A Taste of Campbell

Typical Elliott!

2011-08-07T21:49:00.001-06:00

We are still separated from Elliott (until Tuesday!) But I wanted to share some videos Brooke sent me so we could see him. In the second video, he's in trouble for throwing things into my parent's pond in the back yard. Typical Elliott!

happy 4th!

2011-07-05T16:20:00.001-06:00

What we do in our free time.

At the rodeo! Elliott LOVED it.

Fireworks!

Elliott's response to the fireworks. Do you see a pattern with his responses to things that make him go "wow!" ? (i.e. open mouth + finger)

We spent the morning at the park, went to the parade, Preston and my mom ran a 5k (yeah!), we went to a bbq, took naps and then hit up the rodeo where we ate the absolute best beef brisket ever created. No joke. It was incredible. Then we finished off the night with the fireworks. How was your holiday?

Sorry it's so late but...

2011-04-11T17:27:00.000-06:00

We're moving to NYC! Preston was admitted into the NYU Film program and we couldn't be happier. You are all welcome to come and visit, well. Most of you :) We won't be moving for a few more months, but plans are well on the way. If you have any tips/advice, we are ALL ears. Thanks!

a day at the park with bullseye

2011-03-09T15:13:00.000-07:00

So, this might seem like a semi-meaningless post, but I just had to share. This, is bullseye or "horsey".

And here is his story. Whenever Elliott and I go grocery shopping, he gets restless and so I usually give him a toy or book from the shelves to pacify him until checkout, then I take it back and he has always been fine with it. On Saturday, we were doing our routine grocery run, and while in the toy section, Elliott started to neigh (he's REALLY good at it and it's pretty unmistakable) I immediately saw bullseye on the shelf and found out that this toy was also a flashlight which is perfect for Elliott because he loves lights, horses and neighing which bullseye also does when you squeeze his tail. It was perfect! Elliott played with it for the whole 2 hours we were shopping. Then when we got to the check out I tried to take it away. Elliott started to panic and shake and then trying to compse himself he reached for it and said "beeeez" (please) and he repeated the shaking, slight whining and begging until I gave it back to him to have until I absolutely had to put it back. Well, as you can imagine just 5 short minutes later, he started to panic again and the pleading started. He is such a polite little guy but I was pretty sure bullseye was going to be too expensive. BUT I had the cashier check anyway and it turns out it was on sale for $3! So I of course had to buy it. This was certainly his lucky day! He continued to play with bullseye all the ride home, and for 4 hours after that until he had to go to bed. Then first thing Sunday morning, he went straight for it and played with it until we had to go to church. And ever since, it's been his favorite thing. Bullseye has even had to come on our walks and to the park, hence the pictures :)

And that's the story of bullseye.

Spring? Can it be?

2011-03-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

The weather has been gorgeous! So Elliott and I have been going on a lot of walks. He loves going on walks. He loves finding sticks, walking in the grass and asking "what dat?!" while pointing to what seems to be nothing (the sky? the sidewalk?) It's been a lot of fun so I thought I would snap a few pictures to share the cute wealth :)

the happiest penguin. ever.

2011-01-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

I couldn't stop smiling when I watched this, so I thought I would share! enjoy! :)

christmas!

2010-12-27T19:20:00.000-07:00

Santa delegated a little this year and asked me to make this tablecloth playhouse as Elliott's "big" present. What do you think? I am rather pleased with my mad sewing skills!

A view from inside the tunnel.

Preston loves the toys as well.

Here are some pictures from our Christmas this year. Elliott had a blast this time around and wasn't only interested in the wrapping paper. He was pretty much spoiled rotten. But I enjoyed every minute of it!

Fall Festivities

2010-10-22T12:21:00.000-06:00

This week we went to Thanksgiving Point here in Utah. They have some awesome fall/ halloween festivities that we have been waiting for! So we were finally able to go and we had a blast! We (the three of us) went on Tuesday and we had some much fun Brooke, Vernon, Hayes, Ella and mom came and Elliott and I went with them on Thursday!

The cow train. Elliott ran straight for it when we got there again on Thursday. Kid knows what he likes!

Pig races! so cute!

HUGE slides!

Elliott just sat on the trampoline-like jumping pillows. He lets the other kids do all the work while he enjoys the bouncing.

Pedal go-kart tractors. They had a BLAST!

Nice...

A huge spider-web/net thing. He loved it. Literally kicked and screamed when I took him off.

How we lugged the kiddos around. Looks comfy huh?

Seriously, if you're ever in town during the month of October, stop by Thanksgiving Point!

Our Trip in Photographs

2010-08-30T23:24:00.000-06:00

We just got back from a two month trip to Florida visiting friends and family and these pictures are pretty much the gist of the whole trip. We had a BLAST and loved watching Elliott interact with so many new people. Some of these pictures might seem like they need explaining, but they really don't. If you think they do, you're wrong. Dead wrong.

P.S. Because of my lack of blogging as of late (the last several months) for all of you who are curious, Elliott is 18 months old, 30 lbs and extremely friendly. He says "hi" constantly.

Camping (kind of)

2010-06-21T15:38:00.000-06:00

This past weekend, we decided that for Father's day we would all go camping (all being Brooke her family, my parents and us). Our camping however, wasn't nearly as ruffin' it as one might expect. We all had beds in a trailer, and one day all of the girls even went shopping in Park City! We all had a blast. We went 4-wheeling, had camp fires, smores, hot dogs, played games, and of course, had a great time watching the kids

It was a wonderful Father's day. We women sure do know how to spoil our men! Hope everyone else had a great Father's day as well!

ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY!

2010-05-30T17:33:00.000-06:00

Go to my OTHER blog and enter this giveaway! Brooke has offered one of her pendants (which will be on TV AGAIN on Monday night!) Make sure you enter to win, good luck!

Update

2010-05-11T19:00:00.000-06:00

The little man finally got his first hair cut! (much needed)

The girl who cut his hair gave him kind of an extreme faux hawk.

The rest of these pics are mostly for Grandma (Linda) and whoever else cares!

Sorry it's been so long since I have had a REAL update. There are more pics to come soon! We just got back from a few day getaway to Vegas for Carrie Miller's (now Smith) wedding! We had a great time spending time with them and Lisa. Elliott developed quite the crush on her. Can you blame him?

Grandma Came to Town!

2010-03-11T16:50:00.000-07:00

Preston's mom, Linda came and visited us for a little over a week. It was so wonderful having her here. Most people can't say that they love being with and talking to their mother-in-law, but I certainly can. Elliott had an absolute blast with her. These pictures above were of when she had just landed. Look how happy he is! They definitely have a special bond. They went to the park, she got him loads of new educational toys and books and they even went to story time at the library! Yep, Elliott was a very spoiled little boy for those 10 days. Unfortunately, the day came when Linda had to go home and here was Elliott's reaction:

"Grandma, come back!"

Is there hope?

2010-02-11T18:02:00.001-07:00

Very very bad news. On Elliott's bday we took him to the doctor (poor thing), to McDonalds for his first ice cream cone (loved) and to the park to swing (bliss). I took over 80 pictures and they were wonderful. "Were?" you ask? Yes, WERE. When I got home I uploaded them on to my computer and, as usual deleted them from the camera. Why keep them on the camera when they are on your computer right? WRONG. Right as I hit the "delete" button on the camera, my computer shut off and when I turned it back on, all of my pictures (and I mean everything from my mission till now) was gone. In addition to the pictures, my computer wont let me save anything, or attach documents to emails etc. It's very frustrating.
So, Im sorry, but no pictures of Elliott's birthday. However, his party isn't till the 27th. So there will be SOME documentation.

Any Mac geeks who can give some advice?

Happy Birthday!

2010-02-09T12:55:00.000-07:00

Happy 1st Birthday Belliott! I hope you LOVE your first bday (minus the doctor visit and shots)

We love you so!

BIG NEWS!

