Garage Sale Finds

Found these two pieces at a garage sale this morning. I spent a total of $3.91. I love them!

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On the bottom one, I just bought the print and put it in a frame I already had.

My Man and Christmas Decorations

I guess those two titles should have been separate...first, my man! Steve received an award at the bank for Credit Analyst of the Month! It is the first time the bank has ever given out the award, so it's pretty cool for him. His bosses are going to take him out to lunch, but more importantly, he received a 1/2 day off for free! This means more time with the family for Thanksgiving! Wahoo! Bella doesn't exactly bring home a lot of artwork, so I taped Steve's certificate to the fridge.

Next...I know it's early (okay, VERY early), but I've already decorated for Christmas. I usually hold off a little longer than this, but we had a free weekend - very rare for us - so I decided to drag the boxes out of the attic and get some of it done. Having Bella be a little older inspired me to make some homemade decorations. I might be able to claim that Bella made them, because they definitely look like a child did them! I'm just telling myself that it makes it more "homey".

This is the only picture I took of the homemade crafts. I made a snowman and a bunch of paper snowflakes to hang in the windows. It won't snow in Georgia in time for Christmas, so this is the best I could do!

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Our mistletoe! Hung in a very convenient spot with lots of traffic! The little neighbor boy that I watch in the afternoon (he's 9) is terrified that he's going to walk beneath it at the same time I do. I've promised him that I won't attack him.

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And my favorite...a nativity set given to me by Steve's mom. It's from the Willow Tree company; I have quite a few of their pieces that are "maternity" or "parenting", and I just love this set! It always goes on our mantel.

I'll put up some more pictures when it's closer to the actual season!

Playground on Sunday

We finally had a relaxing weekend! It's been about 6 weeks since we could claim that, so I was excited. Saturday morning was our photo shoot with our friend, Ellen. It was really cold and a little windy, but we were determined to persevere. Ellen got some gorgeous shots! She sent us a few samples, and I love them! I'll post some of the final shots when they come in.

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I woke up feeling sick on Sunday, so we didn't go to church. We just took it easy and after lunch, we walked to the playground in our subdivision. Bella is still figuring out that she can do things on her own, so it's fun to watch her realize she can do it by herself.

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Going to post a short video of her on the slide by herself! She loved going down and didn't even seem to mind plopping on her butt at the end. Once she realized she had sand on her hands, THEN she started fussing. Go figure! It was a nice, relaxing family experience.

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I Am THAT Parent...

1. I let my child play with a toy (even in her mouth) while walking around Target, and then just put the toy back before we check out.

2. I no longer think it's disgusting when she eats something off the floor without even using her hands.

3. I go the the bathroom with the door closed and the lights off just to have a moment of peace and quiet.

4. When I go to the Kiddie Play area in the mall, I want to hit the other children.

5. I let the three toddlers in my house trade sippy cups like it's their job.

6. I strongly believe that "Repeat Play" should be an option on every Disney movie's menu.

7. I gave up forcing my child to eat green vegetables and now just feed her pears from a can.

8. My proudest moment was when my child blew on her own french fry to cool it down.

9. I've yelled at my child while she was throwing a tantrum.

10. I've had to call Poison Control three times in the last year.

Signs Of Fall

Fall officially hit North Georgia this week! We've woken up to freezing rain most mornings, and it seems like overnight, people have gotten out their winter coats. I realize to people actually living in cold climates, it doesn't seem cold here, but 40 degrees is definitely cold enough for this Florida girl to start wearing turtlenecks! Here are signs around our house that Fall has arrived...

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Having so much rain made my dahlia bushes explode! These beautiful peach blooms came like crazy at the beginning of the week, so I used them as a centerpiece for a dinner with friends on Monday. I love having fresh flowers in the house!
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Our pumpkin dressed as a pilgrim turkey! When we went to the Pumpkin Patch, I specifically bought a pumpkin just to dress him up! These wooden pieces are made by Steve's dad and they look great! I've even had my neighbor ask how she can buy one.

Nasty grey clouds! I've actually been looking forward to cooler weather for awhile now - it's hard to get excited about Thanksgiving and Christmas when it's still 80 degrees outside. Unfortunately, it also means that my time outside with Bella is extremely limited.

Stopped at Target last night and couldn't resist this adorable pea coat for Bella! Steve's blue eyes look great anytime he wears red, so I'm thinking Bella's will do the same.

We have our "Official Wires Family Photo Shoot" this weekend with Ellen, a Senior in our youth group. She has done portraits of a lot of the families that we know, and I'm excited to work with her! Pray that Bella is in a good mood on Saturday morning!

Voting

This is my second post today, but I had to post about voting! The event itself was pretty low-key, but I was still excited to be there. the women handing out paperwork clapped when they heard it was my first time; that made me chuckle. I have always considered myself pretty uninformed - I want to know more about politics, I just haven't taken the time to learn more.

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So for this first election, I was a wimp and tended to just vote down the line Republican. It has sparked some interesting discussions with Steve. We like some of the Libertarian candidates, but then we wonder if it's better to vote for someone who actually has a chance of winning or who you truly think should win.

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We're still talking...

My Favorite Faces

I'm a totally biased parent in thinking my child is super-cute, but every once in awhile, she makes a face that makes me laugh out loud! These are two of my favorites....

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This is her "Tickled Pink" face! Today, she made this face when the theme song to Super Why came on. She loves music and loves her PBS shows! It's a silly face that I rarely get to catch on camera, so I was excited to get it today!

This is Bella's "Get Out Of Jail Free" face. When she is scolded and I use my best "stop that or die" voice, Bella will turn and stare at me. She doesn't cry. She doesn't laugh. I'm pretty sure she doesn't blink. She just stares with this look on her face. It takes all of my power not to laugh, and I usually fail miserably!