i've moved!

To another blog for a fresh start :)

hope to see you all there!

http://lifeofbabybblog.blogspot.com/

2011 Calls For A New Blog

Thats right im getting rid of this blog and starting over new and fresh 2011 is going to be a good year for us so we'll see where it goes. For now ill leave you with this adorable stocking im picking up this weekend to start my holiday decor :)

Fount At Macys For $10!!!!

Halloween Recap!

Halloween was pretty calm this year. Me & J.D went over to a friends house to spend some time with them. We spent the evening carving a pumpkin, making pumpkin seeds and watching scary movies. Im thinking next year possibly dressing up? In the mean time here is the final product of our punkin :)

 He only let me cut the hole in the top and the eyes but i must say he did a way better job than i could of done!

This is what moving on looks like.....

Its been a few months since the divorce and i have finally met that person to put that beat back in my heart.

Life is Good.

Fall Is Coming Fast!

I'm so excited that fall is almost here! They have started bringing out all the fall scents, coffee drinks, decorations etc. Its my favorite time of the year. This year is going to extra special because Ryan finally has his career going and things are looking a lot better than last year. I've decided that this fall/winter im going to try a slight style change....last year it was hoodies and short sleeve shirts with whatever shoes....this year im thinking a little more put together with sweaters, boots, flats, a pea coat, and scarves which means shopping (one of my favorite past times). To kick off the fall shopping my mom order me this adorable pair of boots for only $24.99 fount here. (i cant post a picture right now but the link should take you straight to them)

They also have some adorable sweaters that are on my wish list this fall. With fall coming in that means the start of pumpkin patches, corn mazes etc and I've decided this year i want to try some of that. I'm getting excited just thinking about everything that is coming up its going to be great :)

Prayers For H & D

A blogger i love to follow and read about every day just gave birth to her little boy. He is only 28 weeks old, he is in NICU right now and will be for a while but the doctors say he is doing very well. You can read his story over at Live. Laugh. Love. We are praying for you Brayden, keep strong for mommy and daddy.

Their First Family Photo:

A Long Wait Lead To A Finished Process

This weekend has been pretty nerve racking for us all since sometime this week we will find out if Crystal is in remission from the Hodgkins Of The Lymphatic System. Last time we went for her chemo her doctor said all signs of it in her neck were gone and that he thinks the rest might be gone but he wont know for sure until she gets a cat scan done which will be sometime this week hopefully. Please keep us in your prayers as we go along this journey. If she is in remission she will only need 2 more chemo sessions to make sure she stays in remission and will only need follow up visits to make sure it stays gone. In somewhat of a celebration we finally finished my tattoos. She started them november of last year on thanksgiving and they were put on hold when we got the cancer news. 9 months later they are finally finished plus one. Im so glad that she was able to finish them and add the new one. It has even more of a special meaning now.

Curly Hair Check!

I think i finally mastered curling my hair with a curling iron! let me know what you think!

White Chocolate Cake Success!

I fount this recipe in a southern living cookbook i had checked out from the library a couple weeks ago and finally decided to make it. Ill just say that the first one didn't work out to well but i did a lot of things wrong and had to try other stuff. At last i finally got it right and it turned out perfect! Ill post the after picture with the frosting but my uncle mark decided to help me get it "unstuck" and it kind of crumbled on one side so ill post the before picture too so you can see. All and all it didn't turn out that bad except for running out of frosting.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup chopped bakers (bakers brand) white chocolate

1 cup butter, softened

1 ½ cups sugar

4 large eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 ½ cups shifted self rising flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Microwave chocolate in a glass bowl on HIGH 45 seconds or until melted. Beat the butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beat well after each addition. Add melted white chocolate and vanilla.

Sift flour and baking soda together; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat egg whites at high speed until peaks form. Gently fold beaten egg whites into batter. Pour batter into 3 greased 9-inch round cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks. Spread frosting in-between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish, if desired. 

Just a side note: i used the whipped cream cheese frosting and it turned out delicious!

My Favorite New Accessory!

