Happy Easter

Here's to hoping that you and your family have a blessed and happy Easter

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New Years Resolutions

Its that time again!

New Years is here and its time to start thinking about changing out lives for the better

I have been thinking about these for a while now, since my life has changed a lot in the last twenty days, moving cross country with my daughter, has brought a whole slew of responsibilities that I anticipated, but can't say that I was exactly prepared for. 

I have also gained my family back, I finally have some help watching Annabella and to be honest, its nice to have a break. Its hard to break free from feeling guilty about leaving her with someone else. My mom has been helping me so much and its great; and while I know that most parents have a break every once in a while, I've been having a hard time deciding how much time I can spend away.

So in an effort to stick with them; here are my new years resolutions for 2011:

1. Exercise: My body looks great right now, I'm not gonna lie, but with that said, I also know how easy it will be to loose the tone in my arms and to get my abs into shape. I am going to try to exercise at least every other day. I want to change up my exercise so I don't get too bored. A healthy mix of the exercise ball, yoga and a little cardio should get me right where I want to be, and hopefully make it into a habit.
2. Go to School: I want to have a career, yes something besides blogging. I would like to go for something simple, where I can be sure to get a job. Living the last three years having it hard to find a job has made me really want to be able to have something steady. To ensure that my daughter will have a steady life.
3. Sew: I do sew lots, but I would like to make more of an effort to do it more often. I have more time now to do it and can have my family help watch her while I go to town with my machine. I would like to get an Etsy shop started up again because I loved making clothes for people.
4. Be comfortable alone: Its hard to be a single mom, especially looking at all these happy families that live in the Blog-o-verse. I have been trying hard to learn how to be a single mommy and not want something different. This year I want to find ways to be happy without help.
5. Stop Being Angry: Its hard right now not to be angry with Annabella's father for not being what he promised. It seems everyday I find another reason to be angry with him for not being there for us or growing up when it was time to. Its hard to get over and while I haven't found an answer or even an idea of how to do it. This year I really want to be free from feeling bad about his mistakes. So that I can free the other areas of my life from being angry.
6. Get Back to me: Now that I'm back in CT, I want to return to the happy person that I was before I became isolated in Northern California. I'm going to return to the kind of person that loves people for who they are not what I want them to be. I'm going to get back to all the good friends that I had and almost lost while trying to change myself. 
7. Organize: I am going to try to be organized this year. Keeping all my important papers in their places and using my calendar to its full potential. Also trying to put all those dirty clothes in their places!
8. Have Some Fun: For three years my life has been completely about other people. I cooked, cleaned, drove, organized, sewn and shopped for other people. And while I love doing things for other people, I forgot about myself in that process. I became a doormat that I really didn't like which made it hard for me to like myself, This year, I want to remember that I'm important too.

So here's to trying to stick to these and to you trying to stick to yours! Its a New Year and a new beginning. Not to say whats in the past doesn't matter, but we can't change it, so we might as well get over it and start from here.

Happy New Year

What are your resolutions this year?

Visiting Auntie Heather!

You'll all remember this post about when my best friend Heather came to visit me, well needless to say as often as possible we were together in Connecticut while I was there (we even got to go see Jerry Garcia Band without Annabella)

It really makes me miss being back home when I think about all the fun that we had and how short the whole time seemed. She's the only person I can get this excited with! This would be us eating some wonderful shepherd's pie at the El 'N Gee in New London CT. 

Here we were introduced to 'Lemonadies'  Our friend/ the amazing bartender at the gee invented them on the spot! Since I still think she should patent them I'm not gonna giveaway the secret formula but if you are ever in the area, visit the place!

As Usual Heather has a crazy cat! I actually kinda like this one, she is really cool, and some fancy breed. She was sitting like this for a while, and I couldn't help but take a picture!

Annabella loved Heather's dog, as well as the rest of my friends out there. It was almost like she instantly knew that we were home and she could chill. Well, party was more like it then chill, she loved listening to "Unkie D" and Sean play the guitar, and her and Dumpster (Heather's dog) got along great (except when Dumpster would run out of space and knock her over, but she quickly forgave him)

And out of all the CD's in the book guess which one she picked?? Phish! She takes after her Unkie D for sure!

Annabella and Dumpster were inseparable, even when we tried to separate them so that Annabella could eat, they couldn't help but want to hang out...... or maybe Dumpsters motivation was the scrambled eggs.... we'll never know for sure.

Another perk about being at Auntie Heather's were her yummy scrambled eggs! Mmmm 

 

We all enjoyed some girlie dress up time! 

Annabella tried hard to learn how to hula hoop, she's still a little small to fit, but with a little bit of Auntie's help, she'll be hooping like a pro in no time!

Another crazy picture of Heather's crazy cat! 

We had such a great time visiting with Auntie Heather, and all of my hometown friends back in New London, if you live on the east coast I encourage you to visit the town, and the towns around it! 

A fun party!

Annabella turned one on the first of the month and we had a small get together for her. She got lots of wonderful presents, unfortunetly, I forgot to charge my camera until she started opening them, luckily my camera charges fast, so I got pictures of her opening up her barn set.

The first gifts were opened much slower then the last one, by the Barn she had figured out what was going on

Showing off some wrapping paper skillls!

Look! A farmer!

After presents and some playtime, we had some cake, I'm kind of regretting that I didn't make her a chocolate cake because I think the pictures might have been better. But everybody at the party loved them, in fact it was the first time I've ever seen every cupcake that I made get eaten. 

