With baited breath....

I know you all have been waiting for pics of Morgy's Birthday Party.. Or at least I would like to think that everyone finds it as important as I do.  Anyway, without any further delay... Here are some pics from Morgan Alexa's very first birthday party!!

We had such a great time celebrating with our family and friends.

Butterflies...

I love that even after all this time my husband still gives me butterflies.

In a couple of weeks, we will be celebrating our second wedding anniversary, and it always gives me great joy to search for gifts for him.  On my daily search of my Favorite Website Etsy.com, I came across this framed piece of art, and I fell in love with it.  I have gone back and looked at it several times, before I decided that I must have it, for our bedroom.  The message is very clear.

God heard my earnest prayers ... and he gave me Anwar.  I couldn't ask for anything more.

It's Party Day!!

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Mo's Turning One

I am well aware that my baby girl won't have any recollection of her 1st bday party, but I am still super excited about being able to spend this day celebrating her with friends and families.

I can't believe how fast this year has flown by.

Truly cherish the moments because they are fleeting...

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Yuck!!

I don't know how it is in your neck of the woods.  But, here in Atlanta the pollen count is out of control.  I swear I did not have any allergies until moving here.  And, even though the good far out weighs the bad days like this... I wish. (Five Heartbeats Reference).  So.. needless to say I am using this as my reason not to post as much this week, not to mention, that this weekend is my baby girl's first birthday party.

Hope everyone is having a great week!!

Spring Break!!

My dh and I finally decided on where we are going for Spring Break.  It has been a long process to get here, and there were soo many amazing pictures.  But, the one that caught my eye, and just... soothed my spirit was this one.  

Hope you all have a Great Weekend!!

A Late Saint Patty's Day Post -- Greenery Pics!!

Hope you all enjoyed....

Things I Love...

1.  Crate and Barrel Sheets -- HEAVEN!!

2.  Crate and Barrel Towel Sets -- LIKE BUTTER!!

3.  TWIX - Ice Cream Bars - YUMMY!

Signature Gifts...

I love to think that I have a lot of Signature Things that only I do.  In reality, I am sure there are a lot of people out there, that do extraordinary things.  Two years ago, I fell in love with This Shop on Etsy -  http://www.etsy.com/people/everydaygrace.

I have used her to order various items.  But, one of the things that I love the most are her luggage tags!! They are cute, inexpensive, and every person I have ever given them to raves about them.  So if you get a chance, check out her Etsy Shop!!  She does quality work, has a quick turn around, and ... is just great, ALL AROUND!!

This is not a paid advertisement.. hee hee.. but I guess it kind of sounds like infomercial material.

P.S. - My laptop bit the bullet and I am posting from everywhere until HP sends it back to me. So... please excuse my lack of links.. until then.

Cooperative Begging

OK,  this is a weird story but, about six months ago a man approached me in the parking lot of my job begging for money.  I normally would not have any cash, but I happened to have some on me that day.  He had a whole story about his whole family living at this "janky" hotel at the end of the street and about falling on hard times.  So I gave him the $15.00 I had in my bag.  I knew that I could have just been scammed but I did it anyway.  Fast forward about a week the same man approaches me with an entirely different story on my way coming out of the Starbucks.  I let him finish his spiel.. and then told him for all intents and purposes to KICK ROCKS, because he just told me something different days ago.  He mumbled something unintelligible and walked away.

Since then, I see this man pretty much every day, in various locations.  But, there is one location.. where he frequents the most.  The strange thing about that is, that it is at the traffic light where I get off the interstate to go home.  There are about four gentlemen all in seemingly good physical health that work that corner.  They all have decent looking clothing, and they seem to work the corner in shifts.  But, they all use the exact same sign.  I don't know why but this really bothers me.  I try not to judge because I honestly, do not know their situation.  But, is Cooperative Begging really the wave of the future.  Are times so hard that even McDonald's, Burger King, and such are not hiring?  And, if these jobs are in your mind "beneath you", is Begging then the next viable option.  I would love to get your opinions on this subject.

Bright Lights.. Big City

Looking for a lamp to go in the front foyer, and stumbled upon these pics, none of which was what I was looking for.  But, I did like them just the same.

However... u wanna say it -- Change your clocks, if you haven't already!!

This week in the blogging world...

I read soo many interesting blogs, too many to post.  But, I thought I would give you some links to some blogs that I found super interesting..

The first link is to one of my favorite blogs, Zen Habits - smile, breathe and go slowly.  This post talked about the importance of little habits.  It made for some really good reading, and included a lot of things that I want to institute in my own life.

The second link is to what I thought was a Novel Idea for a baby gift, and a gift for a little girl.

The third link showed Innovative and Inexpensive Ways to Hang Things.

The last link is to Nancy's Brown Bag.  I love her, I mean as far as I am concerned her every post is a winner.

In this post she shows us an Inspiration Board put together by her intern --Check it out.

Here is how she described it, along with a picture you will find in her post.

Style: Effortless Nautical

Colors: Off white, Red, Navy Blue, Earth, Aqua

Textures: Worn Linen, Wood, Sea glass, Roping, Coral, Sailboats, Stripes, Compasses, Beach Signs 

Love the red coral, the blues, and the rope in the glass.. Classic..