2010-02-08T11:08:00.000-07:00

One of my books is going to be on TV! The Style Network has a show called "Momster of the Bride" and one of my wedding guest books is going to be on it next monday, february 15th, 9pm! I don't know if that is 9pm my time or yours, but its worth looking into! I am SO excited!

oops

2010-02-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry, the web address was wrong for the getaway contest..here it is!

www.rachelhurston.com/blog/

wish me luck!!

I NEED This

2010-02-03T13:03:00.002-07:00

This is the most amazing giveaway ever. No joke. Makes any of mine look like garbage.

www.rachelhurston.com

but don't enter to win. We need to win. Seriously. We NEED to.

Today

2010-02-01T17:03:00.001-07:00

Today:

- Elliott started this new noise he makes which sounds like a cat fight.

- I bought a TV antenna thing so that Preston and I can watch lost tomorrow night and it wont work.

- I called 3 universities and was puzzled as to why none of them were answering when I realized due to being in different time zones, they were closed.

- I realized I need A LOT of inventory.

- I hung these. Aren't they lovely?

I didn't make them, but they are handmade by someone else. I LOVE them.

What did YOU do today?

My Man

2010-01-26T22:20:00.000-07:00

ok, so just to further prove how wonderful my dear sweet hubby is, here is a little story that doesn't make me look very good, but none the less, it is the truth.

Today was not a good day for me. Elliott wouldn't sleep, I had way too much on my plate and couldn't seem to get anything done, I am sick, yada yada yada. You know how it is I'm sure. So anyway, what I wanted more than anything was to go lay down in my bed. But I didn't because of all the stuff I had to do but mostly because our room was a disaster and just the thought of going in there made me upset because I knew I would have to clean it before I could rest. So, no rest. Elliott was getting into EVERYTHING today. Seriously. He almost pulled my laptop off of the coffee table because he just can't seem to resist the cords. There are several "problem" areas that he seems to be attracted to countless times through out the day which are potentially dangerous which inhibits me from being productive. After about the 500th time saving my child's life, I blew up venting to Preston about ALL of the things I need to do and how I can't because of needing to watch Elliott so closely and how I didn't have hardly any help and I didn't feel well and wanted to lay down but how I hated our room right now. By 6:00pm I had had enough. I told Preston he was taking over and that I needed to get out of the house. So I went to the local thrift store and spent away my frustrations ($5 for a ton of awesome stuff - not bad).

When I walked in the door, the Shins were playing (my favorite) the living room was clean, 2 of the 3 Elliott hazzard areas were taken care of by re-arranging furniture, all of Elliott's toys were cleaned up, Elliott was cleaned up and ready for bed and when I went to find Preston he was in our room, just finishing cleaning it all up nice and pretty. When I walked in I grabbed him, kissed him and thanked him. He said "now you can rest." I seriously do have the best husband ever. At least for me. What kind of man lets you vent, listens and actually does what needs to be done to make it better?

My man.

Extra Extra, Read (something) About It

2010-01-26T17:23:00.004-07:00

Even though a few of you were kind enough to response to my post pleading for help on posting videos again, I still don't have it figured out. It seems that I am missing a little icon (next to the picture icon) which is vital to be able to upload videos. I have a theory as to what may have happened to my missing icon. When I started my other blog, I think a few things mysteriously disappeared. For example on my other blog, there is no easily accessible tool button to click on so as to edit your posts. So, I am not really sure what to do. But until I figure out why certain beloved blogging tools have gone MIA, I am afraid there will be no videos. Which is really sad because I have lots of them.

In other news:

-Elliott is crawling, pulling himself up on to furniture (and our computers) and getting into everything.

-It snowed quite a bit last night, but thankfully its melting away.

-Preston and I both have colds.

**Preston and I gave ourselves either a $15 limit OR a handmade budget for valentines day. It was initially supposed to be only a $0 ,100% handmade (by us) item. But Preston tells me he is too busy to commit to that. So NOW I don't know whether to give him the handmade gift which is practically finished and pretty awesome, or save it and buy him a $15 cop out gift.

Any ideas?

The Park

2010-01-24T22:58:00.013-07:00

Last monday, Preston didn't have school due to it being a holiday so we decided that we would take Elliott to the park to have his first experience on a swing. To our dismay, it was raining monday morning and therefore we decided "hey, the mall has a little playground. Let's take him there." Even though we know there were no swings, we thought he might enjoy the slides and watching the other children. Well, he enjoyed the children, but seemed to think the slide was rather boring. After we left the mall it had stopped raining and was a bit sunny outside so we took him to a REAL park. It was at this moment that I realized that I had forgotten the camera. But we took him anyway and he LOVED it so much we went back the next day (night). And here are pictures from that:

Like I said. He was rather disinterested with the slides.

I am positive that we will be heading back to the park, during the day, to get better pictures. Elliott pitched a fit when we took him out of the swings to leave so you know he loved it. Oh and the laughing with every push of the swing was a pretty good indicator too.

Who's Gonna Win?

2010-01-19T15:47:00.000-07:00

You all should check out my "other" blog and comment to see if you can win a PRIZE!!! Intrigued? www.madebymatchgirl.blogpost.com

And here are some pictures:

Elliott likes Star Wars. Imagine that.

Bed head. It was worse than it looks.

His first pair of shoes that will actually go on his feet. AND they were a steal of a deal!

Come On!

2010-01-12T10:26:00.000-07:00

seriously? No one will tell me how to post a video?

Help!

2010-01-10T21:26:00.000-07:00

Can anyone tell me how to post videos on here? I think Blogger updated their junk and now I can't figure out how to post these amazingly awesome videos I have.

anyone?

Update

2010-01-10T12:53:00.000-07:00

I have to apologize for the lack of posts lately. Between helping Preston apply for grad schools, Elliott, errands and all the other normal day things, I have also been trying to get my other blog for my book binding, and other creativities out there. The best way to do that is to try and post at least once a day. Feel free to check that out www.madebymatchgirl.blogpost.com

And like I said, Preston is right smack dab in the middle of applying to grad schools. Today his University of Miami application is due. I know that many of you are hoping and praying that we get into University of Miami and to be honest, I certainly would LOVE that! But we have to be patient (unfortunately) and wait until march/april to see where we were accepted and perhaps more importantly, if we get scholarships!

Other than grad school stuff, we have been working quite a bit with Elliott on his crawling. Showing him how mommy and daddy can crawl. But it never ammounted to anything. UNTIL we had the brilliant idea to sit several feet away from him with a toy that he wants. That did the trick! He started to crawl on his hands and knees and we were oh so proud. However, since then he seems to have decided that crawling like and inch worm so so much easier. It so is not. Sometimes he crawls as if he were an amputee or paralyzed from the waste down. But rarely will he crawl on his hands and knees. We're still working on it.

And as for me, well, I already mentioned what I am up to. But in addition to that, I am planning Elliott's first birthday party! It's gonna be AWESOME! I made the invitations this week and hopefully will get them sent out soon. I am so proud of them! I will have to post some pictures later...because..its time for Church.

Christmas and New years

2010-01-04T13:15:00.000-07:00

Oh my! A new post is definitely needed! Sorry folks.

So, Christmas...

Elliott's first! It was so fun to watch him, Ella and Hayes open their presents. Though, like most babies, Elliott was more interested in the wrapping paper than the gifts. Why do we waste so much money on presents AND paper, the paper is enough to please them for days.

But first, Christmas eve...

Ella was so beautiful in her little lady lingerie!

So beautiful in fact, that Hayes decided they needed to dance.

Yes, Elliott's PJ's have Christmas sock monkeys on them. I couldn't resist!

remember a while back when we posted that video of Elliott in the Family history library? Well, SANTA had the great idea to get Elliott his very own computer key board. He told me he got it at DI, clever Santa.

And then my camera died. I seriously took no more pictures the rest of the break.

We had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. A lot of my family from my dad's side came to spend the holidays with us. It was a very nice visit! Elliott enjoyed them all thoroughly!

