All Wrapped Up

Top Five Favorite Memories With The Kids in 2009

2010-01-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

5. Going to the Christmas Irish Dancing Show to see the girls perform.
They both did a wonderful job dancing on the big stage. Even Natalie who had never done it before.

4. Moments of Joy

When a suggestion or a ribbon turns into an hour or so of fun.NatNat wearing my hat and purse.

Playing around with the kids.

Hippies...

Natalie as a Veggie Tale. It was so funny to see her hop around.

3. Making Crafts Together.

I made these masks for the kids to wear for Halloween, except Gillian made her own blue bird mask.

T-shirts we made for our sleepover. Any excuse to make something fun!!

2. 2nd Annual Sleepover at my house.

I love these kids!

NatNat and I snuggling in my sleeping bag.

1. Our Christmas Party and Gift-Exchange

This is the second year that kids and I have had a gift exchange. We can only give each other things we have handmade. I love watching them get excited about making something for each other. They are so proud of what they create and can't wait to give it to their sibling.

The Kids in a Love Pile

NatNat gave me a beautiful ornament.
Gillian was very creative and made David his own Christmas tree for his room out of popsicle sticks and tissue paper.

Happy Mother's Day Momma!!

2009-05-10T21:21:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day Momma!!

I love you!

Pie and Flowers

2009-05-02T22:20:00.001-07:00

The girls and i spent an afternoon eating pie and enjoying flowers while David was at a birthday party. They love Marie Calendars so we had pie then went back to our secret garden we found last time. The garden was not as lush considering the cold weather Colorado has been having this spring. So we found some flowers and enjoyed them as much as possible.

Sweet Girls

Gillian

Natalie
My Girls

Special Friends Day

2009-04-30T19:38:00.000-07:00

Mom and I went to Special Friends Day at the kids school. We spent the time in both David's class and Gillian's class. While in David's class he read us a book about someone who had dinner at the White House. Mom was telling David that she had been to the White House before but she didn't get to have dinner with the President. Classicly, he said that he didn't think Thomas Jefferson would have invited her.

Veggie Tales

2009-04-30T19:00:00.000-07:00

One afternoon Gillian dressed Natalie up like a Veggie Tale. It was so funny to see her hop around for a minute. I think she would be some sort of an exotic fruit, not a vegetable.

Family Night/Myspace Pics

2009-04-26T11:43:00.000-07:00

FAMILY NIGHT

Anna-Jane exploring our deck...and testing limits.

She loved swinging with Momma

This picture turned out more hilarious than I ever expected.

Check out Kyle in the background, typical yet so funny.

Bree and I happened to wear matching outfits.

After that my camera was passed around and the pictures really turned silly.

MYSPACE PICS

Brian's is more like the hairy eyeball...
Me

Bree

Kyle

Even the baby got into it!

Happy Birthday Brian!!

2009-04-23T21:32:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Bri, I hope your birthday was awesome!

Since we were really little Brian and I have had a unique relationship. As you can see from some of my favorite pictures of us.

Jenn's Bachelorette Partay!!

2009-04-22T20:09:00.001-07:00

Saturday night was Jenn's Bachelorette Party. We went to a club and danced all night. It was so much fun!

Jenn and I

Jenn, Erica and I

All the girls

Static Electricity

2009-04-22T20:08:00.000-07:00

After the kids and I spent an afternoon in a kid-size tent...we had some crazy hair!!

Easter Egg Hunt!!

2009-04-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

The day before Easter Mom and Dad's neighborhood had an Easter Egg Hunt and I was the Easter Bunny. It was so much fun! I handed out candy to the kids.

One of the first kids I walked up to started to cry so I started to walk away...but the little boy's Mom said she wanted to take a picture of him and I. So I thought she might need a reminder that he was crying and she said "He will get over it." I was slightly shocked and slowly walked back over to the little boy who was burying himself into his Dad's shoulder. She took the picture and his Dad said, "At least it will match the picture from last year!" It made me laugh so hard!

It was so cute to see all the little babies staring at me and checking me out.

Mom and I after all the kiddos left due to cold weather.

Nature and Science Museum

2009-04-07T20:19:00.001-07:00

ROARRRR!

My Midwestern Tour

2009-04-03T11:57:00.000-07:00

For Spring Break I headed to the Midwest to visit family and friends.

My first stop was Bloomington, Indiana to visit my Aunt Melissa, Uncle Thomas, and their kids Ben and Alison. The first night I was there we visited for awhile and watched Twilight. I really didn't think I would like it but I loved it. Thanks Melissa for opening my eyes...she tends to do that a lot.

