Bedroom Mini-Makeover.

We've been in our house a little more than three years now, and I'm starting to scratch the redecorating itch. Although there are some gorgeous new things I'd love to do (thanks mostly to Pinterest), the ones that involve paint, new furniture, and total room rearranging will just have to wait.
I did decide to get a little creative though, and by moving a few things around and pulling in some items from different rooms, we've got some new, fresh decor for the walls.
Would you like a sneak peek? If not, now would be the time to click that little x in the corner of your screen. Same picture, new wall. A canvas that Andrew & I bought on our honeymoon.
My new creation for the wall. Cardboard K from JoAnn's. Husby painted for me and I used a copper leafing pen to write the lyrics from one of our favorite songs, "You and Me" by DMB.

The gallery style wall. K from above, maternity picture by my fab sis-in-law, Delaney's newborn and 3 month pictures by Paul Wharton, clock with verses from Proverbs from Aunt Debbie & Aunt Vicki, Always Kiss Me Goodnight frame from Kirklands, and an amazing silhouette of Delaney done by hand by the same man who did mine when I was a little girl.

A new favorite space. "Grow old with me" plaque from Hobby Lobby has been on this wall, but our new addition is the "I love you because..." printable found via Pinterest. This is such a fun way to leave little affirmations for each other. It has been a great feeling to come in to the room and notice you have a note about how you are loved! I plan to put one of these in Delaney's room when she is older as well.

Sconces from my Party Lite bridal shower (a million years ago). Just removed the candles and added some other stuff from around the house. Angel given to our family at my Grannie's funeral, flower from Target, milk glass vase an heirloom from my Grannie, and rolled paper flowers DIY'ed by me from here.

Sports Suck.

But not for the reason that a lot of wives hate sports. I always see the little signs at craft fairs that say "This marriage has been interrupted for football/basketball/baseball season." That couldn't be farther from our house. Andrew & I are both bigtime sports fans, one of the first commonalities that we learned about each other early along in our relationship.

Football and baseball are our main sports. Now, I have to admit, that during baseball season, I only follow the Cubbies, only watch some of their games, and could care less about what any of the other teams are doing. Football season is a completely different animal. We root for Vandy football and sometimes catch a home game in person. Sundays belong to Titans football at our house. The day starts with a great tailgate with friends (with awesome food and beverages, of course), followed by the walk into the stadium and up to our seats.

Yesterday, a perfectly good first half was ruined by a completely miserable second half. But let's not talk about that.

Beyond the Titans, we keep up with everyone in the AFC South, because of course we need to know where we stand (Plus, its fun to laugh at the Colts. Tee hee.) This year, add in the fact that Andrew & I are both playing Fantasty Football (not a good weekend for me there, either), and you get one couple that really loves to cheer on the home teams (and random players from other teams that we have on our rosters).

So, although Vandy, the Titans, and the Ugly Naked Guys (my fantasty team - if you aren't a Friends fan, then you don't get it) all let me down this weekend, you can bet we'll be glued to the TV next Sunday at noon, decked out in our gear and cheering for a win on the road.

Playground Fun.

Today Delaney and I met our best buds Tracey & Gavin at the park for some playground fun. The weather was gorgeous, and the kiddos had a blast. Delaney was a slide monster, climbing the stairs, sliding down, and repeating over and over! She kept saying "Slide! Slide!" She also loves to swing. Here are a couple of pictures from our fun afternoon!

Catching Up.

Since it seems I haven't even bothered to update you faithful followers on our lives lately (although I'm fairly certain basically all of you are my Facebook friends, so you are no doubt privy to the barrage of pictures of a certain darling toddler girl and her antics), I feel I should take one more swipe at this whole blogging business, after all.

What better to start with than a catch up post?

In September we went on a fabulous family vacation to Ft. Walton Beach. Didn't you go there in the Spring? you wonder. Yes, yes we did. How we got the vacation gods to smile down and grant two beach vacations in one year, I may never know. But when it comes to the vacation gods, I don't ask a lot of questions.