And now, for gifts. Elliott mostly received books and clothes, surprisingly enough. But he loves books, and he apparently loves ruining whatever he's wearing, so it all works out nicely!

Preston and I FINALLY got a GPS! I love it already! So helpful AND now we can go geocaching!

I also got an iPod speaker dock that I have wanted for a few years now. But the one I got isn't what I had in mind, it's WAY nicer! I LOVE it! I have such a wonderful husband! You would be so surprised how much cleaner my house is now that I can listen to music while I work. Good stuff.

And Preston got a Ping Pong dining table set. Sound weird? Well, it's not. It's great! Its a Ping pong set that will fit any dining room table! We have been playing like mad!

And as for new years, we spent it at Brooke and Vernon's playing Wii! I had never played it before. And, to be honest, I like it. A lot. Especially the mario bros. game! Brings back so many memories! New years always makes me think of my dear friend Lisa. Just about every year since we were 5 or 6 we have spent new years together, sipping bubbly (sparkling grape juice/cider) and pretending to get tipsy. I really missed lease and her family this year.

I hope ALL of you had a wonderful Christmas and a very happy new year! Now, if I could just train myself to write 2010 on checks, I would be in business.

What I Gave (to some) for Christmas!

2009-12-22T22:20:00.001-07:00

These are some of the creations I gave (and still have yet to give) to a few local friends.

Are you wondering "what the heck is that?" ?

Maybe now you know?

Well, if not, they are cake stands! Except, I made brownies for everyone! It was a lot of fun making them and a lot of fun seeing a few people's reactions when I told them that the cake stand was theirs to keep! So fun! Do you like them?

Don't you want one?

I did, that's how I got started, and this was my first one!

3 tiered! I want to use it for chips or veggies and dip!

They are SO fun, SO unique and SO easy to make!

Christmas Village

2009-12-22T10:46:00.000-07:00

So, we're up here in Ogden/Huntsville for the holidays. Down on 25th in historic downtown Ogden they have a whole block dedicated to these tiny houses and Christmas lights. It was a lot of fun seeing the kid's reactions, but MAN was it COLD! Some handled it better than others. It was a lovely family outing, and we topped it all off with hot chocolate!

Ella was SO cute! When you asked her "where's the sheep?" she would look around for it and then point emphatically at the sheep! Same thing with baby Jesus etc.

and, I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure that's a cemetery in the middle of the CHILDREN'S Christmas village.

New Love

2009-12-17T10:02:00.001-07:00

Aren't these ADORABLE?

Definitely on my Christmas list.

2 years

2009-12-16T20:02:00.009-07:00

A few weeks ago, Preston and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary! I can't believe it's been 2 years already. But I suppose it kind of HAS to be, since we have a 10 month old. I seriously think some people hear we have been married two years, see Elliott and think..hmmm...10 month old kid+ 9 months in the womb = YES! Less than 2 years!! Anywho, our anniversary was great. It was Preston's turn to plan it, but since he has SO much on his plate, we decided that we would "both" plan it (aka, I planned it). He's got next year. SO, we had to wait until the day after thanksgiving because I was at a good friend's wedding in Idaho on our actual anniversary. Here is what our day consisted of:

1. Black Friday shopping. I know we must be insane, but really, next year, Im going to be at best buy at 5 in the morning. They had the office on dvd for $12 each!! DANG! Luckily, this madness only lasted about an hour.

2. We saw...

And LOVED it! This was one of those movies that I was the only one in the theatre laughing. Really, really, loud.

3. We went to dinner at a restaurant called Roosters in Ogden (by the way, all of this took place in Ogden since it was the day after thanksgiving.) Dinner was oh, so good. And then there was dessert, Cheesecake!

4. We scored a sweet deal and got to go to Color me Mine with NO studio fees! And here was what we made:

Can you guess who painted what?

This one was Preston's. Initially, he wanted to paint it blue with brown paisleys, when I quickly pointed out that we needed something BESIDES blue and brown in our home (seriously, the whole thing is blue and brown.) So, he was bold and painted it bright red (I know it looks pink in the pictures), blue and brown. But didn't he do an AMAZING job? That's paisley, completely free hand!

And of course, this was mine. bunting and a mustache. Nuf said. The bummer about this, was I painted it knowing EXACTLY where I wanted to display it (on a hanging 3 tiered plate rack) and wouldn't ya know it, the plate is too big! Dang my luck.

You'll notice the date is our actual anniversary, and not the day after November. But check out the "P"! I painted that free hand and I am oh so proud of it!

Oh! I almost forgot to mention the gifts! Well, here is what I got for Preston:

I gave this to Preston the day before we were married. We used the two figures as our cake toppers. It's kind of a long story, so if you don't already know why we used these, feel free to ask and I will let you in on it. Anyway, the figures were somehow lost when my parents moved from Florida to Utah and thus, I bought him new ones. Man, am I sentimental or what?

And...

a must see for anyone who likes Will Ferrell and likes good movies.

Preston got me:

And before judging it, you gotta listen to it. It is SO good!

and...

with some of these inside:

Yeah, those are gerbera daisies and yes, that is a GALLON ball jar! It is so big and awesome. And he arranged so that everything was set up when we got to color me mine! What a guy!

It was a fantastic anniversary. Mostly because of the company, but the activities were pretty awesome too.

How I love my stickboy!

what would make my life easier

2009-12-10T23:04:00.001-07:00

Ok, so we love our apartment. It is bigger than most and definitely a great deal, but I have a few problems with it. One of which is we have no dishwasher. I know I have complained about this before, but seriously, my life would be SO much easier and I am positive I would be a more pleasant person all around. However, the reason we haven't purchased one is the cost.

This one MIGHT be in our budget in the next few months or so...but doesn't it look like you wouldn't even be able to fit a fork in there?

Celebrate!

2009-12-10T11:34:00.001-07:00

Today was my very last day of class. EVER! I feel so liberated. Now I just have to finish finals week and I never have to step on campus again. I feel like I need to celebrate.

Any ideas as to how??

I didn't make myself a banner. I just found it on google.

Alive And Well...Sort Of

2009-12-08T07:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, No. We're not dead. It's just then end of my last semester EVER and things are tad busy. Between Preston applying to grad schools and me being his assistant, final papers, exams, and Elliott getting into EVERYTHING, who has time to blog? Well, you are all THAT important to me that I am taking a minute to let you know what's goin' down in the Campbell residence.

Actually, all the things I just mentioned, pretty much sums things up. Oh, and the dreaded time has come. There is now snow EVERYWHERE. When is spring again?

Now THAT's what I'm talkin' about! So long as the book is NOT a text book, we're good to go.

While I Study

2009-11-16T12:47:00.001-07:00

Most of the day consists of cleaning, errands, Elliott stuff and studying. When I study, especially for classes I have no interest in, I tend to have to read out loud in order to take in the material. Otherwise, I end up having to re-read the same sentence several times. However, I use to practice this strange habit when I was alone. Now, I am never alone. I have an audience. And this is his expression for the majority of the duration of my studying...

Can't you just hear his thoughts? "Mom, I don't understand a word you just said." and "Do you mind?"

This Boy

2009-11-15T23:15:00.002-07:00

I apologize for not posting more lately. Things have been busy and I have been focusing more on my made by matchgirl blog as well as planning Elliott's birthday! I know, it's not till February, but I am so excited!

So, I have been trying to figure out how to post a video on here, but it seems the options have changed with blogger since I last posted one. Can anyone help? I'll post some adorable videos of Elliott in exchange.

In the mean time...

This boy has tired of his "magic chair". He has had it three months and can now only stand to be in it so long as YOU are the one making the toys move etc.

This boy is almost crawling. He scoots around on his back pushing the floor with the heels of his feet. He'll be bald back there in no time.