Im a big accessory person, i love handbags, wallets, jewelry etc. It drives ryan nuts how im constantly changing things but i wouldn't be me if i didn't : )


Here lately ive been on a scavenger hunt for an adorable wallet and have been coming up empty handed. Today me and my sister decided we were going to go to rue 21 and check out their clothes and etc. When i walked up to the checkout counter thats where i seen it. I fell in love! The great thing about it is you can use it by itself too.

I also got three (yes i said three) pairs of jeans for $3 each from the clearance rack and two tube tops that were only $3 (the wallet was $5 since i bought my sister one too). My sister was also about to pick up a couple shirts for $3. The best part is since ga isn't doing their tax free week (not fair!) rue decided they were going to take an additional 10% off the entire store including clearance and sale items! We got $112 worth of stuff for $45! I love bargain shopping!

Happy Birthday To Me!!

Im finally 21 today wooo hoooo! Tonight will be filled with:

Guest Post.

This is brittanys little sister Mackenzie and i just wanted to do a guest post on her blog to wish her a happy birthday! i love you sis!

My Strawberry Icebox Cake

Its the first recipe i tried out of my homemade cookbook and it actually was really good minus the sugar and vanilla and i substituted the chocolate with chocolate syrup. I had little ones eating it too and i didn't want them to sugared up before bed : )

2 pounds fresh strawberries, washed
3 1/4 cups whipping cream, divided
1/3 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 sleeves (about 19 ounces, or 24 to 28 whole crackers) graham crackers
2 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
Take out a few of the best-looking strawberries and set them aside for the garnish. Remove leaves from the remainder of the strawberries and cut each berry into thin slices.
With a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer, whip 3 cups of cream on high until it stiffens, about 2-3 minutes. Add the confectioners sugar, vanilla, and whip to combine.
Spread a small spoonful of whipped cream on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan, or a similarly-sized platter. Lay down six graham crackers. Lightly cover the top of the graham crackers with more whipped cream, and then a single layer of strawberries. Repeat three times, until you have four layers of graham crackers. Spread the last of the whipped cream over the top. Add a few more strawberries.
To make the chocolate ganache, heat the cream until bubbles form around the edges, then pour over the chopped chocolate. Let it stand for a few minutes, then whisk until the mixture is thick and glossy. Drizzle this over the layered dessert with a spoon.
Refrigerate for at least four hours, or until the crackers have softened completely. Garnish with additional berries.

A Rainy Day Calls For

Some shopping at the mall for something else to wear for my birthday since we changed the plans around (the big announcement is coming in another post tomorrow) i needed something a little more casual/dressy to wear. I fount this adorable top here and its just perfect for where we are going : )

In my book a rainy day is never complete without a vanilla dr pepper from qt and a lovely little rainbow we like to take pictures of while we are driving down the road and i promise we dont get reckless. Hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

Project Cookbook!

If there is one thing i love to do in this world is cook and bake. The one thing i hate in this world is cookbooks. They are good for some recipes but why spend so much on cookbooks for only a handful of recipes and thats when my sister suggested i make my own cookbook full of my own recipes that me and my family like so that way i have them on hand when i need them. I have been doing lots of research online for some recipes and got some really good ones im hoping to try soon and ill have to post them as i go along and tell you how it goes. They dont totally look the best right now but they are just starters and ill probably move up as i go but for now here is my cookbook project. My next project is restoring the table and chairs we have wish me luck!

(sorry about the mess in the floor me and my sister are in the process of re arranging the room)

T.J Maxx Finds For This Half Of The Year : )

Since i moved back to woodstock there isn't a tj maxx around here so i dont have that many TJ maxx finds anymore but hopefully that will change soon but for now here are a few for the past 7 months : )

My first find of the year was my juicy couture day dreamer bag that i absolutely love!

My second one was my resuable tj maxx shopping back for only $.99 each! Its perfect as a beach bag, overnight bag or as it says reusable shopping bag for when you go to the mall so your not carrying so many bags around with you plus you wont have all those bags when you get home!

My final purchase was my 21st birthday dress. I had been searching for months for the perfect dress to wear out to dinner and i wasn't coming up empty handed everything was "cute" but nothing stood out until i saw this one and i knew the moment i tried it on that it was the perfect one and it was only $20!

