Monday, March 30, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Friends and Fun!!
Debbie and I have known each other for almost 2 years through eBay. We quickly became "besties" talking on the phone all the time! Finally last summer we had the chance to meet as Emerson and I drove up to Destin to spend a couple days with her and her family at the beach. Then Emerson and I flew up to TN to spend a few days with her back in January. I was so excited that she and her daughter Rilyn finally came to visit us in Florida!!!
The house was an absolute disaster area so I had to clean all last weekend. Then, of course, Emerson came down with yet ANOTHER cold on Monday, so we shuttled her to the doctor. Of course, it was just a simple cold virus, but her asthma was acting up so we were "supposed" to be back on breathing treatments every 4 hours instead of just once a day. I say "supposed" to be, because of course with all the excitment of Debbie and Rilyn being here, I just couldn't get her to sit still long enough to do more than her usual once a day.
Debbie and Rilyn arrived on Wednesday afternoon and we went non-stop until they left yesterday evening. On Wednesday, we went swimming in the pool, played in the backyard, and went for yummy Marble Slab ice cream.
On Thursday, we had the pleasure of meeting Kacey of maddie*kate and her two sweet little ones, Mallory and Jack. We met up at the playground at International Plaza and it was so sweet how Rilyn and Emerson quickly took to Mallory and the kids ran around together until they kicked us out of the playground for cleaning time. Debbie took a few pictures which I will share with you later as I didn't get a copy of those. We met them around 1:30 p.m. and realized it was 3:00 p.m. before we even went to eat lunch, we were all having too much fun! The kiddos were starving! We ate at the Cheesecake Factory....yummy!! Then we did a little shopping and got home late that evening. We were exhausted! But, no rest for the weary.....
We woke up first thing Friday morning and set off for Disney World where we met Allison, *lula*bee*boutique*, and her absolute sweetheart of a little girl, London. Once again, the girls took to London instantly....they all looked so beautiful in their Minnie wear! We are so lucky to live only about an hour from Disney World so we go all the time. It was only Rilyn and London's second visit so they were so excited!! I have to say, as many times as we have been to Disney, it really was one of my most favorite days there. The girls were so well behaved. As tired as they were and as hot as it was, they never complained, never whined, they just had a blast together! It was so fantastic meeting Allison in person for the first time, she is as sweet as I knew she would be. We also had an alterior motive for meeting up that day as a few of us IvyLane gals are going to be having a Mini Minnie launch tomorrow on eBay, so I'll be sharing a few sneak peeks of my sets in these pictures. Emerson and Rilyn are both wearing my creations and London is wearing Allison's gorgeous patchwork dress. Of course Rilyn and London are modeling Melissa's, thebowvine, fantastic bows!!
We didn't home Friday night until after midnight!! We woke up Saturday and that was the only day we really spent at home. The girls played in the backyard together again, watched movies, and colored. Debbie and I relaxed on the back porch together chatting and playing on our computers! It was so insanely windy here yesterday, things were flying everywhere! The winds were around 25mph with gusts up over 40mph. I have to admit, with all the storms in the Midwest, I was somewhat hoping their flight would get cancelled and they'd be able to stay for another night! I didn't get so lucky :( I know Debbie was missing her little baby boy Jackson bad though, so I was happy she got to home and see him. Before I knew it, we were rushing out the door to take them to the airport.
Emerson was so exhausted, she is still my sweet little girl who requires 12 to 14 hours of sleep a day, she still naps at least 4 days a week, she was struggling to keep up with Rilyn!! She fell asleep in the car about 3 minutes after we pulled out of the driveway and slept all the way to the airport and then all the way back to the restaurant by our house where we met Andy for dinner. She was devasted when she realized her new best friend wasn't in the car anymore. This morning when she woke up, she seemed so out of sorts. She was extra needy and very quiet and reserved today, not her normal talkative and active self. She said once how sad she was that Rilyn and Debbie had gone home, I'll admit I felt the same. It was so quiet around here today and although I got lots of sewing done, it was an empty and lonely feeling having our "besties" gone :(
Hopefully we will be seeing them again soon!! Here are a few pictures of the girls from Disney on Friday. How beautiful do they look and how much fun are they having??? Love the sets their wearing? Make sure you search IvyLane Mouse tomorrow to take a peek at our listings!
