A Space of Her Own

BK has a beautiful nursery, it is actually my favorite room in our house, the only problem with this nursery is that it never gets any use. Sure we play in there every few days, and we snuggle on the glider to read a story or two, but for the most part it is an empty room.

BK still cosleeps (no judgements from you over there giving me the side eye), and most of her toys are downstairs where we spend the majority of our time. Now that BK is about to be one {and get way more toys than she needs}, we figure it's time to actually get the playroom in order.

Here are my playroom requirements:
-lots of storage
-completely safe {i.e. gated off, nothing that can fall on her if I leave the room for a few minutes, etc}
-fun bright colors
-space for "school time" and art projects
-a mommy nook
-a cozy corner

I whipped up this little collage of items that I love:

I cant wait for S to create that little stage/cozy corner. I was going to create a hanging canopy, but I like the idea that as BK grows the area can grow with her. The gray ruffle curtains will hang from the cozy corner, and I'm going to incorporate lots of turquoise, coral, and purple.

These are the curtains I am debating between for the windows

 

I am loving these pillows for the couch

 

Of course there will be lots of floor pillows for the reading nook.

 

For our school section I bought three LARGE picture frames that I am revamping. In one will be a chalkboard, one will be a magnet board, and I think one will be a cork/memo board to showcase our art.

 

And I've ordered a bunch of prints from etsy for the gallery wall I want to create.

 

Now I still need to find a table. The one I love is from Pottery Barn Kids and of course is a bit out of my price range. So I'm still on the search. Any suggestions?

 

I also love this mixed media rug {though I might pick a different color}, BK fell in love with a shag rug at her Uncle and Aunts house the other night, and I think this would be so fun for her. The only problem... it only comes in size 2 X 3?!

 

So what about this rug by RugsUSA? Or do you like the chevron up top better? I've heard really good things about RugsUSA.

So what do you think? What are your playroom requirements? Which curtains do you like?

 

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The Grass is Always Greener

Today I want to talk about the one uppers. You know the bitches that always have to steal your thunder. You go into a conversation super excited about your new shoes, or the date night you just had, the two pounds you just lost, or the fact that you just stuffed your face with three slices of pizza. Then wham someone else got their shoes for free, just returned from Paris, has 2% body fat, or brought in homemade pie for the whole office.

Dont you just hate those people? I mean why do they have to 1up your story? Couldnt they have saved their tale for another day and just expressed some enthusiasm for you? Would that have killed them?

I mean that used to really bust my butt, but now I'm a mom and I shit you not it has been taken to a WHOLE new level. I'm a new mom, I brag about my kid on the regular, obvi. I truly love to hear about what other kids are doing, mainly because I have no clue what I'm doing, but I think it's just part of my new job description. Mom's need reassurance, actually all people need reassurance and affirmation, but moms really need it. What I dont need is to know how your child is some kind of Beethoven Nobel Peace Prize winning genius. Some days it's all I can do to keep my child fed and alive, please dont rub in my face that your 10 month old counted to ten in two different languages while taking their first step. I mean, I'm happy for your kid and all but sometimes I just want you to say "wow that is so cool that BK did that today."

I've been feeling that way a bit with blogging lately. I just reached 400 followers, FOUR HUNDRED y'all! And that is huge for me. I've barely been blogging for two months and I put my heart and soul on this here page. I am so thankful that you come, read, and interract with me. With that being said, I sat at 390 for like two weeks. I remember seeing some people blow up from 200 to 400 like literally over night and seeing it all over twitter and all of the congratulations those people got. Me I threw my own little party with some champs and BK shared some puffs with me, pretty good party if you ask me.

What I realized though was that I cannot compare myself to others. {Two of my favorite bloggers also wrote posts on similar topics. You can read Whitney's & TJ's.} Each of us are on our own path, we have our own story to share, and we need to embrace that. We should spend more time basking in our own joys and lifting each other up opposed to competing with one another.

Love the life you live.

Girls

Being a girl is tricky, maybe I should say having friends as a girl is tricky. If you're a girl that has lots of guy friends then you're definitely going to be classified as a hussy. Hey you probably aren't a hussy, but I'm just being honest. Girls don't want other girls hanging around their men. The problem though is that girls are drama. Like Jerry Springer type drama on the regular, and lets be honest

Now I could be stereotyping and you could disagree, but as a girl I think your friendships fall into one of three categories.

1) You're a guys girl
-You proclaim on the regular that "you would rather hang out with guys" or "you have way more guy friends than girl friends". I'm going to go ahead and say you're not a two bit hussy and you just prefer to have friendships that are low maintenance and drama free. That's how it is with most guys, no drama. Just be careful that they try and get in your pants, which is bound to happen. Because I know that all of you reading this are of the super hott body variety, you're here so you're obviously fabulous.

2) You have a small tight knit group of friends
-Most of your girl friends have probably been in your life for ten or more years, minus the few you picked up in college or at the work place. Y'all move as a pack and rarely have one on one dates, it usally all or nothing. You always have someone on speed dial to grab a cocktail or go see a movie. Your bridesmaids have been picked out since before you met your fiance. And you should consider yourself pretty lucky in the friends department.

3) You tend to stick to yourself
-You may have one or two best friends, not including your significant other who you definitely claim as your "best friend and the only one you need", and you have a handful of nice acquaintances. People you would strike up conversation with at the mall or might even grab a drink with on occasions, but they aren't the kind of people that you share your deepest secrets with.

