Thursday, August 25, 2011

Working Moma: Gingham Girl

Sorry for the craptastic picture, I had to use the flash on my camera cause it was so dark this morning. There really is nothing I hate more than having to use that horrid flash! Plus, why does blogger insist on making my pictures look so grainy and low quality, they do not really look like that! Hmph.

I didn't intend on sounding so whiny, so on a positive note, I love these shoes. I've had them for awhile but I've never posted about them. They're comfy and just the right wedge height. Also, be sure to check out Sydney's outfit picture below....she begged me to take her picture and kept saying 'cheese' repeatedly. So cute!

On Moma:
Top: Old Navy
Skirt: Anthropologie
Belt & Bracelet: Ross
Shoes: Born

Sydney is rocking a Hello Kitty nightgown (Target) and bedhead.
Only when you're 2 can you pull this look off.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

I Like to Read

Just wanted to pop in to say that if you are an avid reader like I am , then you may be interested in joining in the 'In Pursuit of Pretty Things' Book Club. We are currently on our first book, 'The Help'. Check it out below if you wanna join in the fun!
Also, if anyone is on Goodreads, let me know so we can be friends.
If you wanna.

Also, while we are on the topic of books that are awesome......I am totally obsessed with The Hunger Games trilogy. I know I can't be the only one....I really need someone to geek out with me on this. Takers?

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Photo Challenge: Eyes

Hello friends, I hope you are having a wonderful and relaxing Sunday. We are just hanging out waiting for Daddy to get home from his weekend long trip (yes, he's been gone for 3 days now) to a friend's bachelor party. When we got married, you went out for a night and that was it but I guess times have changed.

Anywho, I totally got second place in last weeks The Paper Mama photo challenge for the 'Whatever' theme! Go me! So this weeks theme is 'Eyes' and here's what I'm entering:

My little sweetie pie and her beautiful blue eyes. (And crazy hair!)

Friday, August 12, 2011

Mama Says: Facebook


A friend of mine and I were talking about Facebook a few days ago and I was saying that some people post way to many status updates about EVERY detail of their day. Seriously, TMI. If you wouldn't tell me in person then why do I care to read about it on Facebook. I know this may sound pessimistic and bitchy but you know you're thinking it too. (For a laugh, check out Mama's Losin It's post on Facebook Updates I Don't Want to Read.)

Then I went on to say that I accept almost every friend request that I receive unless I really have no idea who the person is, but I was mostly referring to people from High School, College, etc. that I may not have seen in 10+ years but still like to be connected to on FB. (You never know when you may read some juicy gossip!) Anyway, she went on to say that she hardly accepts anyone's requests and that she is going to go through and de-friend anybody that she wouldn't speak to in person. A first I was taken aback by the comment and thought it was kinda snobby but then I realized that I was guilty of the exact thing she was talking about. I have actually seen someone I am 'friends' with on Facebook and not said a word to them.

This got me thinking about how sad it is that we are willing to be 'friends' on a social media site but in actuality, we may not even speak if we passed them on the street. I understand that there is no chance I could see half of my FB friends in person for logistical reasons but I am ashamed that I didn't speak to someone that lives in my own town. Maybe I'm the snob in this scenario and I need to strive to be more social in my 'real' life versus my 'online' life.

How do you guys feel? Do you find that you are more social online than in your everyday life?

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Photo Challenge: Whatever

I decided to enter this shot (which I think is adorable) in the Paper Mama photo challenge this week. The theme is 'whatever'.

I love how you can see the shadow of her feet on the floor.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Insta Friday

I can't believe it's Friday already! It seems like I just did this post for last week, I guess times flies when you have a week off from work. :)

Mommy rocks. I ♥ those shoes.
Cute tulip shirt. How adorable is that?
Ringo the dog. He's a Starr. Hehe!
Playdough girl. Molds do not work on your face.

Shopping at PetCo. All the fish we bought died within 2 hours!
Syd's chalk artistry. I think that was supposed to be a frog.
Band aid butt. How these things happen, I don't know.
Green toes. She insisted on green. Wait, demanded.

We are trying not to melt here...it feels like 103 today. (This is a good excuse to go hang out at Target!) Makes me really wish we had a pool, you know other than the one that only Syd can fit into.
We hope you all have a great weekend!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Photo Challenge: Yellow

I'm entering this in the Paper Mama photo challenge for 'Yellow' this week.

Favorite Toys for Toddlers

I am pretty picky when it comes to picking out 'toys' for Sydney. I generally don't like things that take batteries but of course we have toys like this that she loves, so you can't avoid it altogether. Since she attends a Montessori school, I try to buy things that coincide with the Montessori philosophy...lots of wooden toys and practical life items. One of my favorite brands is Melissa & Doug, their craftsmanship is amazing and reasonably priced. I would say that Sydney's absolute favorite thing to do is read books but that's a whole other post. Here are just a few of Sydney's (age 2.5 years) favorite playthings:
Step2 Water Table
We play with this water table a lot in our house. I keep on the back porch and it usually gets played with about 75% of the year since we live in Florida. Syd loves to pour the water into the spinning wheel.

Mega Bloks
Syd loves to build castles with these cute blocks. Plus us parents love playing with these too!

Memory Game
We just recently got her the original Memory game and she asks to play it non-stop. She always surprises me at how good she is since half of the time I can't even remember where the match is! I usually only do about 6-8 sets of cards at a time rather than the whole box so she doesn't get frustrated.

Wooden Puzzles
Wooden puzzles are all over our house. I love this shape one by Melissa & Doug but we also have animals, foods, etc. Colorful, sturdy and will last forever.

Wooden Cutting Set
Syd doesn't have this exact set but she has about 4 different sets of wooden cutting food all together. I usually get them from Target when they're on clearance. She is always asking me to 'have a picnic' and brings out her wooden food for us to share.
Baby Animals Puzzle Cards
This puzzle game consists of matching adult and baby animals. The cards fit together like a puzzle piece and Sydney usually matches these up at least once a day. There are 20 pairs in here and she can match everyone by name....I'm impressed.

Little People Learning Zoo
Lastly, Syd plays with this learning zoo daily so it's one of the few battery operated toys we have in the house. She loves matching and naming all of the zoo animals to their correct letter and sound. She also frequently plays with just the animals without the mat too.

What are your kids favorite playthings? Any suggestions for Sydney are always welcome.

Monday, August 1, 2011

Nutella Ice Cream

When I saw the recipe here about how you could easily make homemade Ice Cream just using bananas, I knew I had to give it a try.
First you cut up (you do not want to try to peel a whole frozen banana) and freeze a few bananas for about 1-2 hours. I think I cut up about 3 total.

Add frozen pieces to a food processor.

I should start to look like this after a few minutes. Nice and creamy. Now you can stop here or you can add other ingredients you like, I added about 2 scoops of Nutella.

I pulsed it a few times with the Nutella added and voila!

Nutella Ice Cream made in minutes. It's kinda soft when you're done so I stuck mine back in the freezer for about a hour and it was nice and firm. Enjoy!