Sunday Melissa and I headed out to West Baden Springs Hotel. The hotel has undergone major renovations which were finished two years ago, and the last time I was there was over 10 years ago.

Melissa and I out on the front porch of the hotel.

The HUGE mosaic fireplace.

West Baden Lobby

The ceiling, at night it lights up and changes colors.

Lounging in a comfy chair

My view from the comfy chair, I really didn't want to get up.

Alison and I

Alison and I being goofy.

Alison's chickens... My favorite is the one with the funky feathers on it's head.

On Tuesday I went to Fairborn and Yellow Springs to visit my friends Sommer and Matt. They gave me the full tour of both towns and their new home. I now understand why they decided to move back home after living in Colorado for some time, it's very pretty and quaint. This picture is in Yellow Springs right outside of the restaurant we ate at. I loved that all the posts and stop signs in town had knitting on them. This was the "Say Peace" post, so colorful. It was a great night seeing them after six months. Miss you guys...It was great seeing you.

While in Cincinnati I made sure to visit some of my favorite places. The first day in Cincy Joan took me out to have some Graeter's ice cream, we also brought some home. Once home I found out that they now sell my fave ice cream in Colorado, woohoo!!

I also was able to have Skyline chili, which is so tasty. Pop, Joan and I went to Montgomery Inn for dinner one night, they are famous for their ribs.

I also met up with my friend Robin. She and I met in pre-school were inseparable and kept in touch until about 10 years ago. I recently found her again and was excited to see her once I was in Cincy. I met up with her and her Mom for dinner. It was a fun time catching up and reminiscing about old times. Later on we went through her pictures and had a fun time reminding each other of all the time we spent together. Robin it was great seeing you!

Thanks Pop and Joan for a wonderful week! I hope to come back soon!! Love you!

Happy Birthday Natalie!

2009-04-03T11:16:00.000-07:00

Happy 5th Birthday Natalie!!

She LOVES posing for the camera!

Happy Birthday Princess!!

Happy 25th Anniversary Mom & Dad!!

2009-03-17T18:37:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Mom and Dad on 25 Years!

First Picture

First Christmas

The Wedding Day

Our Trip to Disney World, 1991

Chrismas Morning

Las Vegas in 2002

I love you Momma and Poppa!!

Hippie Chic

2009-03-08T10:29:00.000-07:00

Our entertainment for an afternoon, being Hippies!

Watch Out, Here We Come!

2009-02-24T21:00:00.000-08:00

Here we come to save the day!
Don't mess with us!

SuperGirl about to take off.

The Wiggler and SuperGirl

Ready to fight crime.

Valentines Day!

2009-02-24T20:44:00.000-08:00

I know Valentines was awhile ago but I'm trying to catch up.

I made this treat for the valentines party we had I thought they would love it. It took awhile to make so I was anxious to see what they thought. Who wouldn't love chocolate covered bananas, right? Natalie's comment was "It tastes like a cold banana." Note to self, buy cookies at the store next time.

David asked me to be his valentine this year. He is going to be a ladies man.

I hope everyone's Valentines Day was filled with love!

Happy Birthday David

2009-02-02T21:02:00.000-08:00

Happy 7th Birthday Buddy!!

My Sweet Buddy

so silly...

Happy Birthday Silly Buddy!

Happy Birthday Gillian

2009-01-19T20:34:00.000-08:00

HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY GILLI!!

Pensive Gilli

Gasp! Her favorite expression

Happy Birthday My Sweet Girl!

Flower Power

2009-01-16T20:12:00.000-08:00

Natalie went to a princess party yesterday, instead of wearing her princess dress up she decided to be a Flower Princess. So she wore a flower dress, flower tights, flower headband and flower barrettes. She was extremely happy in her outfit.

I love her little cheeks!!

"These are the most beautiful shoes ever!"

Dressing up later on in the day, wearing her Mom's wedding shoes.

Start the year right!

2009-01-02T15:54:00.000-08:00

Joy and I had a night of retreat on New Years Day. We stayed at Hotel Monaco, our room had a definite European flair. It really made us feel that we were farther away from home than we were. We spent the night reading magazines, drinking wine, laughing and being girly. It was a great way to start the year!

A Very Merry Cochrane Christmas

2008-12-26T20:09:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Joy spent Christmas Eve with our family for the second time, a tradition that I hope continues.