I, myself, fall into group three. I have a best friend that lives in Texas, two cousins that I consider my best friends, and a few other close friends. I have 2 bloggy friends that I know I would be joined at the hip with if we lived in the same state. I proudly claim S & BK as my soul mates. Sometimes I dont have someone to see a chick flick with me or to catch happy hour when I need it, but honestly I'm ok with that. I'm happy and thankful for what I do have. I find that navigating relationships with girls is tricky. Maybe I'm just weary from my run-ins with the mean girls in high school and college. I could probably put myself out there a little more, but where do you even find friends as an adult? It's not like I'm in class to meet new people every semester, I almost always have a mini me attached to my hip, and I enjoy spending most nights cuddled on the couch with my mister. Not that I wouldnt enjoy expanding my friendship circle, but I'm pretty comfortable in my life.

What about you? What's your friendship situation?

T.G.I.F + Still Fly

Do y'all remember when T.G.I.F was on tv? I used to soooo look forward to plopping down on the couch and vegging out all night. I have pretty similar plans for this weekend, rest and relaxation. Oh, and snuggles lots of snuggles.

Today I'm linking up with the super talented Ashley for Friday's Letters.

Dear Husband ~ Thank you so much for being such a fantastic man this week. I couldnt have made it through without you. You were an amazing place of comfort to me, and youre a fantastic daddy.  Dear February ~ How did you get here so fast? Can you please bring some warmer weather with you? Dear body ~ Please, please, please go back to normal. Dear BK ~ You have no idea how much I love you. I am so blessed to have you as my daughter. Dear Me ~ Time to get your booty in gear and get things organized for BK's photo shoot. Brush off those *wannabe* event planner skills and put together something amazing! Dear real food ~ I am going to grub this weekend. Get.In.My.Belly.

And of course it is Dance Party Friday! Do y'all remember this song? Oh man I used to roll through my neighborhood with this song playing SO loud. #glorydaysofhighschool

As a mom I....

Today I'm linking up withe fabulous Samantha and Melissa for some funny mommy stories.

 

 

This week for me is a huge reminder that I need to purge my house. Yesterday I was trying to switch around a load of laundry, no big deal right? Wrong. So I gate BK in my bedroom, run downstairs to do the laundry gig, and come right back up. I was literally gone four minutes. This is what I walked in to find

Yes my child is covered in maxi pads! Where the hell did she even find those? How did she get them open?

Wondering what that is at the bottom of the picture? That HUGE thing is indeed an ice pad. For all of you non-mommies out there that is what you wear in your pants when you get sent home from the hospital.

 

As a mom I.... Am constantly reminded that my house is never clean enough.

 

 

*please ignore the crap carpet. We've replaced all the flooring in our house but our room. So that's happening next month*

 

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January Giveaway

Today my super fabulous sponsors are hosting a giveaway for you! I'm super excited to bring this to y'all.

Tara from Faith, Hope, and Mommyhood is giving away a Scentsy plug in and two bars.

Katie from Life with the D's is giving away a custom hand stamped initial necklace from her shop.

Joanna from ModaMama is giving away a month of cool ad space.

You know you want to win this loot.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

*I'm going to be changing up my sponsor options in March and that month I will also be having a HUGE giveaway in honor of BK's birthday. So hop on my sponsor options now. For the next week you can get 30% off using code football*

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The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

No not really, but I am going to talk about a sisterhood today. My biffle Ashley talked about part of her college experience yesterday and I wanted to write a "sister" post if you will. When I was in college I was a sorority girl, a Zeta Tau Alpha to be exact.

 

Right now I'm sure you are either lumping me with the Sorority girl stereotype or you were a greek life member yourself so you're probably reminiscing back on your days. I dont blame you, most people view greek life in one way... party people. Yes we color coordinated for parties. Yes sometimes we did "obnoxious" chants at bars. And I wont lie I did my fair share of partying, I probably did some of my best table dancing in this time, but it wasnt at the fault of my sorority. To be honest I was much more tame due to Zeta. We had designated drivers available on the weekends, a home to go to on campus, and there was always someone watching my back. But we were way more than party girls.

We did community service every month. We had a philanthropy that worked with very actively, and breast cancer awareness is still very dear to my heart. Our grades were held to high standards, and we were required to be in the library a certain number of hours a week. I would honestly say that my active semesters were the ones were my grades were the best.

The best thing that I took away from my Zeta days were the friendships. I have been friends with some of these fabulous ladies for over eight years now. They were bridesmaids and attendants of my wedding {in Mexico}, they were at my baby shower, they call to check on me when I'm sick. I'm even lucky enough to have a few that are mamas like myself, and we have play dates with our girls.

I've even been blessed to connect with other Zetas through blogging, like Ashley & Samantha. If the worst I got from my sorority days is some massive hangovers and people judging me then I didnt make out to bad. So I'm proud I'm a sorority girl, I'm especially proud that I'm a Zeta Tau Alpha.

 

And to be quite honest I see a lot of similarities in sorority sisterhoods and the blogging community. Maybe that's why I love it so much and feel so at home.

 

*Disclaimer- My college computer died so I lost most of the photo of my "glory days" including my sorority photos. I'm sure my child(ren) will thank me later that they never have to stumble upon these photos*

 

 

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