On those rare occasions I can hold Syd down long enough to put piggies in her hair it turns out totally adorable

However, this is only about a once a month occurance, but totally worth the pain! I'm so glad her hair is getting long enough to do this! Ponytails make her look like a boy, and only kids can pull the pigtails off but they sure are cute! Her dad thinks it's time for a haircut, and I tell him he's nuts!

We got the news yesterday that the house loan is being processed as we speak so everything there seems a go....BUT if it weren't for hurdles it wouldn't be my life, now the insurance quote we got has mysteriously doubled (ouch!) so I'm going to check out a few other places before we go there! I'm still counting down to Nov 10 when we sign the papers and get the keys....hopefully! Off to ready myself for this weekend, I should be ready to sleep for a week when I return!

I survived! I'm now 28, and don't feel any different....I knew it would happen, I just don't look forward to getting older anymore, it was fun until you hit 21 then it's a downhill slide! Other than being forced to wear a sombrero and have Happy Birthday sung to me it was a pretty boring day. Don't worry, I made a mental note, Hubby will suffer the same fate when he gets another year older as well! Those of you that know me well enough would probably be shocked to know I requested mexican on my birthday...maybe with age comes taste (there are only a handful....ok, not even that many....2 mexican restauraunts to date that I will order tacos at)

Today was back to the task at hand...I've completely fallen in love with a classic...

I love this old car! It made amazing pictures...of which I'm about 80% finished....hopefully they'll ALL be done by friday so I can start in on little bros' face when I come back!

I even finished a hat for my nieces' birthday party Sunday so make that a double check off the list. Gotta break the pictures apart somehow, right?

It's really not a good thing when she won't take a nap....

case in point! That's what was going on when I could hear her on the monitor so I knew she was still awake but something was occupying her time....

We took advantage of the fairly nice weather today to clean up all the leaves in our yard, take the outside toys down so they're easier moved.....and carve pumpkins. Hopefully these guys fair better than the blow up pumpkins we started with outside. Syd had to be persuaded to stick her hand inside the pumpkin the first time, but she decided it wasn't near as bad as it looked...

She's awful cute next to the pretty pumpkins! We started with 3 but when I picked one of them up half of the pumpkin stayed on the carpet, so not only do I have the carving mess to clean up, I get to shampoo carpet as well! At least I know where the funky smell was originating from now!

UH OH!!!

I was looking at the calendar yesterday to figure out what to do with all my options for next weekend and came to a scary realization. I have 2 days to live it up while I'm still 27. Yes, I just admitted my age...Sunday is the big day, how come the number has to keep going up, can't it ever go back down? At least I have a new distraction from the house....I can worry about getting old instead of how much longer I have to wait until closing. And how we're going to fill the house with appliances. I guess the good thing about my age is I'm still carded EVERYWHERE! I can't walk into a gas station to buy tobacco or beer for the hubby without a drivers license, I can't enter a casino without a drivers liscense I even had to prove to a lab tech when I was pregnant I was as old as I said I was (now that's pathetic). That is a good thing, right? Oh well, off with my realization to save the house from the one baby demolition crew!....she happens to be super cute today in her second set of piggies...I'm so glad her hair is getting long enough to do stuff with it!

I was slaving away on senior pictures today when I noticed something....what's the first sign a car is way too clean for it's own good?

Hey look it's a self portrait! I just happened to notice this because I was playing with the color composition of the picture, otherwise I probably wouldn't have ever noticed. Is that another sign? Maybe that I've been looking at pictures of the same thing for WAY too long? I do believe I'm down to one announcement and color correcting, unless I see something that makes me want to go wild in one of the pictures. That means I've got 3 announcements down and a couple of photos messed with.

And on that note, Syd just unplugged her monitor, which if par for the course today is NOT a good thing. So far we've emptied the pullups out of the bag, emptied lotion all over the nightstand (original location on top of a dresser, so either there are elves helping, or she has a new trick), thrown her sippy cup at me as I've walked out the door and downright refused to take a nap! Apparently the quick 30 minute one will have to do!

How much do you think I could physically fit into a 48 hour period of time? Here's the list....Senior pictures, a birthday party, Once Upon a Child, Fabric Store Plato's Closet and whatever else I please...Possible? Yet to be determined....did I mention all of these activities are 2 hours from my house? I said I needed a distraction from the 20 days before we close, but it would have been so much better all spread out!

Syd is living life like normal, but looking at me curiously as I continue to pack stuff that we don't use at least once a week like I'm going nuts. I figure the more I do now, the less hectic it will get the weekend before the big move! If only I could figure out how to clean all the carpets between now and then without causing some major chaos in the house!

Here's another picture I've played with a little bit....the original was horribly lit, sun in your eyes, washed out, and not very appealing, but I'm rather partial to the end result!

Happy Rainy day! I can't remember October ever being this cold! I don't mind the rain/snow if it wasn't so darn cold. I'm still crossing my fingers everything works out with the new house, hubby has been worried since the day he got his pre-approval something will go wrong, I keep telling him to relax. Besides if he wants something to do he can clean up the water in our entry that comes with every snow and rain....it sure is getting old!