Have You Had Any Good Tj Maxx Finds?

My 25 Small Pleasures In Life : )

A good friend of mine sent me this article and it inspired me to write up my short list of my small pleasures in life although i must admit most of them came from that list but its all the same!

1. sleeping in

2. finding a couple forgotten dollars in your pocket

3 .a home cooked meal

4. laughing

5. a bubble bath

6. your favorite song

7. helping someone in need

8. inspiring blogs

9. a rainy afternoon

10. an afternoon nap

11. finding the perfect piece of clothing...on sale

12. staying in your pj's all day

13. the sound of rain hitting the windows

14. holding hands

15. a kiss on the forehead

16. the cold side of the pillow

17. kissing someone you love

18. old photographs

19.bacon and pancakes cooking on Saturday morning

20. A good book you can get lost in

21. the way my dog looks at me when we first wake up in the morning

22. a pull-through parking space

23. a french vanilla cappuccino

24. bargain shopping

25. reading outside

I hope this list inspires you to write one of your own. I hope you all enjoy your day!

Favorite Fridays: 4th Of July Activity!

Im like most people and one of my all time favorite things to do on the 4th of july is go see fireworks. I can't say ive ever been to the same place twice but when you go to different places it makes it more interesting. The past couple 4ths we spent time with Ryans family and this year its time we spend it with mine. Our weekend is going to be jammed packed full this weekend starting tomorrow night.

Saturday Night: We have the dirt track races at Dixie Speedway with a fireworks show
Sunday Morning: Going to the lake for jet skis, boating, tanning and a cook out.
Sunday Night: Going to the old famous home depot hole to see fireworks : )

I absolutely love fireworks and spending time with family so this should be awsome and i can't wait! How are you guys spending your 4th?

A Day Of Silence For Cohen

You can find out more here.

A Leap Into Fashion & 21st Birthday Plans!

Things have been so hectic lately i haven't really been able to post so while i have time ill cram to posts into one. I have taken a brave leap into fashion and have gone out of my comfort zone on a lot of things but they have been good choices so far so we will see how the rest goes! I started out with buying this bag from the mall, i wasn't totally sure about it though. I eyed it and finally i seen 8 different girls buy the bag from the shop and that made up my mind i was going to buy it and let me tell you i have gotten so many compliments on it!

The bag lead to my next fashion choice which was a pair of sandals from payless. Ive seen a lot of different styles of these this year but wasn't quite sure if i wanted to make the plunge but they matched the bag so i had to buy them plus i couldn't pass up the buy one get one half off deal they had going on so i bought another pair of slingback flats that i totally adore now! I'm slowly coming into the fashion world in baby steps haha.

Part II:

My 21st birthday is coming up on July 12 and i can not wait! I know most people get excited about it because you can legally drink and yes its fun but for me it opens up more doors than anything else. I really wanted to do something special for my birthday this year since i have never made a big deal out of any other birthday. I wasn't quite sure what i was going to do for it yet so i asked Ryan for some ideas i told him one night i would like for us just to go out to eat and spend time together. Well that must of been the best idea i ever had because he finally sent me a text message back asking about the cheesecake factory. Its one of the most popular restaurants in Atlanta and i have been dying to go there so that totally made my day and gave me a place to wear this adorable dress too : )

I scored this pretty little thing at tj maxx for only $20! Now if i can only find some shoes to go with it i guess i get to hit the mall and head over to traffic to see if i can find some cute shoes!

Off Day : )

Today is my first off day of my work week haha. I thought id take this day to clean and catch up on things before i have to work 4 days in a row and have a baby shower to go right after work on saturday so im going to be pooped! I really think i am going to enjoy working at garden ridge so far everyone i have met is really friendly and really helpful. Now all i have to do is get my GED stuff rolling and im good to go until i get my GED then its off to college!

On another note id like to update everyone on crystal. Not much has changed really we wont know anything until Friday about what else is going on. Luckily my god father had two family members who went through this and a blogger friend of mine had her mother go through it and we have all been talking and its really helping this situation a lot. I really wish i had more to update with but unfortunately at this time i don't. I'll try to post on Saturday what news we got Friday and let everyone know. Thank you to everyone for your prayers and support it really means a lot to me and my family.