This boy had his 9 month check up on Friday. He's healthy, 23lbs, and 66th% for length and, get this, the 99.57th% for HEAD CIRCUMFERENCE. Big noggin. And he apparently is stronger than the Dr. (when the Dr. was checking Elliott out, he wanted Elliott to spread his arms out. Elliott simply scowled and grunted at the Dr, and kept his fists tight and in a body builder pose, like this...

Strong boy. I mean Elliott, not this guy. Though this guy might be pretty strong too.

Doily Clocks!

2009-11-09T22:53:00.000-07:00

Doily clock giveaway on Oh, Hello Friend.

I NEED the white and orange one!

100,000,000,000,000,000 Apologies

2009-11-05T08:20:00.000-07:00

Somehow, I managed to delete every bog that was listed on my blog. It will take me a while to get those back on there. I'm so sorry! I know I depend on other people having specific blogs listed on theirs to use. I will get them back up as soon as I can!

Where the Wild Thing Was...

2009-11-04T22:40:00.003-07:00

Over this past weekend, we spotted something...unusual.

We saw a...

WILD THING!!!

AND there was a cute little witch and Frankenstein's Monster!! (aka little green witch boy)

I was lucky enough to tame him in the end.

Hope everyone had a fantastic halloween!

Another giveaway

2009-11-04T22:21:00.000-07:00

You guys must not be praying hard enough that I win a giveaway! Come on people! I need this! It's for my self-esteem!

Feel free to enter! Maybe one of us will win!

http://ohhellofriend.blogspot.com/

I Just Had To

2009-10-31T12:48:00.001-06:00

Elliott LOVES his bath time. And, though he has toys for the tub, he prefers the large plastic cup that I use to rinse him off/keep him warm. Naturally.

alrighty...

2009-10-30T00:12:00.000-06:00

So, I decided to go ahead and start a new blog that has everything to do with made by matchgirl instead of always mentioning it here. I may still mention news, but not AS much. SO, if you are interested (and I hope you are!) then check out madebymatchgirl.blogspot.com!

HUGE NEWS!!

2009-10-28T00:18:00.008-06:00

NO, I'm not pregnant. BUT, one of my wedding guest books is going to be on Style Network!!! I don't know exactly when yet, but it is for sure going to be on a show called "Mother of the Bride" as the wedding guest book for a new couple! I am SO excited! I owe it ALL to brooke! She has the mad hook up from being on the Bachelorette and was kind enough to suggest to them that my books rock like none other and should be on the show! Brooke's necklaces will ALSO be on the show!! Hopefully this will boost sales, or at the very least, get people to look at our shops. So, if any of you have Style Network, would you please record it for me? We don't get any channels but I would LOVE to see it! The book is going to be one of these three:

Which one do YOU think they will pick to have on the show??

Preston's Double

2009-10-26T13:50:00.007-06:00

I wanted to post some pictures Preston got while on their trip down to Arizona. Not ones HE took, but..well, you'll see!

So, to answer your question, No. That is not Preston in an old timey picture with another woman. That is Preston's grandfather! A spittin' image! Seriously. I LOVE the second picture of his grandparents. I never met Preston's grandfather who has passed on, and I still have not physically met his grandmother, but aren't they a lovely couple?!

Oh Hello Friend Giveaway!

2009-10-26T13:44:00.001-06:00

http://ohhellofriend.blogspot.com/

Wish me luck! I really want this!!

Because I Love It

2009-10-22T14:04:00.002-06:00

VERY antique, handmade BEAUTIFUL doily = $1

Ball Jar = $0

Flowers = $2

Total= a very happy girl.

All Alone

2009-10-15T14:08:00.003-06:00

Preston and Elliott have left me for the weekend to go to Preston's sister's wedding down in Arizona. Leaving me, all alone. It is the first time Preston's grandmother, aunts and uncles, sister etc. will be meeting Elliott. AND Preston's grandmother hasn't seen him in 11 years! Preston's parents and brother will also be there, making it their 2nd time seeing Elliott. My dear friend Erin is getting married tomorrow, which is why I didn't go with them. I think I'll be fine, so long as I stay very busy.

I had to add this picture because I finally found a decent looking beanie for Elliott to wear and he looks adorable in it! It makes his head look even bigger and rounder! The best part is, so far, he likes wearing it!

Hope all of you are having a great day!

Strawberries!

2009-10-14T10:41:00.005-06:00

We have been introducing new fruits and veggies to Ellliott lately by using a food grinder and this little mesh feeder. He LOVES the mesh feeder! So far, I would have to say his favorite foods are strawberries and pears. He is hilarious to watch eat! He gets so excited he starts to bang the mesh feeder against his body while grunting and squealing! Unfortunately, I didn't get THAT on tape...but here is a glimpse of him with the strawberries.

Sorry the video gets blurry. Too much movement I guess!

Oh Hello Friend

2009-10-13T20:20:00.002-06:00

GIVEAWAY! Oh Hello Friend, has weekly giveaways and they are awesome! I know all the posts about giveaways are so boring, but seriously, you all should check this site out! Wish me luck! I hope I win!!

A Day in the Life of Elliott

2009-10-12T15:06:00.006-06:00

This is the majority of what Elliott does every day.

We are SO blessed to have Elliott for our son!

A Small Project

2009-10-11T16:37:00.011-06:00

So, last week I read something on a friend's blog that inspired me. She attempted to clean out her craft closet, and would have finished I am sure, but she was happily interrupted with a surprise from her husband. SO, I got to thinking. My "craft closet" is actually our second bedroom. Which just so happens to also be our study, and more importantly, Elliott's room. My friend inspired me to clean up that entire room.

So, I did.

Before:

After:

This is my creating space. I realize that it's still a bit cluttered, but hey, it's 3 rooms in 1! Now when people come over, I don't have to make sure the door to this room is shut! I am exited though because Preston told me yesterday that he thinks I should make this space "me." I take that as the ok to do WHATEVER I want! Which is pretty much what I usually do, but with the possibility of Preston in the back of my mind saying "eh, I don't like that." Not this time.

This space is MINE!!

Just Thought I'd Share...

2009-10-07T13:50:00.010-06:00

A few things I have been obsessing over lately...

Wood grain embroidered bags!

Re-decorated plates and platters!!

Antique Ball jars! The aqua ones.

Bunting! (ESPECIALLY the tiny ones!)

Naturally, these can all be found on Etsy! I hope you can enlarge the picture of the peacock platter . The peacock is incredible!

A Tremendous Tuesday

2009-10-06T21:49:00.005-06:00

Today started normal. Woke up, went to class, met with a Professor to take a quiz. So forth. Then I decided to wait on campus for a while till the stock room opened up so I could buy some book making supplies. (I am feeling a book making frenzy coming on!)

Then I came home, worked, played with Elliott, had an oh so delicious peach, a cup of tea and then, I had an epiphany! I decided to go on a walk with Elliott. So I got him all suited up. Sweat pants and hoodie, all over top of his jammies (don't judge.) Of course Preston couldn't resist, so it became a family outing! We walked down center street and looked around, went into an antique shop (bought some things), and went to our favorite SUPER cheap and SUPER good sushi place! Then we walked home.

A little while later, Carrie came over and shared all of her excessively good news ;)

Then I was off to DI where I bought some more treasures!

It was a great day. Family, friends, antiques and sushi!

Attention Provoians and Oremites

2009-10-06T10:52:00.006-06:00

Mark your calendars! For those of you in the Provo/Orem area, GET READY! Nov. 7th is yet another Bijou Market featuring yours truly! I am really excited about this show because the last one was my most successful one to date! I figured out which of my items are more popular with those who attended the last show, and made 5x as much! Come by and say hi! Don't worry, I will be reminding all of you as the date gets nearer. Ritzy Misfit (Brooke) will be there as well! So DON'T MISS IT! More info to come!

And for those of you who don't know, I have created a 2nd Etsy shop, Vintage Oddity. It will be for all of my non-book items. Check it out!

Oh, Hello Friend/Elephantine Giveaway!!

