Dog Costumes for Baby Dolls

IMG_2021 (Large), originally uploaded by omamom16.

I found this cute ladybug costume for Baby Emma for only 1.75! It's a dog costume, and it fits Baby Emma perfectly! Now she and O can play dress-up together :)

Costumes for O's Dress-up Suitcase

IMG_1934 (Large), originally uploaded by omamom16.

I also got great deals on several costumes. I was very excited to find the butterfly, cat, and poodle at Old Navy for 5 dollars each (regularly 22.50). The Cinderella dress came from Target, and it was not such a great deal even though it was 50% off. However, a "buh-loo dess ike Cindah-ella" is the only thing that O has ever really requested," so I couldn't really refuse that :) (we've been reading Cinderella very frequently in preparation for our upcoming Disneyworld trip). I can't wait to see her face when she opens it on Christmas morning.

After Halloween Deals

IMG_1933 (Large), originally uploaded by omamom16.

I've been looking forward to getting after Halloween deals for a LONG time! I'm putting together a suitcase of dress-up clothes and accesories for O for Christmas, so I knew that the week after Halloween would be the time to stock up. I got the wigs for around a dollar each, the gloves for 25 cents, and the face paint for a dollar :) I also bought fall cookie cutters that she can use now (for playdoh and maybe cookies), and Halloween foam stickers that we can have fun with next Halloween. I LOVE a good deal!!!

Pixiedust!

o and m pixiedust, originally uploaded by omamom16.

Thanks to Chris for this amazing photo! Isn't it amazing? O and M are going to LOVE it! I've got to learn more about photo editing :) Thank you to everyone for the advice and offers of help in editing my photo. Thanks, Chris and Lynn!

Our Pretty Princesses

october 2008 046 (Large), originally uploaded by omamom16.

O and M were beautiful flower girls in our cousin's wedding a few weeks ago. In this picture they are blowing bubbles and then chasing them. This is one of my favorite pictures from the wedding. I just wish that green cord wasn't in the picture!

Lotuspad Yoga Mats for Kids...

are 50% off for this week only! I ordered one for O for Christmas last night. I wasn't planning on buying her anything else for Christmas, but I couldn't resist this deal, especially since the mats are PVC-free!

Update: Evidently Lotuspad was running low on the mats, so they ended the sale early. Sorry, everyone! Check the comments section for a comment from the owner of the site.

Sometimes Life Gets in the Way...

I'll be gone for a while, but will probably be back sooner rather than later. Please pray for our family.

Decopaged Animals

Decopaged Animals, originally uploaded by omamom16.

Woo hoo! It worked! I've tried resizing before, and it didn't help with the off center issue. I must not have made the pictures small enough in the past. Thanks, everybody, for your advice!!! Gotta love the blogging community! You guys are great :)

Comparing and Contrasting her Duckies

A couple of times a week, O takes a shower with me. I shower while she sits on the floor of the tub and plays with her toys. Then I wash her. Quick and easy. A couple of nights ago, she was talking nonstop while she was playing, and I wasn't really listening. Suddenly, I started to listen and was amazed by what she was saying... She was holding two duckies, and this is what she was saying:
"This ducky have tail. This ducky have a tail."
"This ducky have on a hat. This ducky have on a hat. Both have hat. This ducky hat backerds (backwards). This ducky hat NOT backerds."
"This ducky have sunglasses. This ducky have sunglasses. This ducky sunglasses boo (blue)..."
My 1st thought was "where did she learn this?" Then I realized that she was comparing and contrasting her duckies in the exact same way that we compare and contrast the pictures on the same/different pages in her Highlights High 5 magazine. I thought that this concept was above her level of comprehension because she always says "mama do it" and won't say a word while I talk about the pictures. Evidently, she really WAS listening!
I'm so thankful for my blogs so that I have a place to record moments like this :) I've really got to start working on turning my blogs into books!!!

Blogging Through Flickr

I'm experimenting with blogging through flickr (since I'm running out of space on blogger). The problem is that I can't figure out how to save my posts as drafts instead of posting them immediately. I really prefer to do most of my blog posts at one time and then posts them once or twice a day. So...if anyone has any tips, I'd really appreciate it! Thanks!

Running out of Room

I'm running out of blog space :( I keep having to go back to old posts and delete pictures. I guess I could stop putting so many pictures in my posts, but the pictures are my favorite parts. If I can't have a picture filled blog, then I don't want a blog at all! So...if you read any old posts and notice missing pictures that's why :(

Phew!