Emerson and Rilyn meeting London for the first time!
A little fun in Minnie's house!
We tried to get a picture of the girls together in front of Cinderella's Castle, but apparently the sun was shining in their eyes....LOL! I think this is the cutest picture of all three of them rubbing their eyes. I'm sure they were all thinking "I wish they would stop taking our pictures!!" Being the true models that they are though, none of them said a word!! Poor babies!!
We learned quickly that Melissa's bows are waterproof! The girls had a blast playing in Ariel's Grotto! They were all soaked, but London definitely took the prize for wettest!!
With sweet Princess Belle! We had the pleasure of meeting Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty as well! The girls were star struck!!
So that's all for now! I'll have plenty more to share in the next few weeks as I have lots of fun new sets I'm working on. Emerson's birthday is just 2 1/2 weeks away, ooh, yes, check out these cute invitations I ordered for her party! She hasn't seen them yet, but I know she will LOVE them! Andy's parents are coming to visit for a week and then we are actually headed back to Disney for a week! I can't wait to spend some time there, usually we just go for a day or two, never a whole week, so I am really looking forward to that!! Well, I think that is it for now!!! Thanks for letting me go on and on about our fun week!!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Just had to share my excitement :)
So I just have to share my excitement with you!!! My bestie Debbie, polkadotsandpigtails, and her sweet little girl Rilyn are coming to visit me next week!!! YEAH!!! As if that wasn't exciting enough, now one of my other eBay BFF's Allison, lula*bee*boutique, and her beautiful little girl London are going to meet us at Disney!!! How exciting is this??? I'm so happy to finally be meeting her in person! I only wish the rest of my eBay BFF's could come too, but the other girls live pretty far away, but I'm confident that we will meet them one day soon as well :)
So I have lots of fun things planned while Debbie and Rilyn are here, so I'll make sure I take lots of pictures of us together to share with you!!
So I have lots of fun things planned while Debbie and Rilyn are here, so I'll make sure I take lots of pictures of us together to share with you!!
Sunday, March 15, 2009
In the Garden......
Whew, I've been so busy the last couple weeks catching up on customs and listing all of Emerson's outgrown clothes and shoes I haven't had time for anything new recently. Of course, I just couldn't stand it anymore so I whipped up this sweet little set for IvyLane's In the Garden launch.
I wanted to do something a little different this time! I just adore custom boutique as much as the next person, but sometimes a girl's gotta look good AND be comfy, so I dreamed up this darling little set. It includes the knit tank top with a 3-D butterfly applique with lots of bling, the short twirly skirt, and my favorite part....the knit leggings are attached to the skirt! This way Emerson is able to feel like a princess, but crawl around and play like a normal 3 year old (who is almost 4 by the way...sniff sniff).
So here it is! Let me know if you like it because I have quite the collection of knits now and I just think this is so fun for spring and summer, if you'd like to see more of this style, tell me! I've got all sorts of yummy fabrics I could use to make more!! Click on the picture to view the auction:
So, back off to the sewing room for now....I promise, I'll have more to post here in the next few weeks when things finally slow down!!
I wanted to do something a little different this time! I just adore custom boutique as much as the next person, but sometimes a girl's gotta look good AND be comfy, so I dreamed up this darling little set. It includes the knit tank top with a 3-D butterfly applique with lots of bling, the short twirly skirt, and my favorite part....the knit leggings are attached to the skirt! This way Emerson is able to feel like a princess, but crawl around and play like a normal 3 year old (who is almost 4 by the way...sniff sniff).