God Is Good.

I just got the best news ever today! After two years of searching and searching for a job i was finally able to find one! I applied a couple of weeks ago at garden ridge and they called me in for an interview a few days later and they were running my background check and said they would get back to me. I was sooooo nervous i didn't get the job because it has been a couple weeks since i heard from them and today i got a phone call and they said they were finishing up the last steps of my application and about 3 hours later i got a call back with a job offer!! I start tomorrow at 12:30 and i cant wait! Its going to be so good to be back to work again i can't wait!

Praying For Crystal.

The news is in. Crystal has Hodgkins disease/cancer. They don't know what stage she is in yet but we do know it hasn't spread through her body. I'm not totally sure what to think yet this is a big shock to the family. I feel so bad for my mom because she has been so stressed out about it. Her day pretty much consists of crying/being extremely angry etc. She didn't sleep much last night and it breaks my heart to see her like this. I myself, well im not exactly sure how to react. Sometimes i fear the worse but most of the time im keeping a positive attitude or forcing myself not to think about it. I know not thinking about it isn't good but i guess its a normal reaction. I can say i haven't cried or lost any sleep YET. Should i feel bad about this? I'm not sure what to feel right now. So far all we know is they are doing A BUNCH more test on her and starting her chemotherapy in about a week. I really wish i had more to offer on the situation but at this time i don't. The hardest part about this all is she's in Tennessee and were here in Georgia and its about a three hour drive from here to where she is. Im hoping we can go visit her soon it would really be nice to see her. I'm trying to be strong through all of this i just dont know how much longer i can hold up before i completely lose it.

Babies Babies Everywhere!

Last year carried on into this year with all the babies coming into this world! There are so many blogs now with pregnant women, women trying to conceive, women with children its crazy but wonderful at the same time. Its almost making me get baby fever haha. So far i have three upcoming baby showers to attend, one being next weekend on the 17th for a long time friend of mine. I haven't seen her in so long! I'm thinking what im going to start doing for baby showers is making a personalized gift basket for each mom to be depending on how well it goes over next weekend. So far i have fount a couple of ADORABLE things on Etsy that i have ordered for it and i figured i would just put some miscellaneous stuff in there such as pacifiers, bottles, bibs etc. just kinda mix and match stuff. Two things i know will be staple items in them if i do start to do them are from here and they are ADORABLE! i know my blogger friend Jessica will love them! They are cupcake wash clothes and candy blankets :)

Of course these are made for a little girl but she can do some for boys and even unisex. these are so adorable and really add a unique touch to a staple item for every mom to be because every new mom needs wash clothes and blankets right? The best part is each cupcake is only $4 each and it comes with two wash clothes and the blankets are only $6 each. She also has other stuff such as wash cloth bouquets, washcloth corsages etc. Ill update when i have my first basket done and post a picture of it. I'm really hoping it turns out super cute that and with Easter over maybe i can score a good deal on a cute basket for it all wish me luck!

Easter Recap!

Im going to start out this post by saying that Easter is one of my favorite holidays since i only have three. Its the start of spring (which means we get to break out the flip flops and cute sandals) and it is also a time filled with bright colors and families coming together to spend time with each other. This year was a bit different then my ordinary routine with my parents, Early Morning Service at church and then down to south Georgia with family. Well this year we decided that we would go to Alabama for Easter with Ryan's family and it was alot of fun. I had never heard of this before but it was a game that they played called Raw Egg Toss. It was alot of fun to watch but i didn't get to involved in it because knowing my luck i would try to catch it and it would break and ruin my new dress i bought just for the occasion but my husband on the other hand he has had plenty of time to master it. He did so well catching it with one hand and he only busted one out of all the eggs they had. He dropped a few but they didn't break. The best part about easter this year is the weather was great! It was sunny and warm and the kids were able to egg hunt outside unlike last year when it rained and got all nasty outside.

