheese quesadillas

Friday/Saturday:

taco pockets (so excited to try this fun little recipe!)

rice

corn salsa

Sunday:

out or leftovers

What are you thinking for the week?

Malbec Anyone?

{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}*

I'm still doing just fine on that wine resolution I made. While I'm still partial to Pinot Noir, I've found a new love: Malbecs. So yummy. All of these qualify in the original budget category and got a thumbs up from me and the hubby.

Gascon

Malbec

Santa Julia

Malbec

Becker Vineyeards

Malbec

Oh, and we ventured outside the under $15 category, and bought a high-roller bottle (well, it was still only $27, but way high for this budget-conscience gal). It was so good. Seriously, so good.

Bin 26 2006

Cabernet Sauvignon

Have you tried any good wines as of late? I've got a red Zinfandel on the docket for this weekend, and it looks like my weekend is here before I knew it. My man is coming home tonight, a day early! Definitely reason to celebrate. Happy (early) weekend to you!

*I'm told that clear wine glasses are the best for drinking wine so you can see the true color of it, but my vintage colored wine glasses make me so happy that this matters not. I thought you might just think so too.

It's Never Too Late...

to be patient

We live with constant change,

with daily demands for quick decisions

and automatic responses.

Slow down.

Give yourself time to consider,

to sort through complicated issues,

to wait for responses.

Patience calms our lives.

It offers options.

An excerpt from It's Never Too Late... 172 simple acts to change your life by Patrick Lindsay.

I got it from Goodwill Bookworks off Amazon for all of $.89 (plus $3.99 shipping, but still). I first jotted down the title after reading a review on it. (Thanks Lindsey!) Occasionally I'll revisit my ongoing book list and search from them online or at Half Price. I'm so thankful for having been turned onto it, because in the six hours that I've owned it, it's affected me. I had a rather rough start of it yesterday morning. I was short. And not-so-nice. And, well, impatient. Then this book arrived and I started reading its brief little lessons. I got to the 33rd one and just had to stop and share it. Looking forward to absorbing more. Did I mention that each page has a quote at the bottom? No wonder I love it so!

Digging on Numbers

I've started noticing a trend in many of the things I'm bookmarking... Here is a sampling of a few that have been catching my eye as of late. Notice a common thread?

{crushparty}

{knack studio}

{pottery barn}

{etsy}

And I think this incredibly cool idea would also be neat with place numbers painted in place of the place settings:

{apartment therapy}

You digging?

Monday Meal Plan

{image via here}

Since the hubby will not be home for dinner most days this week (pray for me and my sanity please), I've decidedly decided not to plan this week. I'm heading to the store today to stock up on fruits and veggies. I think the little people of the house and I will survive on these, along with eggs, lunch meat and cheese as our proteins. I'm kindasorta looking forward to it. Looking forward to the easy meals that is, not the l-o-n-g days of single parenting. I do have some heart-shaped pasta that will be paired with pink sauce (red sauce + white sauce = PINK!) for Valentine's Day, so I do have a bit of a plan. Because I'm taking the week "off", I'm telling myself that I'll plan next week's meals to be extra g-o-o-d! Any ideas? What's on the menu at your house?

Choose Well.

{via this lovely site. excellent book too}

Wow.

So simple, yet so hard to remember.

Have a stunningly awesome weekend!

Here's to choosing well.

Sweet Valentines

How fun are these Valentine gifts. I especially love the embroidered heart pillow and the wish box (Thanks, Jen, for the head's up on this).

{clockwise: Custom heart pillow cover - Let's Play Mail - Tree Carving Keychain - Felt Fortune Cookies and take out box - Box of Chocolate Wishes - Je T'Adore print - Tweetheart necklace}

And look what I made for this lovely little holiday that's coming up:

Lollypop Tag Valentines!

The Lollypop Tags were a new design last Valentine's Day, and they were so much fun that I decided to bring them back again this year. While custom orders are nearing an end (due to time constraints with getting them printed and shipped), I put up some printable Lollypop Tag Valentines in my etsy shop. So if you're wanting to avoid the lengthy deliberations at the grocery store regarding whether to go with the Tinkerbell boxed Valentines or Spiderman ones (or Princess Tiana or Spongebob or Hannah Montana or Cars...), hop over and download one of the fun lollypop tags. So simple: print, cut, and punch. You just add the sucker! Do take a look and let me know what you think.

Download For You: Quote Cards

It's been awhile since I've posted up a download for you. I decided to make some of the past quotes into printable cards. (Thanks, Nicole, for reminding me!) All you need to do is download the 2 page quote cards file by clicking on the link. Open it on your computer and print it out on 8.5x11 paper or cardstock. When you cut them out, they'll be business card-sized inspirational cards. You could display them in a business card holder and rotate through them, pin them up on your bulletin board, slip one in the mail to a friend, or leave them in random spots throughout your day to pass along some inspiration. Enjoy! And don't forget about the other downloadable goodies for you over there to the right.

Monday Meal Plan

I was way off my game this past week (Haven't really been on it for quite some time... Soon... Working on it...), as I didn't account for some family birthdays and other goings on. It was good news for me as we had two Mexican dinners out (chips and salsa: YUM!) and some wonderful family and friend time, and that means that this week has quite a bit of carry-over. I will add that I'm quite proud of myself for remembering to freeze half of the chicken mid-week as the extra plans started flowing in. Now if I can just remember to take it out of the freezer...

Here's our meal plan for this week:

Monday:

angel hair pasta with pesto

grilled chicken

Tuesday:

mac and cheese and peas

(hubby out biking)

Wednesday/Thursday:

chili

cornbread

Friday/Saturday:

chicken tenders

raw veggies with ranch to dip

Sunday:

out

What's in the plan for you this week?