This blog was starting to stress me out a little...I wanted to do a post each day, but I didn't like the pressure of having to sit down at the computer and actually do the post (even though it takes a very minimal amount of time). I don't work well under pressure, so I decided that I would start saving my blog posts as drafts, so that I have a backlog and don't feel like I HAVE to write one each day. I now have 12 posts in draft, and blogging is fun again! So...if you noticed that the dates are a bit off (its not something I would ever notice, but just in case..) now you know why :)

Just a Little Advice...

Don't buy your husband a telescoping limb trimmer for his birthday! Obviously, Elliott had way too much fun with his this past weekend :) It looked like a tornado hit our yard! The crazy thing is that other than the destruction on the ground, you can't really tell he cut any limbs.

Learning to Water Ski

O is ready to learn to ski ("ike mama and dada"), so she practiced today in the grass. I think 24 months is a bit young for skiing, but Elliott is determined to teach her next summer. We'll see...

Thanks!

I got an award!!! Thanks to everyone who gave me this award- Jo, Shannon, Bizzy Bee Creations, and Ahfat. Sorry its taken me so long to pass it on!

The award comes with these rules:
1. The winner can put the logo on their blog.
2. Link to the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs youv'e nominated.

So here are my 7:

Make and Takes
Megret
Pepper Paints
Shannon's Sharings
The Crafty Crow
Toddlebits
Walk Beside Me

There are many others that I would like to have given this award to, but somebody beat me to it! Thanks again, ladies! I REALLY do appreciate it!!!

Tray Tuesday

I didn't intend to do a Tray Tuesday post today, but O asked to eat from her muffin tin and it was dirty. Luckily, the tray was clean, and she was excited about eating from it. She had cucumber sandwich triangles, rotisserie chicken and banana pepper strips, avocados and black olives, and whole grain goldfish and raisins. Its very similar to yesterday's muffin tin!

Muffin Tin Monday

Here's O's muffin tin for today... avocado, rotisserie chicken, cottage cheese, cucumbers and bell pepper, whole grain goldfish and raisins, and organic applesauce and half of a banana. I'm very happy with my new (to me!) muffin "tin." My sister and friend, Becca, convinced me that it was time to retire my old muffin tin (I was already leaning in that direction), and I couldn't figure out what to get. I didn't want O eating out of anything coated with teflon, and I also didn't want her to eat out of an aluminum tin. I was thrilled to find this silicone muffin tin for only 25 cents at a yard sale this past weekend. Best of all...silicone is BPA-free, so I can feel good about using it to feed O!

Party Food

I finally got the pictures of the food from O's party from my mom, and I wanted to share a few things. These apple "cupcakes" were a big hit, and they were healthy, too! We'll definitely make these again next year! The idea came from here. (This picture was taken after a few of them were knocked off the cupcake tree, and we didn't get them back on quite right!)
Yummy Cheerio Treats (whole grain) with sprinkles.
Cheerio treats, vegetable tray (grape tomatoes, cucumbers, bell pepper), forgotten cookies with Andes mint chips, sugar cookies, and pimento cheese spread with whole grain Ritz crackers.
Apple "cupcakes" and whole grain goldfish. O's birthday cake was a delicious carrot cake made by her grandma, and we had homemade ice-cream sandwiches. The ice-cream sandwiches were delicious, but lots of work. Next year, I think we might just buy ice-cream sandwiches, unwrap them, and roll them in sprinkles. Yep...I'm already planning next year's party!

Edited to add: I realized after I'd posted this that I hadn't given my mom nearly enough credit! In addition to making O's birthday cake, she made the cookies for the ice cream sandwiches, the sugar cookies, the forgotten cookies, and the cheerio treats. O helped with everything, and I was busy cleaning, painting O's chalkboard, painting O's playhouse, and finishing the pinata. O's grandmother made the pimento cheese, and my friend, Emily, decorated O's cake and the apple cupcakes. We are so lucky to have such wonderful family and friends!

Children's Storage Bin Recall

We've finally been affected by a recall. We were lucky up until today when I saw that these storage bins from Lowe's were recalled due to excessive levels of lead :( We have about 9 of these bins, and 4 of them were in O's room. It makes me feel a little bit like screaming. The good news is that the bins were high on a shelf, and she rarely even touched them. It still makes me feel sick. Anyway...if you have any of these bins you can return them to your local Lowe's for a full refund. So now I know what Elliott and I will be doing for our anniversary next weekend...

Just a Reminder

I just wanted to say again (in case you missed it) that I answer questions in the comments section in which they were asked. Its the simplest and fastest way for me to answer questions, so if you have asked a question make sure to check back for your answer :) Thanks!