2009-10-06T10:01:00.001-06:00

I LOVE Oliver's Twist! Check out these blogs and Etsy shops! you WON'T be disappointed!

Our Weekend

2009-10-05T09:46:00.011-06:00

Friday night we had a family outing where Elliott and I attended our first (and perhaps last) BYU game! As you can see, we had a great time kicking Utah State's trash! Elliott fell asleep during the 3rd quarter, I couldn't believe that any living thing would be able to sleep through that racket! But when he was awake he seemed to really enjoy it.

Saturday consisted of Preston watching Elliott and doing homework all day while I went yard saleing with mom and brooke! I spent $5 and got LOADS of great stuff! Most of them are projects, some for etsy! Can you tell I'm excited?

General Conference was also a large part of our weekend. There were some incredible talks! I think one of my favorites was definitely Elder Holland's talk. Awesome!

This weekend, we also celebrated dad's birthday!!

Isn't that the loveliest rendition of "happy birthday" you've ever heard? It warms my heart!

Listen close to what Hayes says at the very end of the video!

Elliott made this face for the longest time, so I had to get a picture.

Ella and Elliott are becoming great play pals. Elliott just loves watching Hayes and Ella.

Dad got some sweet motorcycle gear to use on his harley.

He loved his new knife he got from Brooke

And he FINALLY got the tea kettle he wanted. Its the same exact one that I have, but a more masculine color. They aren't making this anymore, so it was a bit of a search. But well worth it! I think EVERYONE should have one of these!

Hope your weekend was as wonderful as ours!

THINGS to come...

2009-09-30T21:39:00.004-06:00

Can anyone guess what Elliott is going to be for Halloween? I have almost finished his costume and I am oh so excited!

Update

2009-09-23T13:58:00.006-06:00

I believe that blogs are an OK place to brag, right? Well, I just wanted to let everyone know that I am done with my Christmas shopping! I am so proud of myself! The only problem with having this done so early is that you are much more likely to KEEP BUYING things for people. "Oh! Brooke would LOVE that!" or, "Mom would look GREAT in THAT!" I guess luckily for me (and of course our bank accounts), I don't shop very often. My biggest problem is going to be resisting Etsy. And to help keep track of what I have bought, I made myself a Christmas Book!

I made it with enough pages so it should last for years to come. That way it junctions as a sort of Christmas journal also. I can look back and see what the kids wanted , what they actually got and about how much was spent.

In other news, I have swine flu. At first we were a little worried. I was nauseous for a couple days, but then all of the other symptoms hit so we knew I was probably just sick and not expecting another little one. (yikes) I have been in bed for the last few days (with bathroom breaks coming far to often), watching seasons 1-5 of Monk, eating rice pudding, Oreos (double stuf), and chicken noodle soup (thanks mom!). I am staying out of public as much as possible so as to not spread this awful illness. Hopefully it will be over VERY soon.

Due to my illness, my house is a wreck! Elliott is almost out of bottles, we are completely out of dishes and the laundry, well, I think that's enough said.

Classes are going well I guess, it is my last semester. (thank heavens) I officially applied for graduation! I will be SO glad to be able to say I WAS an english major.

Elliott has 6 teeth and says two words. "mama" and "baba" (baba=dada...we think) Mama is his favorite word ;)

Preston has quit NuSkin but has some fantastic publishing, and movie making opportunities along with working as a research assistant for a Professor on campus. He is researching and applying for grad schools and is also taking the GRE. Wish him luck! We need full ride baby!

Other than that, we are just enjoying the crisp weather and of course, TEA SEASON!

All Boy, Baby!

2009-09-21T18:47:00.006-06:00

A few things to watch for in this video.

1. oink noises

2. imitation of a toothless elderly man

3. looking up at the fan to see if it is on

4. cock-eyed raspberry

5. a belch as the grand finale

ENJOY!

Things We're (mostly I'm) Excited About

2009-09-19T19:07:00.004-06:00

**This list is no particular order. **

1. Where the Wild Things Are (Oct 16th)

2. Elliott's 1st Christmas

3. Elliott's 1st Birthday

4. Lovely Bones (December)

5. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (thanksgiving)

6. GRADUATION (December)

7. To not be sick

8. Alice in Wonderland (March 2010)

9. To be able to read for fun (someday)

10.Go to FL again (someday)

11. New Moon (November...don't judge)

12. Go on our double date with Rik and Cole.

13. Elliott eating people food..no more formula!
14.Tea season

15.Go out again with Mike and Camille

16. To eat my dinner of corn and tomatoes...right...now...

I usually don't do these things...

2009-09-17T20:40:00.004-06:00

Where is your cell phone? in my purse
Where is your significant other? across the coffee table from me
You're hair color? brown
You're favorite thing? locket/wicked awesome scriptures/book supplies/tea kettle
You're dream last night? scary/funny
You're life dream/goal? exito!
The room your in? living room
You're hobby? book binding/jewelry making/pin cushion making/ a lot more'
You're fear? failure
Where do you want to be in 6 years? don't care, so long as Preston is done with school!
Where were you last night? home
What your not? blonde
One of you're wish list items? dish washer
Where you grew up? Florida
The last thing you did? drink a lot of water
What you are wearing: v-neck shirt
You're TV? sony bravia
You're pet? Hank E. Pank
You're computer? Mac/white
You're mood? chill
Missing someone? Lease
Something your NOT wearing? g-string (for obvious reasons)
Favorite store? Etsy (if that's a store)
Your summer? school/work/baby
Love someone? someone? everyone!
You're fave color? kelly green
When is the last time you laughed? 5 minutes ago
When is the last time you cried? 4 days ago
Your significant other's hair: naturally? blonde wiry
You're life in one word: splendid

Just wanted to add something "fun". Feel free to do the same and add it to your blog!

And The WinnerS Are....

2009-09-15T08:13:00.041-06:00

Congrats Donna and Lisa!

I am pretty dang sure that this is the same Sbarro that Michael Scott while running to, says "I'm gonna go get me a New York slice!"

The horse is sticking his tongue out at the camera! Nice.

The whole reason we got to go to NY is because brooke was invited to a fashion show and to have her jewelry auctioned off as a fundraiser for epilepsy. Jillian was the host!

I don't know who this is, but Brooke did. Elliot Yamin? From American Idol?

This is Brooke's "Don't you wish you were here, Vernon" face.

This one's for you lease!

It was delicious!

Our nasty mode of transportation...the subway.

One of my MUST SEES. I was a little dissappointed, but still, now I can say I have been to STRAND bookstore. 18 miles of used and new books!

WICKED! We got to go see wicked on broadway! And as you can see in this picture, we were in the 5th row! Perfect seats! We all loved it!

Central Park! Mom's favorite site I believe.

Person sleeping on the rocks??

Awesome bridge in Central park...

Our Sexy poses under the bridge..I guess I haven't seen enough gross billboards to be able to duplicate the poses..this is DEFINITELY not one of them!

Mom and I walked literally miles just to get to see the Statue of Liberty. Well, AND Greenichvillage (my favorite part of NY!) It was our 2nd trip to Greenichvillage..I HIGHLY recommend!

I was pretty dang tired. The only shoes I took on the trip were different pairs of chucks..my dogs were killin' me!

Can anyone tell me why Lacawanna is significant? At least to me?

The weird man built his house upon this rock...

NY pizza! Oh so good!

Does it still count if the pizza was made by an Italian guy in an Amish Market?

Ground Zero. The whole place was sectioned off by this fence because they are building a memorial park of sorts. It was pretty touching being there. It's hard to imagine just how big the towers were until you see the actual space.

And this is our apartment we rented for the long weekend. Nice little street, right? ONE BLOCK FROM HARLEM! Scary stuff.

All in all we had a GREAT trip! It was our first "girls" trip of many to come. Now I can officially say that:

Last Chance!

2009-09-13T19:54:00.002-06:00

Last chance to get your answers in for the game...if you would like to change your answers, you may. But you cannot keep your answer once you change it! (tricky, I know)

Here's a HINT!