Joy, Mom and I

Christmas Morning, every year Mom and Dad would take our picture coming down the stairs before we opened our stockings. The past few years we got bored of taking smiley pictures, so we feign surprise instead.

This year we each got a wig and an instrument from Santa...silliness ensued.

Mom and Dad groovin'

Brian and I rockin' out

Modeling our new hoodies. Thanks Brian for my awesome hoody!!

I hope that you and your families had a Merry Christmas!

Winter Wonderland

2008-12-10T19:57:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning Natalie declared, "I want to go out and play in the Winter Wonderland!"

She has so much fun playing in the snow!

Mamma Mia!

2008-12-02T20:30:00.000-08:00

Bree gave me this CD for my birthday and it has been in my car playing ever since. Recently I hooked the kids on the upbeat music and they like just as much as I do. Natalie is so blase when it comes to music, and she sings along to these songs. She and I will ride around town and I will hear a little voice say, "Mamma Mia please, and turn it up!"

Up Next: A Brown County Christmas.

My aunt Melissa gave this CD to me one christmas, and it is great. Today David asked me about it so tomorrow morning as I take the kids to school we will be laughing at the 12 days of Christmas. The traditional version is not exactly funny, but the country brown county one is hilarious. It starts out:

On the first day of christmas my true love gave to me a coon crossing possum trot creek!

It only gets funnier as the days go along.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T17:24:00.000-08:00

We had a great thanksgiving, I hope you did too.

Family Photo

Bree, Anna-Jane and Kyle

Anna-Jane walking around the house. Look at that determination!

I'm Thankful for...

2008-11-24T19:45:00.000-08:00

FAMILY:

My Mom

Without her life would be pretty dull. Family night would not be as frequent, tasty or fun. I'm thankful that God chose her for me. She is my friend, teacher, companion, motivator and confidant.

My Dad

When all else fails, call Dad! My dad has come to my rescue many times in my life, especially when it comes to my car. He is a great dad because he makes sure that every day is filled with laughter. He is my encourager, advisor, buddy and amusement.

My Brother

When I was little I wanted to do was whatever Brian was doing. I may not want to do everything he does, but I am still a fan of everything he does. He has been a great brother I couldn't have asked for a better one! He has been my playmate, protector, inspiration, comforter, partner in crime, supporter, teammate and big brother.

Then and Now

My Job

I'm thankful that I have a wonderful job with two great bosses who support me and yet give me a lot of freedom within my job. Gillian, David and Natalie are a joy to be with, I love everyday that I spend with them.

Joy

My wonderful roommate who sometimes makes me wonder why she chooses to live with me. She and I have been friends for 11 years. She is a true blessing in my life. A true friend is someone who knows all your idiosyncrasies and still loves you.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Halloween

2008-11-03T18:28:00.000-08:00

Since the end of summer the kids and I have been looking forward to Halloween. We have been making decorations for over a month. Last year I put together a party for the four of us and we had a blast.

At the corn maze the kids and I each picked out a mini pumpkin so we could decorate them at the party. We drew on them and spiced them up with Glitter glue. Natalie has a heavy hand when it comes to glitter glue.

This year I took some extra time to decorate the cupcakes and make them look spooky. Gillian created the witches hat cupcake.Gillian eyeing her cupcake.

Yummy
Happy after eating a cupcake.

Stick 'em up!

During a performance Natalie gave.

Gillian as a princess, David as a police officer and Natalie as a ballet dancer.

It was a great Halloween!

A Corny Day

2008-10-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

Today the kids, my Mom and I went to the Crazed Corn Maze. With last year's experience under our belt, and a backpack full of snacks I thought we had a better chance of actually finishing this one. Well we didn't quite finish, we got 5 out of 10 punches. I thought that was a solid finish and I was proud that this time we left the maze the same way that we entered.

About to enter the maze through the barn door.

Natalie peeking through the corn

Momma and I enjoying a breather

David being silly as usual.

It was such a beautiful day!

Instead of a sand box, they had a corn box with dried corn kernels. Gillian making a corn angel.

It was a great day in the hot sun. We had motivation to leave since we were headed to Marie Calendars for lunch aka "The Pie Place".

Gillian wondered aloud, "Do you think Martha Stewart and Marie Calendars are friends?" I love hearing their interesting thoughts.

Saints Day

2008-10-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

At the kids school they celebrate Saints Day instead of Halloween. The Preschool teacher makes it a big celebration. All the kids pick a Saint and make a crown for their saint. Natalie chose Saint Elizabeth. Instead of the normal snack they have angel food cake and whipped cream. A treat for snack is such a big deal for a 4 year-old.