Two new things today....well, maybe three. If you notice to the side there's a new picture or two....you should be able to click on them and go straight to my now open etsy shop! Happy shopping! Hats are the other new thing....this one is hot off the sewing machine and awful cute as well...

Hubby says Syd is either going to have a lot of hats, or I am going to have to start sewing my fingers off, so we'll see which way this goes!

Here's a funny for the nice gloomy day. Sydney has been rather obsessed with daddy's socks lately, and this is how she dressed today (her obsession with my shoes is nothing new, I normally have to hunt around the house to pair them up)

isnt this how you'd dream of going out in public? I'm guessing she won't be a stylist when she grows up!

Up Up and away....

Here it is...dotdotdottots.etsy.com!

There are two hats on it and more will be added soon....along with the crib bedding I'm most excited about when I gather enough supplies to do a couple sets. This should be fun!

I hate winter! So that's not any big news, but I just wanted to share. How come it's always colder when winter just starts than when it's almost spring, and the temperature is actually lower in the spring? I learned something about Syd this weekend, she doesn't like cold air in her face, so that leaves me with the conclusion she's going to have to be toted around again this winter covered with a blanket. That's not all bad news though, should prevent getting sick a little more, just make it harder to carry her covered in a blanket and in her winter gear!

I have this new little venture called dotdotdottots.etsy.com don't get in any big rush to go check it out today though, I've got a few minor things left to do before I get it up and running, mostly check on postage for shipping my products. THEN you're free to browse around. I'll be adding stuff to it frequently once I get all my ducks lined up. Hubby says I'm a spaz for the name, but have •••Design picked out for my photography/design gig , so just went with the same theme for etsy. Get the general idea?

Our other big news is that we put a deposit on a spiffy new fridge that was being discontinued as of noon today....WE got the LAST black one that was in the area....AND it was on SALE! Woohoo for us! It looks plain but....open the doors and you find a water dispenser inside that little fingers can't reach....and there is an icemaker in the freezer so it doesn't take up any space in the fridge....Perfection!

We also picked out the stove and washer and dryer and will be putting a deposit on them about a week before we're set to move so all should be ready to rock and roll when we get the keys! I had my heart set on a pair of fridgidaire affinity front loader laundry pair until we walked into the locally owned appliance store today....met the nicest guy (who we later learned owned it) and changed our minds to a set of LG front loaders because of the warranty....where on earth do you find a 10 year parts & labor warranty anymore? We decided the minimal price difference was worth the 9 year extra warranty....and they are bigger! He also told me that 2010 is the last year you'll find mass produced top load laundry pairs because they are old technology...and the washer and dryer will pay for themselves in less than 5 years with energy/water savings! I knew I wanted the front loaders for more than the cool factor ;) Did you know it takes a washer 35 gallons of water to wash your clothes the old fashioned way....and somewhere around 8 with a front loader....And you don't have to wait for over an hour for dry time....that it's around 20 minutes for a normal load (obviously not towels) I'll be a laundry queen!
Sorry if you don't care about any of this....I was blown away by what I learned today!

Whew....again! We're still waiting for the house, well not waiting, waiting on the bank now, everything on our end is pretty much done, we agreed to what the appraiser suggested we try to get fixed, we got a response, and the biggest thing was taken care of, so another hurdle crossed. Did I mention I SUCK at hurdles, last time I tried getting my rear end over one of those I fell flat of my face!

I was looking at the calendar the other day....the last two years I've done Thanksgiving dinner for my family in my house....that gives me no more than 10 days to get completely unpacked between when we need to be out of our rental and when I have to have a big 'ol turkey cooked nice golden brown in what will hopefully be my appliance filled kitchen, anyone see any potential red flags there? We can't go order appliances for the house until we close on the loan because it could screw the loan up if we apply for no interest, and we want black appliances which in most cases have to be ordered and take up to 2 weeks to get....yep BIG RED FLAG!!! Oh well, we're going to go for it anway, worst case scenario hubby borrows a turkey cooker from a friend and we do it without a stove! The good news is I should have PLENTY of space for everyone this year!

I worked on another hat today, so that brings a grand total to 2....with a few minor adjustments of those two to make it 4...not bad for this 'ol lady!

My blaze orange boys' hat....which could be girls too, but I'd pick a different color

Ok, on this one think flaps down and girly colors for girls....and another way for a boy is put a fake bill on the front that is always flipped against the hat, and voila, kiddie hunting hat!

This one is the same as the pink hat in the other picture....almost, the brim on it was too square acoording to hubby, so that was removed and re-configured but I put it on Syd without one and I must say it's awful cute as is too....so Style number 3...I think...(Jodi...note the decorative artwork behind the head...see my baby scribbles decorates things she's not supposed to as well)

Same hat as above with the new brim, and it's a keeper!

Hopefully I'll get another style or two that I have in mind done this weekend while grandma is here and get them to etsy before monday....They're getting easier as they go, the sewing machine and I still have an occasional argument however...