I traveled by air and I have been to this state before, but never this city.

Ok, so that's like 2 hints...GOOD LUCK!

All guesses must be in by tomorrow night!

Game Time!

2009-09-10T07:29:00.004-06:00

Note: This is going to be a very short entry.

This is one of the best days of your life! Seriously. If you can guess where I am right now, I will give you...THIS!

Be honest. If you already know where I am, you are exempt from the game. And I know who you are!

Happy guessing!

Great Gifting!

2009-09-03T15:18:00.004-06:00

So, I love coming up with thoughtful gift ideas for people. I love knowing that I got or made something for someone that is uniquely them. If an ocassion comes up and a gift needs to be given and that gift is not as thoughtful as I would like, it seriously bothers me. Almost to the point of being disturbed. Don't get me wrong though, I really like this part of me. And I encourage all of you to be the same! It makes getting someone a gift go from being a chore to down right awesome!

One gifting idea is etsy. Tell your friends to get on etsy and search. They are bound to find at least a few things they love (and hopefully don't buy for themselves) then you can get on etsy and see what it is that they love, pick your price range and BAM! Instant success! Even if you don't purchase that exact item, it can spark ideas for something that you can find else where or make yourself to make it even more "them". About 1/4 of the items in my favorites are items that I think would be great for someone else!

You might ask, "why is Kersey dedicating an entire post to gifting?" well, Christmas is just around the corner, and I am positive that all of us have a birthday, half-birthday, or anniversary somewhere between now and then.

Enjoy your brand new perspective on gifting! Get started and let me know how it goes!

For those of you who don't already love etsy...you will...

www.etsy.com

San Diego Trip!

2009-09-03T12:32:00.027-06:00

Last week we went on a family vacation to San Diego and we LOVED it!

Our first stop was a place that I have ALWAYS wanted to go to...

THE SAN DIEGO ZOO!

Hippos rock.

So this has a funny story...we hopped on the tour bus because the park is just way too big for us to walk it all. As we were getting on, the driver/tour guide singled Hayes in her showing us what macadamia nuts look like in their shell and how hard they are to get out (there was a macadamia nut tree at the stop). She gave Hayes two nut shells, one which was unopened and the other that a squirrel had cracked open and gotten the nut. So, as my mom was taking this picture of Hayes he was holding the to shells in his hands I thought it would be nice to get the shells in the picture too... so I said "Hayes, hold up your nuts. Hold up your nuts Hayes...Hold up your..." half the bus was laughing at me, including my dear husband.

Where most children scream out of fear of these characters trying to hold them and get their picture taken, hayes cut people in line with excitement. Strange little boy.

For some reason, Brooke, my mom, and hayes think that this is what a giraffe looks like.

I think Hayes' cheeks were getting tired of smiling for the camera. What else could we do? He was the only kid that went to the zoo with us! (By the way, that's a koala behind him.)

Hayes, Preston and Elliott all got this shirt. Cool eh?

Preston was such a trooper helping us get to...

THE BEACH!

When I was a freshman at BYU-Idaho, Lisa and two of our roommates took a road trip to the sacramento area. I have this great picture of Lisa wearing some seaweed like a boa. So, in tribute to lisa, I took my turn...hayes loved it.

After the beach we went to a local pizzaria...it was AMAZING! We got one pizza for ALL of us! And we had PLENTY of leftovers! It was 28'! 32 slices of goodness!

And we were so blessed to be able to attend the San Diego temple. It is BEAUTIFUL! I seriously think it is the most beautiful temple I have ever been to. The inside is even more beautiful than the exterior!

We really enjoyed San Diego. We would like to return some day. Definitely worth the 11 hour drive with a baby!

Family History Work

2009-08-20T19:08:00.003-06:00

Preston and I are the Family History Center Coordinators in our ward and this week, we thought we would give Elliott a try at it...

As you can see, he is very enthusiastic about this work!

My First Wedding!

2009-08-20T18:50:00.010-06:00

Ok, so it was my first besides my own! I was SO happy to be invited to Leah's wedding. She was my "daughter" on the mission. (I was her trainer). It was such a beautiful experience to be in the temple with her on her special day! She was absolutely beaming! And as always, GORGEOUS! Johnny (her husband) is a very lucky man! I was so blessed to be able to attend. Preston had the day off so he watched Elliott and then that night, Rikki and Cole were so good to babysit for us so we could go to the reception, and then to the movies :) THANKS RIK AND COLE! It was a wonderful day that I will never forget! Funny how receptions etc tend to make Preston and I more mushy than usual. I like it!

Everything was PERFECTLY coordinated...so like Leah!

Even though this is an AWFUL picture of me, it's the only one I could get with Leah...

The happy couple was much nicer to each other than Preston and I were...

Elliott's Eccentricities

2009-08-17T23:03:00.006-06:00

We wanted to share/prove to all of you that our son is just about as strange as we are. For example, when Preston was younger he use to rock against the back of his parents couch for hours. He claims that to him, it was just as fun if not more fun than jumping on a trampoline. We have somewhat recently discovered that Elliott too has a love for rocking. It must be genetic. That, or Preston still rocks when I am not around...

Like father like son.

We also wanted to confess to the cruel and unusual punishment we subject Elliott to.

New Found Love

2009-08-13T20:40:00.004-06:00

So the title of this post might be just a tad extreme, but seriously...how could you not love THIS?!

This is our new butter dish! We have been searching for a while for a butter dish that was functional (has a lid and something to grab the lid by!) and cute! Long story short, I contacted this person on Etsy to see if she wanted to trade, her butter dish (custom made) for anything in my shop, and she said yes! This might be in part to the fact that she too is LDS and went to BYU...hmmm..anywho, I absolutely LOVE it! It fits PERFECTLY into our home! If you find yourself in need of an oh, so cute butter dish, check her out! www.meadowlandpottery.etsy.com

HAPPY 1/2 BIRTHDAY BELLIOTT!

2009-08-09T20:35:00.017-06:00

We celebrated Elliott's very 1st 1/2 birthday today! As some of you know, 1/2 birthday's are kind of a big deal for me, so naturally, the 1st 1/2 birthday is a HUGE deal!

Here are a few items he received and a few festivities we had for our little man's big (1/2) day!

Though this is a CREEPY picture, we got one of these mirrors for the car. It's mostly for us, but Elliott loves staring at himself.

This is pretty much for me. There is this person on Etsy who makes these for a MORE than reasonable price, and I HAD to have one to display next to Elliott's picture. I LOVE it!

A monkey teething toy...they had a whale one, and an octopus one, but I got him the monkey one (for Preston)

And...

Please excuse the strange commentary...

Happy 1/2 Birthday Belliott! You rock our WORLD!

A Somewhat Success!

2009-08-09T20:26:00.005-06:00

The craft show (boutique) was a somewhat success this weekend! I sold most of my bobby pins, a few necklaces, 3 mini books, 1 normal book, and one custom order for a 5x7 book. However, I say "somewhat" of a success because most of these sales were from Brooke. She's such a great sister. She "needed" to have a book so people could write down their custom orders, a mini book for her purse, some bobby pins just because and a custom ordered 5x7 book, for her christmas lists. Now a Christmas book is something I think every woman needs, because lets face it, with buying for your own kids, your husband, your mom and dad, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, and not to mention ALL of that on your husbands side, you NEED to write all that down! I bought some cool paper to make my own Christmas book! Let you know when its done!

So, here is a picture of my display...

Hopefully you can see all that. So all in all, it was a fun/somewhat successful weekend!

Mindy Mae's

2009-08-06T09:59:00.017-06:00

The time has come for another craft show! Up here they call them "boutiques." Sounds so much more fancy doesn't it? Well, this time around it is up in Pleasant View (very, very near Brooke's house), and I am DANG excited! Preston has been helping me A TON with my display. So now, I will have the most AWESOME display there! Here are some of what I will be selling...

Of course, my books...