So here it is! Let me know if you like it because I have quite the collection of knits now and I just think this is so fun for spring and summer, if you'd like to see more of this style, tell me! I've got all sorts of yummy fabrics I could use to make more!! Click on the picture to view the auction:
So, back off to the sewing room for now....I promise, I'll have more to post here in the next few weeks when things finally slow down!!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Party Princess
So Emerson was agonizing (like a 3 year old can really agonize by the way, but she was!) about where she wanted to have her birthday party this year. I suggested the park, Chuck E. Cheese, My Gym....nope, none of those seemed worthy of her.
So, about 3 days ago, this sweet and fun little magazine arrives at my house called Go Momma Go. Inside is an ad for a Childrens, Tweens, and Teens spa called the Pink Door. I asked her if perhaps she may be interested in doing a party at the Pink Door. Once I told her that it was like the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique, she was SOLD! Finally, a party worthy of a princess!
I realized the Pink Door was pretty far away from my house, at least a good hour, so I searched the net for something similar a little closer to home and found it! Sweet & Sassy Salon, here we come. I called the owner for more details and it sounds absolutely fabulous, she was so helpful and just an absolute sweetheart! It makes me wish I was turning 4 all over again!! Emerson, however, insists on still calling it the Pink Door since that was the original ad she saw!
The party starts with the princesses going in to the dressing room and picking out princess dress-up clothes, then they come out and choose 1 of 4 princess hairstyles. After getting their hair done they paint their fingernails and put on light age-appropriate makeup - eyeshadow, a little blush, lipgloss, and a little bling sticker. Once they are properly princessed, the have open play and dance for about 5 to 10 minutes. Then, my personal favorite, they have their princess coronation. One at a time, they walk down the red carpet (they are able to watch themselves on a TV) and are officially crowned a princess with a tiara and a sprinkle of fairy dust! The salon also takes a group photo and each princess takes home a copy of the photo, their tiara, and their official princess certificate.
Then we are led to a separate cupcake room where they have decorated for me (my favorite part!!) and we can eat cake and snacks, have a drink, and open presents.
How fantastic does that sound?? I think I may actually be more excited than Emerson at this point, I'm not the only one, my sister-in-law, mother, and mother-in-law all seem very excited as well!!
After last year's party - kids ripping presents out of Emerson's hands and destroying them, blowing out her candles on her cake, absolutely trashing my house, the list goes on - I swore I'd never have another one her parties at home again! Also, by the time you buy all the decorations, balloons, food, rent entertainment of some sort, clean up your house, clean up the mess, etc, you spend quite a bit of money and time! I usually spent an average of $400 to $500 on these at home parties, not including gifts either, so I was pleasantly surprised to learn that this perfect princess party was only $275 for 8 princesses, not including Emerson. Emerson is free since she is the birthday girl!!
Check out their web site by clicking on the pic below, an example of a cute invitation I can purchase from them for a very reasonable price as well!
The party is in mid-April and I can't wait to share with you how it goes!! Who knew things like this existed!!??!! I have nothing else too exciting to share for now, only that Emerson seems to finally be feeling better. I'm so relieved! The weather is starting to get really warm too! We colored with sidewalk chalk this afternoon for a good hour or so and we were both sweating by the time we came in. I'm enjoying a few moments of peace and quiet, I just put Em down for a nap. I haven't seen her this tired in quite some time. She actually had her eyes closed before I even left her room, quite unusual for her at nap time these days. I'm back to sewing, lots to do in a short amount of time!!
So, about 3 days ago, this sweet and fun little magazine arrives at my house called Go Momma Go. Inside is an ad for a Childrens, Tweens, and Teens spa called the Pink Door. I asked her if perhaps she may be interested in doing a party at the Pink Door. Once I told her that it was like the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique, she was SOLD! Finally, a party worthy of a princess!