Now id like to move on to my next topic which is big for me because i would call it my BIG fashion step. Im normally the type of person who just goes casual and doesn't break out of the line very much when it comes to fashion but when i was shopping for an easter outfit i couldn't help myself with this and it turned out to be a big hit and i got so many compliments and people asking where i got my dress.

I got my dress and leggings from here. Papaya Clothing is one of my all time favorite stores, they have low prices so you find cute pieces to mix and match without breaking the bank and they have an online store that they just got up in running if you dont have a store near you! I bought this dress for only $15 and paid $5 for my leggings i wore under it because of how short it was with a pair of ballet flats i already had so $20 later i had my easter outfit!

They also had it in dark blue but i was to crazy about it. But with leggings and flats it turned out to be a huge hit for only $15! I'm going to have to start shopping there more often! I hope everyone else had a great and safe Easter! Id love to hear what all you guys did : )

Cha-Cha-Changes : )

I must say my life is very unplanned out and very random. Things keep constantly changing and getting mixed up, broken, fixed and everything in between. In the past two weeks i have been on such an emotional roller coaster and things are finally getting back to normal to where i can write a normal well thought out blog post. I would like to start out this post by talking a little bit about Ryan and I. A couple weeks ago i made the heartbreaking post that we were calling it quiets after three long  years together and one year of marriage. I will say that it wasn't my choice but i respected his wishes and tried as hard as i could to hold up to it. Needless to say after we both had some time to calm down and think about things we started talking again and slowly started working things out to where we could find a common ground and have that compromise. I will be the first to tell you that we are back together and we are trying our hardest to work things out since he has finally realized a lot of things. On another positive note i had a job interview on Thursday with garden ridge one of my favorite stores of all time and they are running my background check and they are suppose to be getting back to me today to follow up on it. I really hope i get this job because that will put Ryan and I on the fast track to paying off bills and moving out! It will also feel great to start working again and they are very flexible so i can now go back to school too! I really hope things work out for the better this time i have really been praying over it and im hoping this is in my plan.

Here are a few inspirations for our home when we get it. I can't wait!

i want to find a way to do that to our pantry door (its so cute!)

i cant wait to start decorating!

These People Make This Transition So Much Easier : )

The past two weeks have been pretty hard for me adjusting to everything and seperating stuff etc. I can update you all and tell you im doing better each and everyday and today just reminded me of the amazing friends i have. I started off the day by going to walmart with an old friend i haven't seen in so long! It was so nice to catch up and talk about whats been going on etc. Then i made dinner pot roast with mashed potatoes and steam veggies and then went to the park/river with this totally cute boy and some other friends and sat around and talked about old times and new times while they were fishing and guess what? I learned to fish today haha. Today just reminded me of the amazing friends i have. I love spending time with them and im sure we all have alot more memories to come : )

I Love This Boy He's My Bestie :D

How Was Your Day Today?

From Mrs. To Miss. The Journey Begins.

That will be my new blog name. I have done a lot of thinking the past few days and have decided im not going to dwell on the past anymore. I have a bright future ahead of me and if i dwell all im doing is holding myself back. I have finally come up with a plan of action and can't wait to get started on it. I'm slowly dealing with the feelings and holding nothing back, they say its not good to keep things in like this. What he did was inexcusable but it has only made me stronger and i have learned from my mistakes. It really helps a lot when you have a great support system of family, friends and other loved ones. I'm going to overcome this one day at a time. Let the Healing Begin

This is so true " Relationships are like glass. Sometimes it's better to leave them broken than try to hurt yourself putting it back together."

This Is Starting Over...

Its official me and Ryan are getting a divorce. I know this has been brought up in the past but we have tried to work it out and its just not happening. I dont want to go into sorted details but this is the beginning of my healing process. wish me luck guys : )


New Blog Design Coming Soon

This Totally Made My Night : )

A wise friend told me this the other night and it has really stuck to me so i thought id share : )

Me- "How did i get mixed up with such crazy friends?"
Brandie "i cant tell you that one
Taz- "No, You didn't get mixed up with us, its like cotton candy, Your the stick and you just got stuck in and swirled around and we just stuck to you"

So now cotton candy has a whole new meaning to me : )