Mini-books! (new)

Hand felted wool pin cushions! (semi-new)

Night lights....

Vintage Bobby Pins....(new)

oh so cute necklaces! (new)

Vintage locket necklaces (new)

My favorite! (new)

There's more, but no pictures...if they don't sell, then I will take pictures (pray they sell!!) Also, keep in mind that when I say "vintage" I mean I took vintage supplies and created something completely new!

So, if you're in the area, COME TO MINDY MAE'S MARKET! You won't regret it! Stop by and tell me what you think of my display!

FELIZ CUMPLEANOS LEASE!

2009-08-03T08:53:00.014-06:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEASE!!

I hope you have a wicked awesome b-day! If ANYONE deserves it, it's YOU! Hope you have a good one full of cake (or key lime pie, rebel bars, whatever your little heart desires!), ice cream (pretty sure there is no substitute for that!), and laughs (there is always a cornucopia with you!)

Happy Birthday!

And for the enjoyment of the rest of you...

A Thousand Apologies....

2009-07-25T16:09:00.013-06:00

IF you like these, I apologize, but seriously..what IS THIS?!

Sea Urchin?

This baby seems to have given up. The weight of the flower has conquered her.

This girl just looks disturbed.

I have been seeing these everywhere, and I really don't get it. Are the mom's who put these on their baby girls trying to show how small and dainty their child's head is by placing a ENORMOUS fake flower or collection of frilly feathers on her head? Is that really necessary? The babies are cute as is. No need to ugly them up.

What the?!?? That's just wrong...

Getting Married?

2009-07-16T10:38:00.005-06:00

Then check out this awesomely creative site! They feature handmade wedding inspired items. A lot of them come from Etsy, but its a great way to see them all together..especially because they color coordinate! Also, they were kind enough to feature one of my books!!! So check em' out!

inventingweddings.blogspot.com

Talkin' to Grandma

2009-07-13T08:36:00.009-06:00

These pictures were taken during our weekly calling session to the Campbell's back in Florida. Elliott loves when we put the phone to his ear so we thought we would let him practice holding it himself...

UPDATE!

2009-07-12T19:24:00.022-06:00

First off, who is this beautiful blonde??

You guessed it! That cutie is my nephew! Hayes!

I put his hair up with my hair tie...don't tell Vernon...

Some for Grandma...

Bottle holding!!....Almost.

A day at the lake...

The 4th of July!

We had to protect Elliott's ears when they shot off the guns in the parade. Poor guy. But the fireworks didn't really bother him...strange, I know.

What Court does best! :)

Ella! Looking cute as always.

Hayes the Ham...kind of like someone else I know...

By the way, that beater behind him was SOLD at an auction...it actually SOLD!

A WICKED old and WICKED cool tractor in the parade (the best part!)

Elliott's taking after his uncle Court.

I just HAD to sneak a picture of the old guys in uniform. They were SO cute!

Seriously...COME!

2009-06-27T10:23:00.006-06:00

TODAY! 2 pm-8pm

202 E 1800 S

Orem, UT

Live Music!

Food!

AMAZING HAND MADE AWESOMENESS

Beautiful Setting!

Seriously, what ELSE do you really have to do?

Bijou Market

2009-06-24T10:22:00.006-06:00

Attention EVERYONE in the Provo/Orem area!! There will be a kickin' awesome all things hand made show this weekend in Orem! It's called Bijou Market and it seriously is going to be great!

http://www.bijoumarket.com/

If you live in the area, or want to travel far, it will be worth it! Bring your kids too!

SATURDAY June 27th

2pm-8pm

202 E 1800 S

Orem, UT

Be there, or miss out on a TOTALLY WICKED AWESOME show!!

Come and see mine and Brooke's stuff IN PERSON!

The time has come to REPRESENT!

sleepy, sweet and ferocious

2009-06-16T22:31:00.008-06:00

sleepy...that's Elliott drifting off to sleep in his bumbo chair.

Going, going...

GONE!

now for the sweet and the ferocious...

Check Me Out!

2009-06-11T19:01:00.004-06:00

So, kinda big news for me...on the website etsy, one of my books was featured on the front page! For an etsyian, this is a dream come true. The only thing better is to be the featured seller! Now THAT would be amazing! If you haven't looked already, check it out! I am adding new stuff all the time! www.madebymatchgirl.etsy.com (there is also a link with some pictures at the bottom of my blog)

Let me know what you think! Hope you like my shop!

My Kid ROCKS!

2009-06-11T18:39:00.005-06:00

Need I say more?

The Days of Roller-skating

2009-06-10T18:24:00.006-06:00

I randomly saw a teenage boy roller-skating down the street today while I was driving which then caused me to reminisce in my own roller-skating days. Every weekend in elementary and some of middle school I would wait in line to pay my $3 to get in to the Naples Roller Rink. And more often than not I would drag Lisa to join me, even though she disliked it very much. Glow skate and couples skate (where the boy would actually skate backwards and hold the girls waist and the girl would place her hands on the boys shoulders, as if they were slow dancing.) Ahh, those were the days! Yard long licorice and "soft" pretzels. Then coming home and girl talking till we fell asleep about who was the cutest boy there and wondering why on earth he didn't ask me to skate with him! Only a year or two after I stopped going every weekend, someone decided it would be best to turn my dear skating-rink into a bingo joint. And so it is even today. More popular than ever. Old people and their gambling.

But I wonder, is roller-skating still "in"? Or is it at least "back"? I would love to go again and re-live my roller-skating rink days. Except this time, I am fairly confidant that the cutest boy there will ask me to skate with him. Perhaps even more than once! But where to find a skating-rink? And, even more importantly, where to find a sitter!?

Last One...Promise!

2009-06-08T20:52:00.001-06:00

we thought this one would be funny because...well, they can't talk in real life. Let alone sing and dance...ok...Ella does sing. In fact, even better than this girl. (my opinion)

Enjoy!

2009-06-08T20:51:00.001-06:00

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Jib Jab

2009-06-08T12:38:00.002-06:00

Carrie showed us how to do these the other night and now, as I am sure you can imagine, I am addicted! It's hilarious! Enjoy!

2009-06-08T12:36:00.003-06:00

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2009-06-08T12:32:00.001-06:00

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Stick A Fork In Me!

2009-05-27T11:01:00.005-06:00

I'm DONE! By "done", I mean sick of school. It is SUPER hard to do all of this studying and learning completely on your own (online). This summer that is how I have been taking my classes, so I can stay home with Elliott. And I have found that it is tough to stay self-motivated. Especially when there are so many other things that I need to get done and of course, those things that I want to do. It has been nice being able to drop what I am doing and just enjoy Elliott whenever I want (or he wants). We will FINALLY be done in December...well, I will. Preston still has grad school. Should be interesting...and extremely hard...but we will survive.

On a completely separate note, I have been working on some new projects that I am pretty excited about besides the books. I will post pictures as soon as I have some!

Sir Talks A Lot

2009-05-19T21:03:00.004-06:00

Elliott has discovered that he LOVES his own voice. It's pretty dang cute...but can get to be a tiny bit bothersome. For example, we had to leave Sacrament meeting on Sunday because of Elliott's insistence on speaking. I think he wanted to be the one at the pulpit. Here is a glimpse into a day with Elliott.

See what I mean? Adorable! But a little loud at times. Either way, we don't mind. Imagine how talkative he will be when he gets to the "why?" and "what's that?" stage! Oh the things we have to look forward to.

My 1st Mama's Day!

2009-05-15T19:32:00.003-06:00

The time has finally come! I celebrated my very first mother's day this year! Preston...I mean Elliott, did a FANTASTIC job at making me feel loved and appreciated! My day consisted of breakfast, church, a nap (!!!!), a personalized gourmet dinner (Brooke and my mom were also cooked for and considered in the preparation), and gifts! It was great! Elliott gave me the CUTEST card! Since I don't have my camera on hand to take a picture of it, I will try to describe it as best as i can...the card is written in a wide spectrum of colors...the card read as follows...