Natalie modeling with her crown.

I love her poses these days!!

Posing with our sparkly creation.

Today Natalie was dancing around in her Halloween costume. After a little performance she pulled down her straps and said, "Ladies wear their dresses like this when they are going somewhere fancy."

Mornings with Natalie

2008-09-25T18:20:00.000-07:00

My mornings at work are spent hanging out with Natalie. She makes my job extremely entertaining.

Modeling her new outfit from the basement store, her favorite.

Natalie took this picture, she really loves using my camera.

My little buddy!

Dress up

David was playing a football game, CU vs. Georgia. So Natalie was the cheerleader and I told her that at CU games the cheerleaders do push ups when a touch down is scored. Here are her push ups, so cute.

The second half of a push up.

Toga!

Slow dancing with beary.

She loves to pretend she's on TV, so here she is singing along with the music. The TV is out of the frame but she is looking at herself in the reflection.

I'm truly blessed to have such a fun job!

Jane vs. The Tooth Fairy

2008-09-17T17:02:00.001-07:00

This is our favorite book right now. We had borrowed it from the library a long time ago and loved it. It had been hard to find so I was ecstatic when I found it at a little bookstore. Jane vs. the Tooth Fairy is very sassy and fun. All three of the kids and I love it.

The kids laughing at the silly book.

4 Cool Joes

2008-09-12T18:32:00.001-07:00

My days are filled with laughter over the silliest things. My glasses were the entertainment yesterday.

Ceramics and The City

2008-09-12T18:16:00.001-07:00

Last week the kids and I went to Ceramics and the City to paint pottery for their Mom's birthday, and I made something for my Mom too. We had a great afternoon painting and designing pottery.

My vase I made for my Mom.

Gillian made a bowl and a spoon rest.

David made a cool plate.

Natalie's "sugar bowl"

Adios McGuires :(

2008-09-07T11:04:00.000-07:00

Sommer and Matt are moving to Ohio so they had a goodbye party.

Matt and Sommer

We are sad that they are leaving us.

All the girls

Jenn and I

We ended the night playing a little guitar hero. It was so much fun.

We will really miss you Sommer and Matt. Now I have two reasons to visit the buckeye state, my grandpa and the McGuires!

A Day with the Leonards

2008-09-03T19:47:00.000-07:00

I spent the day with Bree, Anna-Jane and Kyle on Monday. I held and played with Anna-Jane as much as I could.
Bree is a photographer and is always breaking out the camera. She took some fun pictures of Anna-Jane and I. This one is so fun with the reflection of my sunglasses.

Here's my little princess

She napped for an hour on my lap at the park. She looked so peaceful and so beautiful. I soaked up every minute that she let me hold her.

Flower Biscuits with Natalie

2008-09-03T19:05:00.001-07:00

Thursday morning Natalie and I made flower biscuits. These are so easy to make and fun to eat. They are just pre-made biscuits that I cut to make petals and added chocolate chips and sprinkles.

Natalie posing with the biscuits

Playing with the camera while they are baking

Pretty flowers

She is ready to pounce

Yummy

I think she likes them!

A Broadmoor Wedding

2008-09-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I went to a my friend Roni's wedding at the Broadmoor, a gorgeous hotel in Colorado Springs. Roni and I have known each other for years, we went to middle school, high school and college together, and we even were in the same sorority.

Pre-wedding get together with friends from the sorority@ Slattery's Irish Pub.

Melanie, Mary, Jenn
Carlyn, Rachel, Amy

It rained during the ceremony so I didn't get any pictures, I couldn't see through the umbrellas. A rainbow appeared after the ceremony, so pretty.

A tower at the Broadmoor

Cocktails in the rain!

Mary, Carlyn, Jenn and I on the balcony.

Jenn and her fiance Ryan.

Carlyn and her husband Brian

Mary and Roni dancing

All of us on the dance floor with the bride!

I had so much fun at Roni's wedding, it flew by.

Happy Birthday Momma!!

2008-09-01T20:21:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to you!

I LOVE YOU!!

I feel blessed to have you as a Mom and as a friend! There is no one else that I could ride in a car with for 14 hours and not get sick of! I'm grateful that we have so much time together to laugh, cry or both at the same time!!

"This is your birthday song, it isn't very long!"

Elephants and Ice Cream

2008-08-25T18:56:00.000-07:00

My kiddos make me laugh, they say the funniest things. Here are some of my favorites.