I realized the Pink Door was pretty far away from my house, at least a good hour, so I searched the net for something similar a little closer to home and found it! Sweet & Sassy Salon, here we come. I called the owner for more details and it sounds absolutely fabulous, she was so helpful and just an absolute sweetheart! It makes me wish I was turning 4 all over again!! Emerson, however, insists on still calling it the Pink Door since that was the original ad she saw!
The party starts with the princesses going in to the dressing room and picking out princess dress-up clothes, then they come out and choose 1 of 4 princess hairstyles. After getting their hair done they paint their fingernails and put on light age-appropriate makeup - eyeshadow, a little blush, lipgloss, and a little bling sticker. Once they are properly princessed, the have open play and dance for about 5 to 10 minutes. Then, my personal favorite, they have their princess coronation. One at a time, they walk down the red carpet (they are able to watch themselves on a TV) and are officially crowned a princess with a tiara and a sprinkle of fairy dust! The salon also takes a group photo and each princess takes home a copy of the photo, their tiara, and their official princess certificate.
Then we are led to a separate cupcake room where they have decorated for me (my favorite part!!) and we can eat cake and snacks, have a drink, and open presents.
How fantastic does that sound?? I think I may actually be more excited than Emerson at this point, I'm not the only one, my sister-in-law, mother, and mother-in-law all seem very excited as well!!
After last year's party - kids ripping presents out of Emerson's hands and destroying them, blowing out her candles on her cake, absolutely trashing my house, the list goes on - I swore I'd never have another one her parties at home again! Also, by the time you buy all the decorations, balloons, food, rent entertainment of some sort, clean up your house, clean up the mess, etc, you spend quite a bit of money and time! I usually spent an average of $400 to $500 on these at home parties, not including gifts either, so I was pleasantly surprised to learn that this perfect princess party was only $275 for 8 princesses, not including Emerson. Emerson is free since she is the birthday girl!!
Check out their web site by clicking on the pic below, an example of a cute invitation I can purchase from them for a very reasonable price as well!
The party is in mid-April and I can't wait to share with you how it goes!! Who knew things like this existed!!??!! I have nothing else too exciting to share for now, only that Emerson seems to finally be feeling better. I'm so relieved! The weather is starting to get really warm too! We colored with sidewalk chalk this afternoon for a good hour or so and we were both sweating by the time we came in. I'm enjoying a few moments of peace and quiet, I just put Em down for a nap. I haven't seen her this tired in quite some time. She actually had her eyes closed before I even left her room, quite unusual for her at nap time these days. I'm back to sewing, lots to do in a short amount of time!!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Sweet Little Bunny
I just listed the sweetest set this evening! This will be my last custom for a few weeks as I desperately need a break already! My friend Debbie of polkadotsandpigtails listed a matching sister set as well :) Click on the pictures to take a peek!!
Busy, busy, busy.....
Sorry I haven't been around for the last week, when I tell you that I have been busy, that is an understatement!! Some of you may or may not know that I do work outside the home 3 days a week managing an apartment community. Well, once a year our owner's like to visit from California and they expect absolute perfection on the property. Well, let me tell you, when you have an apartment community on over 40 acres that is 25 years old, that is a little tough. So, I've been doing quite a bit of manual labor over the last week and a half. I scrubbed windows, floors, toilets, breezeways...you name it, I've done it! I've ruined at least 1/2 dozen pairs of pants and shirts with bleach stains....and to top it off, I've been EXHAUSTED! I worked 35 hours in 3 days!!
My first day off was Thursday and I couldn't wait to ship Emerson off to her little morning preschool so I could get some sewing done and OF COURSE, she woke up sick as a dog, poor thing. She has horrible allergies and between that and the cold she's been fighting for almost 2 months now, it just finally got the best of her. So off to the doctor we went....she has bronchitis and a sinus infection. So now the poor thing is on Zyrtec, Hydroxine, Singulair, Pulmicort (her usual meds) and they added Augmentin and Nasonex to the mix, oh and lets not forget the two steroid creams we use for her exzema. I was completely frustrated this week, I can't decide if all these medications are worthwhile, is drugging my child half to death working for her? She is still itchy and red, she is still sniffly and snarfy, and she is still wheezing and coughing? I really don't know what to do at this point!! I guess we could move to the desert? This crazy weather isn't helping either, one minute it is 85 and the next day we get a cold front and it is 35!!
