i love my friends...and cute vampires

I first read the Twilight books 3 years ago and LOVED them...which I would never admit to anyone since I am now 27 years old, married and have a child UNLESS my grown-up friends loved them too...AND they do (sorry-that was a long sentence).
 Everytime a new movie comes out, I think it gives us adults a reason to pretend we're 17 again and clap when Jacob takes off his shirt (hmm...was that just me...all well, I've already told Mr. H how shiny Jacob's abs are).

One of my good friends threw a Breaking Dawn premiere party a couple of weeks ago.  I thought we were just going to her house for dinner, but when I walked in, I became giddy like I was at a kid's birthday- when I was a kid.

(sorry- some of the pics are blurry- I haven't ready my camera's instruction book yet and was too tired to edit.  That's on my to-do list.)

The house was decked out in Twilight decor and we ate dinner by candlelight.  I told Mr. H when I got home that it was the nicest dinner I had ever had. 

His response- "I'll try not to take offense to that".

I was waiting for Edward to walk in and propose, even though I would have to tell him no and to just forget about me already.  

The hostess and her adorable sisters even made party favors for us.  The last party favor I got probably came in a Rainbow Bright bag. 
I was secretly very excited. 

Enjoying the delicous Italian dinner while holding up the glasses that had special candy "blood" around the rim.

Loving their Twilight t-shirts.  On the back they had writing. 
My favorite said "Team Edward...until Jacob takes his shirt off.  Don't tell my husband."

Yeah no one told me that it was a silly picture. 
...and no one told me to pretend I was a vampire and start biting necks. 
I guess I didn't hear the announcement.

I love when you have friends that you can be crazy with and enjoy some good old vampire fun.

Cyber Monday Sale!

Be sure to get your order in by December 1st!  We will be closing our shop during the month of December to spend time with family. 

By the way, sorry for the impromptu blogging break- been extremely busy with jewelry, kids, sickness, and life.  I'll be back soon... Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

Thankful Thursday

Happy Thursday!  Only one week until Thanksgiving.  I am in charge of bringing a dessert to Turkey Day (okay, not in charge, 'cause there is about 6 of us bringing desserts), and I plan on finding something super delicious and super simple.  Let me know if you have a fabulous recipe that preferably involves chocolate or caramel. 

I'm taking another embrace the camera break partly because I need a haircut so badly that I haven't really been embracing the camera, but more like running and hiding from it.

I wanted to share something else that I am thankful for this week.

I am SO thankful and SO grateful for my daughter, Delaney. 

I know I told you I wasn't going to do obvious ones, like um...my daughter, but I am just so thankful that she is here.

Mr. H and I got married when we were young (I was 19 actually).  I knew we were young, so I had my plan- we would enjoy our marriedness and then when I was 25, we would start a family.  It would be perfect and I knew that by that time we would have our lives completely together.

But then I was hit with some health problems.  We had been working through my scleroderma issues, when I was hit with another diagnosis: endometriosis.  Ugh.  I don't want to explain it on a blog, but let's just say this was ANOTHER instance where I sobbed like a baby in front of a doctor because there was only one thing I had ever heard about endometriosis: it meant I couldn't get pregnant.  Now, this is completely not the case, obviously, but I knew a girl who was diagnosed with this and that is all she had told me about it.

So, God's plan was different than my own- again.  Rather than planning for a family, I had to undergo surgery and get monthly shots for 6 months and then they told me that MAYBE I could get pregnant.

After the shots and a LOT of prayer, I was able to get pregnant.  I was due in April of 2010 and was, of course, so excited.  I took Mr. H out to a fancy lunch at the Taco Bell to tell him the news and we prepared to become new parents.

But, God had other plans again (He often does), and decided to take my sweet little April baby to rejoice with Him in heaven.  We lost the baby at 6 weeks, but didn't realize it until about 8 weeks.

I'm not going to share details of that journey, but I know that without my personal relationship with Christ, I wouldn't have been able to wake up in the morning.  I knew that God was in control and He had a different plan.

I learned His plan was for me to be the momma of my cuddly little Del.  She was born on August 17, 2010 and my life will be forever changed.

I am SO thankful for her. 

She is completely healthy and when she is screaming at 2 am or wants me to hold her when I need to get jewelry done, I remind myself how grateful I am to have her in my life.  I know others who have struggled to have a family or have faced multiple family tragedies, so to have this child is something I try to never take for granted.  I thank God for her daily and know that she is our blessing.

Love,

Kelsey

[Download printables from this post HERE]

My Weekend Collage

1. Mr. H had Lasik eye surgery yesterday.  I bought a Groupon for it, so it was buy one eye get one free (I'm always looking for a bargain).  I'm not gonna lie- it was kind of weird that they did the surgery on a Sunday in an office building (not medical building) and the waiting room was an office board room.  I was kind of waiting for a reporter to start interviewing me for a 20/20 special.  BUT, I'm happy to report that although he was legally blind before the surgery, he is now seeing great without any glasses and we no longer have to pay a small fortune for lenses!

2. I apologize to the small dog snuggie lovers, but I had to post this picture.  I just found it so ironic that a dog was born with a built-in snuggie that God gave them- why would they need a blanket with sleeves?  I saw this at a Christmas craft show and couldn't stop laughing.

3. CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE...TIME FOR JOY AND TIME FOR CHEER!!  I LOVE walking in Target and seeing all of the Christmas merchandise.  It is my favorite and I look forward to it all year long!