Natalie, David and I had ice cream one afternoon and Natalie wanted to try my flavor. I asked if she liked it and she said, "It's as good as a full elephant!" Wow I guess that she really liked it.

Today I was helping David with his homework and he said, "Uh oh my homework is stampled." Stampled?

Natalie, David and I were once having a serious discussion about death and loved ones. They asked me about how my grandma died and Natalie chimed in "Did she drink the bath water?" David and I cracked up!

The kids and I had played at the park in my Mom's neighborhood and it started to rain so we headed to have some ice cream. My Mom asked them all what their favorite flavor was and Natalie said, "Shrimp, rice and vegetables."

One afternoon Natalie asked me why we locked the door to the house. I explained to her why and she said, "Let's lock the door so they don't steal my princess wand, it talks and everything!" I'm sure if robbers came they would go straight for the princess wand, not the flat screen.

I even have a blunder! This summer we have been working on table manners and I said, "Chew your mouth when you close!" That sounds painful. We have laughed about this for a long time.

Natalie and I went to see my Mom one afternoon and she asked, "Is your Dad at home? Can you put 'em between your toes?" What?

Other Quotes:

Natalie- "That's an American Fire Truck."

David- "Stop your horses!"

Natalie- "These are my bee-noculars."

David- "I think I'm falling in love with you."

Natalie- "I want to get my ears peered."

David- "I'm going to marry you."

Natalie- "Will you be my friend forever?"

Natalie- "Where are my Mardigroft beads?"

These are just some of the ones I wrote down or remember!

Great Weekend!!

2008-08-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

I had a fabulous and full weekend!

Friday night I went to Sabor Latino for Jenn's birthday dinner. I had some paella, a mojito and got to spend a night with friends I hadn't seen in awile. Then we headed to Lancer Lounge and danced and celebrated Jenn's birthday. It was a fun night with great friends.

On Saturday I went to my friend Shauna's wedding. Shauna and I went to CU and were in the same sorority, Alpha Phi. It was so fascinating hearing about all of the traditions of a Jewish wedding. I learned about the Ketubah, Chuppah, and why they break the glass at the end of the ceremony. It was also fun to reconnect with other Alpha Phi's and friends at the wedding. Great to see you Sara, Melissa and Julie!!

Today I went to the picnic in my parents neighborhood. It was so much fun to see my parents, neighbors and be in the sun. My family I nanny for came and they met my parents for the first time. There was a face painter, balloon artist and band at the picnic.

Natalie got a unicorn painted on her face!

This didn't last very long and that is why I got a picture right away.

Gillian got a goldfish.

Great picture of Gillian.

After the long hot day at the picnic Mom and I went to see Mama Mia. It was such a fantasic movie and a perfect one to see with my Momma. I would definetly want to see it again.

What a Difference a Year Makes!

2008-08-21T16:34:00.000-07:00

This is Natalie a year ago on her first day of preschool. She adored this little dress and wore until we literally hid it from her because it was so small. I can not believe how she has changed since these were taken.

She loved these sunglasses so she insisted that I take one with them too... She wouldn't even stand still enough for me to get her in the center of picture.

I took this picture today before we left for her first day. Now she likes to pose and will stay still and take direction!

I love this picture too! She is so cute and I love the little pig tails.

Natalie's new tote bag.

I can't believe how big my girl has gotten!

Gillian's Crafts

2008-08-18T12:37:00.000-07:00

Gillian has many talents and drawing and making crafts are just two of them...

"A Mexican Cowboy"

A Portrait of Natalie

Self-Portrait

A glittery mask

A doll made out of corn husk

The Sleepover

2008-08-18T10:45:00.000-07:00

Last night we had our First Annual (hopefully) Sleepover in our Fort. At the beginning of this summer Gillian and I engineered FORT GEM in their basement. I know you may be thinking of a meager fort, but it is pretty major. Our fort has an outer wall and two inner walls. We have three rooms in our fort. The first is the playroom, we color, draw and play in there. The second room is our bedroom and the location of our sleepover. It is plenty big enough for us all to sleep comfortably. The third room is our meeting room, we obviously have meetings in there and we discuss Gemton (our town) issues. The fort has been wonderful during all those long hot days this summer.

The night started out great! We had pizza for dinner, our favorite. Then we watched Nim's Island and had popcorn, another big fave! We rounded out the evening with sundaes and headed downstairs to go to bed. We didn't even get to sleep til around 11pm, or at least they did. I was up on and off all night....I thought the night would never end! Finally morning came and we had doughnuts for breakfast! We had to have all the traditional sleepover items that i told them about from when I was little.

