And so we begin...

Happy New Year!

Hope you've gotten off to a great start this 2009! I gotta say the New Year was fabulous but the ensuing week after was like the let down after church camp. I've had my pity party and now I'm ready to tackle my 2009 resolution list. It's just one resolution: DO.I'm a Thinker, Dreamer, Planner. It's seems like I rarely get to the DOING. SO! With my husbands help and anyone else who'd like to encourage and spur me on I'm getting things done this year.First order: Clean out and organize our filing cabinet!

And hallelujah, it's done!

And how about this to excite your organizing dreams- I found a $100 Savings Bond tucked away in those jumbled files last night! Yahoo!

Our Christmas was spent eating really great food with all my cousins, aunts and uncles down in Houston. The big surprise came from my PawPaw, who announced that he is engaged! I'm so excited for him, Mary is such a sweet lady! What a hoot, with four cousins in their twenties we'd have expected the engagements from that corner of the family! I enjoyed the week after Christmas in Albany visiting one of my dearest and oldest friends. There's nothing like being with your worn in friends, having that same shared background and easy understanding. We had some good times cooking and lounging about while the snow piled down! Winter Wonderland! But I'm very glad to be back in the South, 7 may be great as a pair of jeans but not on the thermometer! Also read this book while traveling in the airport. Oh man! ... if you haven't read it... wow... it blew me away. When my friend gave it to me I wasn't too excited about a romance novel, just haven't read those. But my life has been so impacted from this story. I came home from Albany feeling like a new and profoundly different woman. Don't think I can do the book justice by trying to explain it or what I felt. I hope you get a chance to read it, would love to hear what you think about it.

...a few of the projects I made during the Christmas hustle and bustle. I lost my camera at the beginning of December, sadly I lost photos of some very cute paintings and journals. These pics are straight from my camera phone- sorry for the fuzziness. From top left to right- Itty bitty journal for my sister Nichole, finished table for the Googe family, the beginnings of Dana's journal, growth charts waiting to dry, Baby Sabrina's first Christmas, matching chair for the Googe family.

happy new year!

Hope you had a wonderful New Year's celebration! It was one fantastic break for me! I'll be updating soon as soon as I'm settled in from my travels...

Frolick and Play

Thank you everyone for all of your encouragement, excitement and ideas this year. 2008 has been a wonderful year and it's because of my fantastic friends and family. I love you dearly! It's very exciting stepping into 2009 with a bundle of new ideas under my arm waiting to be explored. My first steps with Ruby Coco have been my dream come true. Thank you!
Our hot pink, turquoise, lime green, orange and purple Christmas tree. My one rule for the tree ornaments is- it must be shiny! I've lost my camera (such great timing) you can spot me in the pink bulb snapping a picture with my camera phone.

Mr. Peacock keeping a royal watch from the top of our tree...


Mmmm... can you smell the chocolate chip goodness yet?

We're headed to Houston to hang out with my family this Christmas Eve and Day. Aunt Linda has promised we'll be baking cookies and singing Christmas carols. Will be celebrating the New Year in Albany with Tara and her family, I haven't visited since her little man was a month old. Can not wait to spend time with them and meet some of the ladies I've made paintings for.

Have a Very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year!

Almost there...

Hope you're enjoying the dashing, running and busyness of the season. Phew! I'm tired! Have been painting, gluing and varnishing like a crazy lady since December 1st! What a relief, I've come to a resting a spot. If you're feeling over loaded or that it just doesn't feel like Christmas -get yourself to the store, buy a little eggnog and snuggle down in front of your favorite Christmas movie. Our favorite's are Home Alone and White Christmas. The picture is from Christmas 2006, I made an advent calendar for Dan out of little gifts some for real, but mostly funny.

Head + Shouders + Knees + Toes

This is the precious show we

received Thanksgiving

evening.

Our sweet Olivia showing off

her new dance moves on

the tramp.

The baby who was quite

and shy

this summer is gone! Olivia is

rough and tumble now and

very vocal.

I love it!

She's not

afraid to growl like a

liger either.

Was wonderful having so much

family together in our

part of the woods.

Dan's mother from

Pennsylvania, Dana and family

from Wisconsin,

Aunt Linda and cousins,

home from college,

traveled from Houston.

And we all squeezed into

Paw Paw's home for one of

the best Thanksgiving

meals we've ever had!

Little holiday cheer...

The holidays rush one upon the other don't they? No kidding! This has been the best fall weather I can remember in Shreveport. I love the colorful trees and the cold, foggy mornings. The girls I work with think it's funny I love driving to work in the fog- maybe it's the quietness, a little bit moody - a little bit magic. Some of the fields I drive past look like moments from a M. Night Shyamalan movie, I love it! Now that Halloween's over we're turning the page to Thanksgiving and hints of eggnog. This year I decided to make my own Christmas tags {the little pink ones with red writing will grace our thoughtful packages} The other scalloped cuties were Goody Bag Bootie for our women's retreat last weekend. Was fun making a practical and fun gift for all the ladies, Julie added handmade ribbon bookmarks and Stephanie got her craft on making sweet "from the Kitchen of" labels for everyone. So proud of my creative friends! Everyone enjoyed useful gifts and it was fun relaxing with the ladies out at Camp Harris. Have had a couple new ideas for my paper dolls and the blog. Will post new bit and pieces soon...

Gouls Night

Our finished handiwork- mine is the one with the "scary" polka dots

Hope you enjoyed your Halloween dressing up your little bits. LOVED seeing all the little guys strutting their stuff down the sidewalks as their favorite hero. Thursday night we had a girls night of pumpkin carving and wine sipping while watching The Office. I took these with me to add to the treats, one crazy red-headed Puggle named Molly kept us rolling with her tricks.