4. Saturday night we had a church family night/chili cook-off.  My church meets in a Fitness Center, so we had the gym to ourselves that evening.  We put Del and Harper in a raquetball court and they ran around and kept busy for an hour.  I really wish I had a raquetball court in my house.

Thankful Thursday...with a free printable card

I'm taking a break from embracing the camera this week.  It's because I wanted to take the time to share what I am thankful for (or maybe because I have been too lazy to take a picture with myself in it this week).

I could seriously write a novel about what I am thankful for, but I think it might put you to sleep.  Instead, I thought I'd share a few things one day a week for the next few weeks until Thanksgiving.  I want to be specific since I feel like some general things are obvious (family, friends, home, etc...).  SO if I don't mention the obvious it's not because I'm not thankful, I'm just trying to let you know more about me.

First, I'm thankful that Mr. H and I have jobs we enjoy.  Although our jobs are in no way the most important things in our lives, it is just a huge answer to prayer that we like our jobs.  Mr. H decided to get out of the Marine Corps in 2006.  We moved back to Indiana with NO JOBS, NO HOME, and no college degrees or job prospects.  It was a scary time, but we put our faith in God that he would provide.  I soon found a job making barely above minimum wage at a bank and Mr. H found a job at the same place he worked in high school.  We started renting a house and both went to college in the evenings to get our degrees.  I prayed and prayed for the next four years that Mr. H would find a job that he enjoyed going to every day and last year my prayer was answered.  He is now at a company that he loves and it is just a blessing knowing that he doesn't hate getting up in the mornings because I know that can be the case in many situations.

both pics via

My current full-time job is being a mother, which I've hoped for since forever, I think.  I also work from home with Tag...You're It.  It can sometimes be overwhelming trying to work out of a small bedroom and fill orders while also taking care of a baby, as I've mentioned many times in my posts.  And I will admit that I often complain about the challenges of trying to balance everything AND dealing with the financial stresses of not having two full-time incomes whenever medical bills keep piling up in our mailbox.  Yet, I am still so thankful that I get to stay at home with my little baby while running a small company with my sister and best friend.

I'll share more about my thankfulness next week, BUT wanted to share this super cute free printable card from Julie Ann Art.  You can find the printable HERE.

A typical Tuesday

A typical afternoon at Tag...You're It in photos

You might be thinking "wait...I thought they made jewelry." 
Oh, we do. 
When we're not dealing with little backpack wearing monkeys who stand on tables and decide they are too cool for pants.

I'm Currently Happy because...



via

Alright, it's Friday.  I work from home, so Friday's don't hold the same meaning, but I'm still in a good mood and choosing to be happy.  Here are just a few reasons I am choosing to be happy today:

• Mr. H doesn't have class which means he can take care of Delaney spend time with Del before bedtime tonight.
• Brodi and I are going the Urban Folk Art show in the morning to shop, which should be fun.
• Mr. H has to gets to wake up with Del in the middle of the night on the weekends while I'm sleeping.

This is me sleeping, obviously. via

• I have a pot roast in the crock-pot, which means dinner is ready.
• We have a free pay-per-view movie code, so we get to rent a movie for free tonight (I didn't say these would be exciting, okay).
• Del is currently napping (well she's talking to herself quietly in her crib, but it counts for me).
• Black Friday will be here in 3 WEEKS and I. CANT. WAIT!!!!

via

• Tag...You're It has craft shows the next 3 weekends in a row, which I always enjoy!

What are happy about today?

Embracing the Camera Halloween

I got to go trick-or-treating with the cutest butterfly in the world this week.
I've come to realize that I get more excited for Delaney than she gets when we go places.

For instance, when we went trunk-or-treating earlier in the weekend, I pictured her walking down the line of cars, holding out her elmo bucket while people put candy in her bucket and commented on her adorable costume.  She would then say "tank-too" (thank you), which is one of the only words she says.

Instead, she cried as soon as we got out of the car and fell to her diapered bottom and refused to stand up.
We stayed about five minutes and went home.

However, she did have a great time on Halloween, and although she never said "tank-too" she did enjoy about five dum-dum suckers (don't worry-I brushed her five teeth as soon as we got home) and had fun collecting her candy.

The trick-or-treat gang (Mr. H had class)-boo.

Hope you had a great Halloween and were able to embrace the camera!

You are My Sunshine Necklace

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Delaney is my sunshine girl.  She is constantly smiling and literally warms my heart (okay figuratively I guess, but I think literally sounds more serious).  

My sister designed our "love you to the moon necklace" last year because she always said that phrase to her son.  Well, my daughter is not that into books yet and that is not a phrase that I often say. 

 However, I LOVE to sing to her and one song that I actually know the words to and sing to her all the time is "You are My Sunshine."  

There are only a few songs I sing to her daily, and this is one of them.  

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So, I wanted a necklace to wear that reminds me of my little sunshine, but kept the design similar to the moon necklace 'cause I love the design.

 It is a 1" silver disc with a copper "sun" fused onto it.  It can be personalized with a name around the edge of the sunshine.    

It can be found HERE.


***BLOG SPECIAL (Mention that you are a TYI BLOG follower in your notes at checkout and receive $5 off your sunshine necklace order.  The $5 will be reimbursed through Paypal within 48 hours)****

I hope there is sunshine keeping you warm today.