Natalie and David snuggling.

Looks like somebody is tired!

Natalie pouting...about something.

My buddies

My sleeping bag was a hit! Since it's a mummy bag...we took pictures of all three but David kept bumping me so only his turned out. I think it was a conspiracy. So here he is, or at least part of him.

Holding up the sign Gillian made.

GASP! David is punching Gillian in the head!

David, Gillian and Natalie hamming it up!

The night turned out great...I hope we can do it again next year!

Denver Puppet Theater

2008-08-18T10:23:00.000-07:00

Natalie, David and I went to the Denver Puppet Theater on Friday. The puppet show was great it is put on by one woman who does all the characters and each has a different accent and manner of speaking. I was quite mezmerized listening and watching the show. The show we saw was "A Dragon Tale." The kids liked and so did I. What I liked best was that our ticket was a puppet. We got there when the doors opened (30 minutes early) and I'm glad we did because we had lots of time to make our puppets.

This is Natalie's puppet that she made and she named it...."Natalie". That's a shocker.

This is the puppet made by David he calls it "Bald Head Dude", rightly named I think.

This is my puppet I made, her name is "Mama Mia." The kids named her that and think that she is quite funny. We like to wave her around and make her bow floppy. I made mine in about five minutes...I felt rushed because I was the only adult making a puppet for myself in a room of 30 children. I feel she looks fabulous considering the time crunch.

No matter what show is playing I recommend going to the puppet theater...it was so much fun!

The Secret Garden

2008-08-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

Gillian, Natalie and I discovered this "Secret Garden" while searching for a playground. We were trying to waste some time before we had to pick up David from a party. I whipped out my camera and took a few pictures of them. We had so much fun in this little garden.

Use What You Have...

2008-08-11T18:23:00.000-07:00

I made this after I got back from Waco. I figured after all that craziness with the sewing machine, I could do this. I hand sewed this for Natalie with fabric Gillian wasn't using and some left over buttons and ribbon. It turned out great, not guaranteed to last forever, but definitely cute! She loves it and that makes the day it took to make it worth it!

My new purse

2008-08-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

I recently made this when I was visiting cousins in Waco, TX. Bree went to the fabric store to get fabric for a project and I decided I wanted to make something too. So I decided to go basic, so I thought. I, with TONS of help, made this purse. I thought it was going to be easy, not really. I spent a great deal of time with Vicki and Bree planning it out. I put a pocket in, a must for me and a lining. I thought if I whipped out a purse then maybe I could make a dress for Natalie next. Sewing is something I've always wanted to be good at, and something I would definitely try again with supervision. ;)

Seasons

2008-08-09T20:03:00.000-07:00

Gillian and I call our phases "Seasons." We definitely go through phases of what we like to make and we are always looking for something new. Right now we are in jewelry making season, it has been a great week.

Frame season has recently ended, I made this one for Anna-Jane my little princess. She is my cousin Bree's 9 month-old daughter and she is so adorable! I recently got to spend a week with Vicki, Robin, Bree, Anna-Jane and my mom. I love the girls week or weekends we have whenever we can. It is so much fun.
Frame season started around Father's Day when Gillian was making a great sign for her dad. Then we discovered that wood frames were only $1!! I found these sunglasses and thought that would be cute.

All Wrapped Up In....

2008-08-09T18:39:00.000-07:00

I'm all wrapped up in many things, sometimes I feel trapped in a creative Schizophrenic body. I'm trying to start a new business selling jewelry that I make, I'm getting close. I guess its taken so much time I want the launch to be just right.

I'm also a nanny who hangs out all day with three kids and Gillian the 9 year-old is also creativly driven. She and I are a great team and we love being crafty together. We bounce ideas off each other and have so much fun making all sorts of crafts. The greatest compliment we give each other is "That looks like you bought it at the store!" I love it! I just happen to find it really distracting when I'm trying to concentrate on working on my business. This week I wised up and brought my jewelry making supplies to work. I was extremely productive and made a lot of items to sell. The girls loved it and I'm working for my new business and having fun with them at the same time. Natalie who is 4 is the girliest girl I've ever met has been helping me pick out colors and loves touching everything.

Since I brought all my supplies to work Gillian has become my assistant. She wants to make all the jewelry for girls her age or younger. She is so excited and has really gotten into it. I have three items to sell made by her and I have enjoyed seeing her excited about her creations.