October passed rapidly, as Octobers always seem to do. Delaney was in her first costume contest, in which she actually won a toy for wearing a delightful costume that - wait for it - mommy (that would be yours truly) MADE. Yes, made. Check out the cute ladybug on the sidebar if you want the proof. Our newest nephew, Jackson, was born on October 20th, and we have gotten to love on his perfect little newborn self twice so far. With more snuggles to come soon, I hope! We topped off the month with trick-or-treating with friends, which was an absolute ball with our hilarious daughter.

So far in November, Delaney has had her 15 month check up. She is 31.5 inches (she grew 1.5 inches in 3 months!) which is the 80th percentile, and she is 25.9 lbs., 90th percentile. Our girl is growing so big!

There is lots more planned for this month, which I'll try to keep you updated on throughout the month (assuming I don't completely go M.I.A again - I make no promises). Lots of craft projects are planned. Yep, I left and came back crafty, get used to it.

So, in closing - welcome back to our life! So glad you are here to join us for the busy, crazy, fantastic holiday season!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today's is my darling Mommy's birthday!! She is an amazing Grannie and one of my best friends, too. Yep, you can be jealous that I have such a great mom! She is stronger than I will ever dream of being. So thankful to celebrate another great year with her! Love you, Mom!!

Balls In the Air.

Like pants on the ground, only different. It's more like I'm occasionally looking like a fool with my balls in the air.

Ahem.

Juggling all the balls of my life, that is. Motherhood. Wifedom. Controllership. Which is my job description, by the way, not a quest to take over the world. I don't have the time or patience for that kind of thing.

As I was telling my one of my best pals today, I do really well for a couple of months, then I have a little "get your life together" moment where I feel I need to revamp and try again on this whole balancing act. So that's what I've been doing lately. Working on breaking everything down into little bits, instead of getting overwhelmed. Working on not being such a Major Type A Personality.

One of my hubby's tattoos is a quote from Fight Club: No fear, no distractions. The next line is the kicker: The ability to let that which does not matter truly slide. If you know him, you know this sums him up pretty well. A nice contrast to his darling wife. But I am working on that, too. I'm finding that if nothing else, motherhood and age help mellow you. An even keel husband works pretty well, too.

So although my new schedule has been working out fairly well, I have left one critical element out of the week: blogging. Not sure when to add it in, but its definitely worth the edit.

And the copying over of the schedule on nice, lined paper with pretty colored pens. Hey, some traits are worth working on, and some are better to just embrace.

One.

Delaney Kate turned one on August 2nd. I can't begin to describe the pride I feel of having such an amazing daughter. She is so much fun, and I love the fact that her personality shines through more and more with each day that passes. More about how great she is and how wonderful her party was later, once I get some photos posted.

We went yesterday for her 12 month checkup and were very happy with all the findings. Delaney is a big girl, coming in at the 95% for height (at 30 inches tall) and the 90% for weight (at 24.1 lbs.) Her head is in the 50% percentile. I think it works perfectly on her adorable little frame. :)

She is walking well, hearing well, talking well, and moving about non-stop! All of her development looks great. She does have some tibial torsion, which the doctor says is completely normal for her age, and a little bowing, which could have to do with her being in mommy's belly so long! Both should correct themselves with time, and since they do not slow her down whatsoever, the doctor is not worried at all.

Delaney has made the switch to whole milk with no problem. That makes for a happy mommy!! Less formula means more money for mommy to buy pretty things the college fund, of course. Her first cup of whole milk was at lunch today and she downed the whole thing. She has been using cups only and no bottles for about two weeks now. My big girl!!

She did have four shots and a finger stick yesterday, which were rough on mommy and baby. She had the biggest tearful reaction to these yet, but I know they are what's best for her. She was a little slow yesterday, but mostly back to her old self after a big breakfast and a long nap.

We love our little girl so much!! She is the light of our lives. We thank God every day that she is so healthy, growing and developing just as she should!