"To make shur dat u all ways member wen i was free monfs old i wil giv u a hand..."

then you open the card and it reads...

"i luv u mommy!"

and below is a green 3 month old's hand print! SO cute huh?

and with that card Preston....I mean, Elliott, got me a CD that I have wanted for about a year and a 1/2 ago (Ingrid Michaelson) as well as some clamps that I needed for my book binding!! SOO fantastically thoughtful!

I have some pretty swell men in my life eh?

Ya'll Ready For This?

2009-05-12T17:49:00.027-06:00

It has been a busy and exciting last few weeks. Florida was great! We were able to spend lots of time with family and friends and of course, made a trip for Elliott's first time to the beach! Everyone loved seeing Elliott. Linda (Preston's mom) spoiled Elliott rotten! But what are Grandmas for?! It was sweet to be able to see Preston's side of the family get to meet and interact with our little man.

This is an outfit that was Preston's when he was a baby.

I was able to spend some good ole' quality gal time while I was there with Lease (lisa) Delayna, and Larissa. Larissa was taking the picture. Of course, we HAD to go to silverspoon! Lease and I use to go there ALL the time for the mozzarella stars...apparently, now they are triangles. Lame, I know. It was so great to be able to have some Lease time. She has been my best friend for almost 20 years! Sounds kinda crazy that I am that old that I have a friend that I have known that long.

And of course, the BEACH!!

I had bought this WAY cute matching bathing suit and beach hat for Elliott, then I lost the hat and had to buy a new one...of course, I found the matching hat that I had originally bought about 1 hour after we got back from the beach. Figures.

I LOVE those trunks and even more so the boy in them! Check out those pecks!

Jack (Lisa's son) fell in love with Elliott. Rather obsessed actually. It was cute.

We were able to meet up with one of Preston's childhood friends as well. She just so happens to have a baby about 1 month older than Elliott. AND he just so happens to look very similar to Elliott. So...

We thought that they should embrace...turns out...

Neither of them enjoyed it.

Besides enjoying what Preston and I still think of as home,

I have been working quite a bit on this..

That's right! I finally have developed this talent! These are just two of the books I have done so far. I have sold a few on etsy and also at a craft show that Brooke and I did together. It was four days long and it was NOT the kind of craft show we were hoping for...We were hoping it would be more like an "etsyish" fair..but it turned out to be more of a "wow, look at that! ANOTHER painted, wooden beehive!" kind of fair. As you can imagine, our stuff wasn't as appreciated as it might have been at an "etsyish" type of fair, but people still really liked Brooke's pendants. She made a killing!

This was our booth. Preston described it very well. He said that our booth was more urban/cityish, and the rest of the fair was 100% country.

The whole experience over all was great. It was really nice to be able to spend so much time with brooke too. We will be doing it again, but at more "etsyish" shows. I'm excited for that. The next one is in less than a month..I gotta get a move on and make more books so people can buy them!

1,000 Apologies

2009-05-07T22:36:00.000-06:00

I am so sorry it's been so long since I've posted anything. MUCH has happened. Unfortunately, I have zero time to write it all presently...so, I must insist on your patience. It's comin' people. I promise!

Easter!

2009-04-16T07:42:00.010-06:00

We really enjoyed this easter. My nana and grandad were able to come from Florida to visit for a few weeks. Easter was also the day of Elliott's baby blessing. Unfortunately, my camera died before the blessing, so only grandad has pictures of Elliott in his oh so adorable outfit. Those will be coming soon, I hope.This was Elliott's original Easter basket. I later switched it out for a much cuter one. It's a tradition in my family (and probably a lot of families) to hide the Easter baskets and the kids go and find them. So, I hid Elliott's so that he and Preston could find it. (Grandad also has all of the real pictures of this too.) There is kind of a long/funny/frustrating story behind Elliott's easter toy. The one in the basket is NOT the one that I wanted to get him. It is a proxy for the one that didn't show up in the mail on time. Like I said, it's a very long story..but here is the toy that was waiting for him in the mail when we got home from Huntsville.

Preston says that I enjoy the toy more than Elliott...I think he might be right. I have a feeling that's how it might be with all our kids toys. Thankfully, he enjoys it too. His little eyes just dart all over, covering every inch of it. A great buy in my book. Even if it did come SUPER late.

Just 4 More Days!

2009-04-15T09:46:00.005-06:00

Florida, here we come! We are SO excited to finally be going back to Florida for a nice long vacation. Though I am sure it will go by in a flash. I am especially excited to introduce Elliott to so many important people. We just have to survive the next few days of finals (ugg). We both get done with our finals this Saturday evening and then we have to go straight to the airport. Yes, we are leaving in the middle of the night. Should be interesting. Our flight leaves at 1 in the morning and we get to Florida around 9:30 Sunday morning! Needless to say, this Sunday will definitely be a day of rest!

Elliott's Progress Report

2009-04-10T13:51:00.009-06:00

Yesterday was Elliott's 2 month check up. I can't believe he is already 2 months old! At the doctor's they told us that he is perfectly healthy (definite plus) and that he is the 60's when it come to percentile in every category. He now weighs 12 lbs and is almost 24 (2 feet) inches long! The whole head measuring thing I just don't get. oh well.

We noticed last week that Elliott has this small white hard bump on his lower gums...the immediate reaction was that he is getting a tooth! but, according to the doctor, it is only a clogged gland in his gums. It seems to me that our mouths are FILLED with glands! No matter where you turn in the mouth, you can be sure that you aren't too far from a gland.

Some additional great news...Elliott has slept through the night completely the last 4 nights! Before, he would wake up between 3:30 and 5:00am to eat. But not no mo! He is so wonderful! What did we ever do to deserve such an amazing little man!

Fancy Everyone!

2009-04-06T09:44:00.041-06:00

Even though Ella's birthday was on March 25th, Brooke decided to hold off on having Ella's first birthday party until some family could come from Florida to celebrate with us. She themed the party after a children's picture book called...

So the theme was FANCY! Everyone was supposed to dress up way over the top, 100% FANCY! Tutu's, tiaras, bow ties, the works!

Brooke made this awesome FANCY birthday banner

There were PLENTY of FANCY accessories to go around

She also made the tiaras! She's amazing! So FANCY!

Ella, opening presents and being a ham.

I love that little boys are almost completely oblivious as to the way things are "supposed" to be. Of course the women at the party loved Hayes in a tutu. The men however...

A different take on the FANCY umbrellas intended for the food

The birthday Girl all FANCIED up!

I LOVED seeing her dive into her cupcake. I missed Hayes' first birthday because I was on my mission, so it was GREAT to see her in action!

It was also nice to see Hayes in some cupcake action

(he had 3!)

My men! All FANCIED up! I tried to have them match as much as possible. I ended up having to make Elliott's hat because I couldn't find a top hat small enough for him.

And apparently Hayes knows the pledge of allegiance. But I only caught the last part on camera.

All in all it was an AMAZINGLY, FANTASTICLY FANCY PARTY! Brooke did an awesome job..a little TOO awesome! I don't know how she's going to live up to this in the birthdays to come!

The AWESOME and AMAZING pictures of this post were provided by Rikki. Thanks Rik!

Mission Reunion

2009-04-06T09:32:00.008-06:00

This past friday was my mission reunion and I was really excited to introduce Elliott to several people I had served with in Argentina...ESPECIALLY my mission president and his wife!

This is my hija! The sister that I trained in the mission.

Elliott was fascinated with all the striped ties.

President and Sister Record

It was SO wonderful to be at the reunion. I felt like I was back in Argentina having a large zone conference. I absolutely loved my mission and I miss it a lot. Preston served in Uruguay. Our missions are separated by only a river. We will return someday and show Elliott (and whoever else might come along in our little family) where we served the Lord and His children for 18 months and 2 years.

Who Makes Their Child Pose Like This?

2009-03-26T22:23:00.003-06:00