So I bit the bullet today....I made a Newsboy cap and I actually love how it turned out, its super cute on super demon!

Hubby says the bill is too square so I guess I will be rounding it out a little on the rest of them...up for tomorrow is the elmer fudd hat for boys and I'll be good to go. I don't think I'll be posting that on my baby though, daddy might kill me!

It's definately a good way to waste away a month waiting for my house, then I'll be busy busy painting and unpacking....thank goodness this time it's not rented so I don't have to look forward to re-packing everything! I seriously can't wait to finally dig everything out that's been packed away since I got married!

I think my head is in the same predicament as the weather....groggy, I'm seriously stuck today! And I blew the second fuse in our house in 3 days....and we haven't blown a single one to this point and moved in 6 months ago! I am thinking I need to stick with the cleaning and condensing of baby clothes into tote boxes for the day, and maybe I'll have a spark of inspiration tomorrow!

Here's a prototype of one of my hats....actually this kind of had was my inspiration, I think they are absolutely adorable! My mom is hopefully saving my behind, and sending me the foot to her sewing machine so I can get to work on these, I'm almost dying with anticipation, and it's a good distraction from staring at pictures all day! My little model is quite cute, don't you think?

I'm off to repack some totes, hubby brought home the news this morning that we close on the 10th of Nov....almost a week earlier than planned, which is still a good month away, but it already sent me into panic mode!

Warning: Brick wall straight ahead! That's what I feel like today! I got a different sewing machine yesterday from one of hubby's aunts....THANKS MUCH, by the way, but somewhere between her house and my house with a few more moves inbetween we lost the accessory storage, so while I was super hyped to get to work on my hats, yet another delay! My sewing machine doesn't work AT ALL on fleece, it's old and says it wants to just die every time I try....SO, I was forced to play with the finished senior portraits instead, and again, have no enthusiasm because I was going to wait with them until this week instead....here are a couple that they needed right away for coronation, so they have color adjustments then were sent on their merry way....

I'm somewhat disturbed by the box behind his head, but wasn't in the mental state to work some magic to remove it today....so here's what they get

Here's one of my favorites from the whole day....well not this one specifically, but a group of them in the same spot....maybe it's the shirt too, there are some in the same shirt at a different location that I love too!

We're still counting down to moving day with only the appraisal left to go then we're homefree, so wish us luck!

So after my quick 5 minute chance at flipping and flopping the picture of the house, here's what I got...

Ok ok, I know, I went to college for this stuff, so gimme a break on the ugliness of the photoshop work....I said I only had about 5 minutes. So, a lot of moving, and smearing and so forth later, here's the general idea. I'm seeing something over the front door yet, I just don't know what....the actual front door is the one that's still white...confusing I know. And I'm thinking bay window next to the door and use the current window in the second story. I love the location, love the view (right now unobstructed by anything but cows) and it's NEW! So I can stand to do a few things to make it mine. We passed the inspection today without any major problems so that's another check off the list.....now it just needs to appraise for what we paid and we're at home run! Maybe it will actually be mine yet....while chatting with the inspector today, found out his brother is a builder and asked if my idea was possible and he said absolutely....and even told me to get all my ducks in a row BEFORE we call a builder...YES!, I was told to be anal! Normally I get in trouble for the perfectionism, but this time it's totally needed....HAH!, so there! It's not like we bought a teeny house, we just don't want to move again until it's to an acreage, so we're planning on expanding this one when the need arises to fit under the roof and still keep my studio.

So, on a note other than the house, tomorrow I finish my first senior session, then go to work with my trusty pen and voila...fancy pictures! Next up...home to do baby bros' pictures....whenever I mention them he says "I thought and thought and then forgot" so he's in for a surprise some weekend when I show up camera in tow and tell him to go pick out some fancy duds and lets get the show on the road! Oh to be a big sister....I kinda like the bossy part ;)

Ok, so I forgot about the pictures I found yesterday....I said the honey colored oak was eew....and this is what I envision for my kitchen cabinetry...think black base cupboards with the red accent and the dark upper cupboards, we've already picked out all black kitchen appliances....I know I know, DARK, BUT there is so much light in the room during the day it shouldn't be a problem at all!

....now I just need to find a couple of cupboard doors to practice on....

So that house that I've been eluding to.....

I can't wait! I've already got plans for the inside....especially all of the oak, NOT a fan! Besides, with a contemporary outside, who wants a traditional inside? Hubby is not excited about me going to work on it either, he's afraid it's going to end up a rainbow inside, and it most definately will not, well except for maybe syd's room, she needs something awful girly! Oh yeah, and those mint green shutters, expect those gone within moments of me getting the keys, they are the ugliest things ever....they might return in a white version, depending on how bare the front looks with nothing. I'm going to go to work on the picture in photoshop and do a conceptual of what I'd like to do to it when we add on.....Someday.

Have a great weekend! I know I will, the wait is already killing me and we just came to an agreement yesterday afternoon!