Another Sweet Success!

Charlotte got M&M's this afternoon - not because she ate a good lunch but because she FINALLY went to the potty on her own. YEAH!!! We were thrilled and did a happy dance around the toilet. After she received her M&M's she graciously reminded me that she also was to get a sticker. Here's hoping that we are finally getting somewhere on the potty train. :)

Blogs I'm Reading...

If you aren't familiar with Sarah Jane Studios then let me inform you, they are wonderful. I have been following Sarah on her blog over at www.sarahjanestudios.com ever since I purchased one of her prints for Charlotte's nursery. I obviously love paper goods, but hers are some of my favorite. She is finishing up illustrating her first book for Harper Collins and I can't wait for it to come out.

While her art is inspiring, her life motivates me to strive for my dreams. She is a wife, mother of three (two are irish twins and she just had a new baby in the last year) all while working and crafting from home. I love her upbeat attitude and her fresh approach to explaining life in a positive way.

When you get a chance, check her out, be inspired, and enjoy identifying with a woman who is following her passions and living her dreams both in business and in life.

feeling gray...

I am not feeling blue today, just gray... actually white to be exact. You see, I need my hair done - and badly. Not just cut, but colored. Yes, I am one of the many that is very thankful for the invention of hair dye. Oh, not for the purpose of getting a new color (I actually like my color) because if I didn't my white hair would show - and it is certainly showing now.

If you have seen pictures of my father, his brother, or my grandmother you will see that I come from a line of people with WHITE hair. The good thing about these genes is that is is beautiful white hair - my grandmother gets complimented all the time. Let's face it, though, at 31 neither me, nor my hubby, is ready for my hair to go white... so I color it.

It has been coming in slowly since I was 19, but I feel certain that I will be completely white headed in ten years. Oh, you won't know because I swear I will color it until I am "old enough" to sport it and it be acceptable. So if you are blessed with the kind of hair that is showing no signs of aging - thank your lucky stars. The rest of us out there will keep covering it up and pretending it isn't really there. :)

A Shout Out

This was one of my favorites


Classic boy - gotta love it!


A sweet one of him destroying the cake - see how she made it a pretty picture. Amazing!


Most of Charlotte's friends are boys and she was giving Jayden a bunch of lovin that day. This was too sweet, but hands off in a few years, Jayden! :)


Doug's grandpa, Doug, and Douglass Charles - three of the four Charles (see heirlooms post). A very special picture!

So my babies are sick here at the English household. Charlotte came down with it this weekend and now Douglass Charles has a fever and runny nose as well as a horrible cough. I knew when Charlotte got sick he would be soon to follow, so we are bunkered down trying to get these babies well. If they have to be sick I am thankful they are sick this week - this hopefully means they will be well for the trip to Mississippi next week for my grandmother's 90th birthday.

So... with not much to post I did want to share these beautiful pictures that my friend Suzie took of Douglass Charles' birthday. She is so amazing and just started her photography business in the last year - check it out at www.splitsecondatl.com.

Suzie and I have known one another for a while, but didn't start hanging out until last fall when she and I did the Birthday Bash Giveaway. She has been so sweet and our business relationship has turned into a friendship - we still do business stuff together too. She is quite the talented lady and photography is truly her passion - can't you tell. So, thanks, Suzie for the beautiful pictures and for capturing my little boy's special day!

Sweet Success!

Enjoying their "tea party" at the new table Douglass Charles got for his birthday.


Charlotte enjoying yet more sugary goodness. If you like her top I got it from Katie's Creative Creations at www.facebook.com/katiescreativecreations. Too cute!

A June Cleaver I am not. Oh, you may think because I like to cook, I sew and craft, and I am ridiculously domestic that June must be my middle name. There are many reasons I am not Mrs. Cleaver - one being my lack of house cleaning skills - but first and foremost, I have NEVER been successful with making a simple and delicious chocolate chip cookie.

To me, the chocolate chip cookie is the qualifier and honestly, without this skill all one's homemaking skills don't count. Oh, I have tried many a recipe, but my cookies come out pathetic, always flat, crispy and no good after they have cooled. So... I married a man that never fails at this delicious task.

Friday afternoon it was rainy and I knew we needed a project - something to get us through until naptime. Charlotte loves baking, but with groceries slim, I wasn't sure what I had in my cabinets to muster together. I found some chocolate morsels, I normally have necessary baking goods on hand, so I decided we would make the dreaded chocolate chip cookie for dad - he hadn't been feeling so well so we wanted to cheer him up.

Determined that I would at least try to make a good cookie I pulled a cookbook off the shelf that I KNEW would have baking recipes that warranted success - my Mennonite cookbook. Now my link to this cookbook is another story I will have to share at another time, but I reminisced about the delicious cookies Mrs. Weber and Mrs. Classen used to make when I was a child - Tollhouse has nothing on these ladies.

So... I set out, Charlotte excited and we picked a recipe. About thirty minutes later after mixing, spooning the batter, and placing them in the oven I waited with baited breath - would they be flat once again? I opened the oven and much to my dismay the cookies were PERFECT! They tasted delicious and were honestly the best batch of cookies I have ever made! Even Doug, the master chocolate chip cookie maker, was impressed.

Ironically, when I went to determine where my success lay I was dumbfounded when I realized that I had taken parts from one lady's recipe and parts from another without even knowing it. Can you believe it? After nearly 30 years of trying to make the perfect cookie and I am not even sure what measurements for the ingredients I used.

At least now, even if I am never successful again, I can know that at least once in my life I conquered and created a very delicious, chewey, chocolate chip cookie. :)

Little Extras

Just a reminder... my Stock Up and Save event ends tomorrow. For more details just head on over to www.theenglishpea.com to get more for your money. :)

These cards pictured are my Classic Boy's Notecards. This design was one of my very first creations and honestly, I didn't sell one of these in 2009. Ironically they have been all the rage over at The English Pea in the last month - the go to card for many a customer. I have always liked this card and decided to keep it around - even though it didn't sell last year. Glad I did.

I recently had a customer that wanted to add matching address labels and liners to her set. I loved how they turned out. I haven't spoken much about my liners because it does add a little cost to the notecard sets, but those liners do really add a little pizzazz to this ensemble. So, just remember, if you really want to spruce up some cards for yourself or for a gift - an envelope liner will definitely do the trick. Enjoy!

Signs of Spring

I took these photos specifically for this post and the next day it snowed. I don't just yearn for the warm temperatures and the beauty of Spring, but today, I am wishing for summer - yes, the hot temperatures, the warm sun, flip flops and sundresses and vacation by the water.

Doug was not feeling well when he came home this evening and the kids were not being very cooperative. I decided to give Doug some peace and take the kids for a stroll. There was something in the air - you know that cooler breeze with a little warmth from the sun. The kind you feel from time to time while walking on the beach by the ocean. And in the quiet of our walk I was wishing for the ocean.

We have had a very busy past few weeks and maybe my wanting to skip the Spring and go straight to summer is I need the down time the hotter months bring. Maybe it is because I have been away from the ocean too long. Who knows... all I know is that as much as I love Spring flowers and the cool air, I love the water and warm temperatures more. So heres to dreaming about the months ahead and the relaxation they usually bring! :)