Sorry to vent on you about all of this, but I've just about had enough! I feel so badly for her, she just never feels like a normal child, it is always something. I am so grateful that her health problems are so minor in comparison to what other children are going through, but I can't help but be discouraged that her allergies seem to get worse and worse each day. If any of you have children with food and environmental allergies, I'd love some suggestions on other things you may have tried successfully.
So basically, I'm behind, as usual. I've had this cute Easter set done for TWO WEEKS and still haven't taken pictures to list it. But, I'm determined to do it today and list this evening as it is a collaboration with my dear friend Debbie of polkadotsandpigtails. Then, I can honestly say, I think I may take a few weeks off. I've got Debbie and her little girl Rilyn coming to visit at the end of the month, then my in-laws are coming for a week, and then it is Emerson's birthday and we are going to Disney for a week! So we have a lot of fun things coming up too and I just don't want to be too overwhelmed and exhausted! I may try and get a couple OOAK's listed between now and then, but I really want to make Emerson something spectacular to wear for her birthday. We are all about princesses this year. I can't wait to share with you the details of her party....I don't want to say yet because I need to call and get all the information tomorrow, but once I confirm it, I'll share everything with you :)
I hope everyone is doing well!! Please, if anyone has any suggestions about what to do for my poor allergy stricken child, I'd love to hear them :) Have a happy rest of the weekend :)
My first day off was Thursday and I couldn't wait to ship Emerson off to her little morning preschool so I could get some sewing done and OF COURSE, she woke up sick as a dog, poor thing. She has horrible allergies and between that and the cold she's been fighting for almost 2 months now, it just finally got the best of her. So off to the doctor we went....she has bronchitis and a sinus infection. So now the poor thing is on Zyrtec, Hydroxine, Singulair, Pulmicort (her usual meds) and they added Augmentin and Nasonex to the mix, oh and lets not forget the two steroid creams we use for her exzema. I was completely frustrated this week, I can't decide if all these medications are worthwhile, is drugging my child half to death working for her? She is still itchy and red, she is still sniffly and snarfy, and she is still wheezing and coughing? I really don't know what to do at this point!! I guess we could move to the desert? This crazy weather isn't helping either, one minute it is 85 and the next day we get a cold front and it is 35!!
Sorry to vent on you about all of this, but I've just about had enough! I feel so badly for her, she just never feels like a normal child, it is always something. I am so grateful that her health problems are so minor in comparison to what other children are going through, but I can't help but be discouraged that her allergies seem to get worse and worse each day. If any of you have children with food and environmental allergies, I'd love some suggestions on other things you may have tried successfully.
So basically, I'm behind, as usual. I've had this cute Easter set done for TWO WEEKS and still haven't taken pictures to list it. But, I'm determined to do it today and list this evening as it is a collaboration with my dear friend Debbie of polkadotsandpigtails. Then, I can honestly say, I think I may take a few weeks off. I've got Debbie and her little girl Rilyn coming to visit at the end of the month, then my in-laws are coming for a week, and then it is Emerson's birthday and we are going to Disney for a week! So we have a lot of fun things coming up too and I just don't want to be too overwhelmed and exhausted! I may try and get a couple OOAK's listed between now and then, but I really want to make Emerson something spectacular to wear for her birthday. We are all about princesses this year. I can't wait to share with you the details of her party....I don't want to say yet because I need to call and get all the information tomorrow, but once I confirm it, I'll share everything with you :)
I hope everyone is doing well!! Please, if anyone has any suggestions about what to do for my poor allergy stricken child, I'd love to hear them :) Have a happy rest of the weekend :)
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