Watching mommy get the cupcake ready,  I made the hat with a simple design, let me know if you would like a tutorial for it and I will work on one. I also made her the bib out of recycled fabric.

She was a little confused at everybody singing to her (usually she's singing to us!)

I can't remember my first taste of buttercream, but I bet it was an amazing experience. 

To get a reaction like this out of your guests make Billy's Vanilla, Vanilla Cupcakes, they are sure to be a hit, as is anything I make from Martha's website. I used 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder, if you read the comments and watch the video, you'll see there is a lot of dispute about how much baking powder to put in them. To be honest I think using 2 tsp of the baking powder might have made them fluffier without effecting the taste.

This was after the cupcake, you can tell by the huge sugar -spun eyes. She had just taken the toy from the dog and was making one of her typical 'Please  Uncle Sean' faces. She has him wrapped around her finger!

All in all it was a small but happy birthday and I think Annabella enjoyed herself, the highlight of the night was watching Annabella take her first steps after her cupcake while  being a crazy baby! 

Happy Birthday Annabella!

Last Year

Well tomorrow is the day that Annabella officially turns one. I can't belive its been a year since 

This:

Annabella Lynn 

Born 6lb 15.5oz

September 1, 2009

I thought that I would be a mess, I thought I would be in tears. My baby is growing up, and I've done quite a bit myself.

But I'm not, I'm excited, I feel the same excitement inside me, as if I'm turning a year old all over again. Because in a way, I guess I am. Tomorrow, I will have been a mother for a year. Its crazy to think that, because still when I look at pictures, it doesn't even seem real.

I've a lot about myself and the people around me in the last year. I've also (instinctively I guess) felt closer to the women in my family, and those that I've never met before. 

Being a mother has given me the desire to become the kind of person I want my daughter to look up to.

  My afternoons of shopping for clothes for myself has turned into play-dates with new friends. 

My lace bras and matching undies, have turned into a set of nursing bras and whatever's clean.

Nights out at danceclubs have turned into snuggling on the couch watching Curious George.

I still go to festivals, but the late night jams are rarely caught, and instead of  a hot sun waking me up. Its a hungry baby amidst the contents of our suitcase.

I wouldn't trade it for the world.

I won't be blogging tomorrow,  I want to make September 1st as happy for Annabella, as she made it last year for me

Doing it herself

Its nice to be able to eat chicken parm, while she feeds herself!

How long have you been here

Cleaning out my drawers today, and I was surprised by this guy

Of course, I was home alone, so I freaked out (hence the clown picture frame that I knocked off the top of the dresser and into the drawer making the lizard jump causing me to scream again)

Not to worry though, I  accessed the situation and the little guy is now probably living underneath the lavender bush in the front yard. It required me to remove the drawer, and bring it outside so that the lizard could escape.

What was I like in 2006

I was inspired by this post from Ashley over at How to Hide a tank and was inspired to share some of my own memories with you

Employed at Subway!

My best friend for life, we were joined at the hip at this point in time

On tour following Bob Wier and RatDog lead to meeting Keller Williams in Providence RI (seriously check out his stuff it rocks)

Practicing my modeling poses

Getting ready for nights out

We became pros at taking pictures of ourselves

Hippie Festivals were the weekend regular

And of course the fabulous and famous Hot Pink cast, a warning that roller skates and a day of margaritas don't mix with skate parks!

We're Back! And its our 100th Post~

How wonderful to be back in Blog Land!

For those of you just tuning in, we were going through some financial difficulties and the internet was not quite in our budget, sadly due to some past losses, my library card holds some serious debt. But nevertheless we are back and so happy to be here.

Being away from the internet has had its downside, directions, e-mails and staying in touch in general has proved to be sort of a problem. My supply of soap nuts dissapated quickly, and I found myself spending loads of money on laundry detergent! (However the oxyclean did come in handy when I accidentally spilled a glass of wine on Ryan)

All in all though life has been good, we have been enjoying life without a computer, which has meant lots of episodes of the The Sopranos! And Star Trek (I'd almost consider myself a trekie and I'm anxiously awaiting the next convention!)

Annabella keeps growing and getting bigger, she has mastered 'no' (although I'm not quite sure she grasps the concept of it yet)

I have been practicing my photography skills, and been busy using up my fabric stash (annabella now has a collection of dresses constructed of old curtains) I was lucky enough to win a copy of 

Handmade Beginnings: 24 Sewing Projects to Welcome Baby

from Prudent baby, and I have been making some adorable projects from it, so far we have three dresses from curtains. Here's a picture of her farm dress that I made from some old kitchen curtains and a scrap of fabric from the free box outside the fabric store

A chicken with velcro chicks made from scraps, has become a new favorite toy

I also made this quilt which only cost me about $8 because everything came from the discount fabric store!

It was originally meant for etsy, but Annabella claimed it

Annabella has found a new interest in cooking with mama

Some kind relatives sent us a Christmas dress (it should fit perfect in about two years when she will wear a 3T)

Feeding herself has been a little complicated but less messy then expected thanks to the 

Boon Catch Bowl

and

 

Boon Benders

but not totally without a mess!

We also got a swing and tied it in an old oak tree, this has provided for hours of fun and it only cost us about $24 for the swing!

I'll have another post later with updated garden pics and some pictures of our trips to a few rivers!