India Arie Sunday3 : Slow Down

India Arie Sunday 2 - Get It Together

India Arie Sunday: Talk to Her

** I love this song and always have.

Follow the Signs...

I know that I have seen these signs a million times before, but this afternoon on the way home, I read the sign and thought.  Hmmph, I wonder what that feels like.  As much as I love the hustle and bustle of family life, and marriage and work, sometimes I do long for some alone time.  Good coffee.. Good wine... Good Book... Hot Bath... and nothing but frivolous thoughts...

The next sign after that read:

And, I got a laugh out of that sign as well, because without my kids, and my hubby, work, projects, home life.. friends... and all that comes with .. who knows where I would be... so my detour would probably look just like this sign... I wouldn't know where the hell to go...

Manic Monday.. oh wait its Thursday

So I left the house this morning on time and in a good mood.  Got over to the other side of town, where I work in time to stop at Starbucks and grab my Skinny Caramel Latte 3 Splendas.  All is still great.  Put my debit card back in my wallet, arrange my purse, throw my gym shoes in my bag for walking later.  And, pull my id badge and electronic swipe card and put it on the top of my purse.

Get to the door no id and no swipe.  The badge holder is empty.  I look all around I see it no where, walk back to the car, see if no where.  So I walk all the way to the front of the building, go in by the receptionist, and put my things in my office.   Go through my purse, just in case, you know, I am insane and its fallen in there nope.  Go through the bag with my shoes in it.  Not in there.  So I head back out to the car, and the id and swipe had fallen in between the seats.  So I am digging down in there, trying to get it, scratch my hand all up, lose an earring, which I then have to fish for.

And, by the time I am done with all that my @#$! bagel is cold, and my coffee just warm, not piping hot like I like it.   And, my whole positive attitude to start to the day has went all to s!@#... well you know what I mean.  So ..... I am taking a deep breath, and trying to start over.  Hope your morning started off better than mine.

Tulip Crazy... Spring.. please come soon...

Getting my MAC On..

Right before my wedding I ventured reluctantly into the world of MAC Cosmetics, and I fell  in love.  Now, I find that MAC has just become a part of my everyday.

I swear by their lip liner, their foundation and, their Lip Glass.  But, I am always looking to get others opinion on what MAC products they have fallen in love with..

??

Cleaning Baseboards..

It truly amazes me how much has changed since getting married, having another baby and moving into our own home.  Especially the things I find myself searching on google.  Today was one such example, I am starting to prepare my home for guest for Morgan's 1st birthday party.  And, as I gave the house a once over last night.  I noticed that my blinds needed to be cleaned, my floor boards cleaned, and a lot of little odds and ends.

So I found myself researching easy and fast ways to clean the baseboards.  But then I also wondered why it seemed that I was spending soo much more time cleaning baseboards than ever before.  I don't know if part of the reason stems from having Brazilian hard wood floors which I never had before, or if it was the paint used on the trim.  Then that took me into deciding whether or not I wanted to devote the time to repainting all the baseboards on the ground level.

Anyway, I thought I would share what I found just in case any one else's life is as boring as mine.

How to Clean Baseboards

By an eHow Contributor

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bucket or large bowl
• Vacuum
• Water
• Sponge or cotton rag

Rid Baseboards of Surface Dirt and Dust

1. Vacuum baseboards with vacuum hose.
2. Use vacuum attachment along the bottom of the baseboard where it meets the flooring.

Mixing Your Cleaner

3. Pour 1 cup of white vinegar in bucket or bowl.
4. Heat water to very warm or hot.
5. Add 5 cups of water to the vinegar.
6. Mix with sponge or cloth rag.

Cleaning

7. Wring out sponge or rag.
8. Wipe baseboards.
9. Allow baseboards to air dry.

Tips & Warnings

• Try not to saturate the wall or baseboard.
• Prevent pruned hands by wearing gloves.
• For difficult markings or stains, try using Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
• Keep children away from the cleaning solution.

Ready to Start my Vegetable Garden

My Obsession with Red continues

And I didn't even add the shoes.

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Giving your Spaghetti or Pasta Dishes a Kick...

Their are a lot of different flavors, so give them a whirl, and let me know what you think!!

Creamy Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

Prep Time

10 mins

Total Time

45 mins

servings

6 servings, about 1 cup each

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Ingredients

1-1/2 lb.

boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1 pkg.

(14 oz.)frozen broccoli florets, thawed, drained

1-1/2 cups

KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1 tub

(10 oz.)PHILADELPHIA Savory Garlic Cooking Creme

1/2 cup

milk

24

RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 1 cup)

1 Tbsp.

butter, melted

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in 13x9-inch baking dish; cover.
3. Bake 25 min. Meanwhile, mix cracker crumbs and butter.
4. Stir chicken mixture; sprinkle with crumbs. Bake, uncovered, 10 min. or until topping is golden brown.

Kraft Kitchen T

Serving SuggestionServe with a mixed green salad and your favorite fresh fruit.

SubstituteSubstitute 1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen green beans for the frozen broccoli.