Hippity hop, Easter is on it's way!

I was a little more than excited to pull out my Easter decorations for the mantle this year. I think it might be because this time last year, we were getting our house ready to sell, so I didn't get to decorate because I didn't want to add that to the long list of things that needed to be done in house selling.

So it was TWO YEARS AGO (holy cow!) that I posted this idea for Easter decor. And I said that "Odds are high that I'll make a trip to JoAnn's to buy some super cute eggs on sale to use for next year."

And sure enough...I went to JoAnn's when everything was marked down 75% and got some cute eggs, and am finally getting to use them.

Although, I have to admit...I kind of liked it better with the cheap plastic eggs. They were much more colorful. Maybe I'll just have to go back to JoAnn's this year and see if they have some colorful ones for next year. But really, throwing eggs in a vase...doesn't get much easier than that.

Sadly, though, my favorite Easter decor idea hasn't been executed this year because I haven't made the effort to go out and find some little tree branches. Perhaps I will get around to it before Easter rolls around.

blog lameness, juC, Valentine's Day

I'm in mourning. I'm mourning the loss of my blog being funny and actually having people read it. I'm pretty sure my readership has dropped 98%. And I'm certain that my funniness has dropped 98% as well. Having a large blog readership is very important to me (note: no sarcasm)

So as I was pondering my blog, I realized it has been much too long since I've posted about my dear husband, juC. My blog isn't my blog without some good juC posts on it. I realized I never posted about Valentine's Day. A Valentine's post is a must. A MUST! And a juC post is a must. So here goes--

A Valentine's juC post

A little over a week before the BIG day, juC asked me if I just wanted Georgetown Cupcakes for Valentine's Day. Uhh...no thought needed...shheeyaaaah! That's how a guy shows a girl he loves her, after all.

Knowing what I was getting in no way ruined Valentine's Day. I was soooo looking forward to my cupcakes and the made up commercial holiday couldn't get here fast enough.

And finally, FINALLY--Valentine's Day was here. Oh, glorious day of cupcake arrival. The day was finally here, but now I had to wait ever so patiently for juC to get home from work. But I knew that the waiting would be worth it when I dug my teeth into that sweet goodness. And that I would enjoy them for days to come.

And finally, FINALLY--juC arrived home from work. With.........

A grocery bag.....

A grocery bag, people.....

A grocery bag containing a little Valentine heart with chocolates for jC....

A grocery bag with a little stuffed gorilla for luC.....

A grocery bag housing a tiny (I'm talking tiny) bag of Lindt truffles....

FOR ME!!!

Nary a beautiful pink box from Georgetown Cupcakes in sight. Why? Because he didn't know that's what I wanted.

Wait. What?

Yes, you heard me correctly.

He didn't know that I wanted Georgetown Cupcakes for Valentine's Day, even though it was his idea, and he asked me specifically, and I specifically and emphatically told him that it was very much what I wanted. I mean, I guess he can't be perfect all the time.

But don't worry, I reminded him daily that he failed (isn't that what good wives do?) until he finally came home with that glorious pink Georgetown Cupcake box.

But then, this past Saturday, he did something that proved that even though he couldn't get me the one thing for Valentine's Day that he knew he should get, that he does love me...A LOT.

You see--we had Indian (food) for dinner Saturday night. This was the first time getting Indian (food) since moving to our new house, which means we got it from a new place. And you see--it wasn't good. So after we ate, I mentioned that I wish Wegman's wasn't so far away from us now because they have this peanut butter cream pie that is TO DIE FOR! But the closest Wegmans to us now is about 30 minutes away.

But do you know what juC did? After we got the kids to bed, he told me he was going to

Wegmans to get me that oh so delicious peanut butter cream pie!! Melt my heart--He loves me. He really, really, really, REALLY loves me!! Probably more than a girl like me deserves to be loved. (If you've had this pie, you will understand why it means what it means that he went and got it for me. If you haven't had this pie, look at it. Can you not tell it's the most amazing thing in the world??)

I suppose that's why juC and I make the perfect couple. He loves me more than I deserve and I love him for loving me more than I deserve. And of course, because I love him in spite of his faults (like when he forgets to get me my cupcakes for Valentine's Day, even though it was HIS idea)

And by the bye, it was 5 years ago on the 18th that this sweet juC proposed right before Sunday dinner (by placing a 'marry me' conversation heart on my dinner plate with the ring). All kidding aside, he really is the most amazing husband and I'm so thankful for him!

It WAS my birthday, and now it's almost Halloween!

Nearly two months ago, on August 9, the whole world celebrated the anniversary of my birth. Some people didn't even know that's what they were celebrating, but that's beside the point.

Nearly a month after that, using the money my mother and mother-in-law so generously gave me, I bought one of the best birthday presents ever.

You see, back at the beginning of the year I was out shopping for some antiques (I know, shocking!) and I came across a fabulous brown wool coat. I wanted it. Ohhhh how I wanted it. But I knew my husband wouldn't be very happy with me for spending the money on it when I already have plenty of coats.

Every.single.time. I went back to that antique store, I would go see if that coat was there. And every.single.time. it was still there and I thought "This must be a sign that I should have this coat." But my husbands voice kept popping into my head: "You don't need that coat!"

But when I went, equipped with my birthday money...there was NOTHING to stop me. And miracle of miracles...about 8 months after first spotting the coat, it was still there! (I'm so glad other people weren't cool enough to realize how great this coat was!)(No offense.)

And not only was it still there, but the lady working there called the owner of the coat and let her know that I had been eyeing it for 8 months, and she knocked 20% off the price! So for only sixty bucks I have this:

Check out those buttons!

It's from Woodward and Lothrop. Which, according to the lovely lady at the antique store was THE place to shop in Washington D.C. back in the day. It was like D.C.s own version of NY's Macys. Her dad would take her there around Christmas to see the huge window display they'd do. And the sentimental part of me thinks it's even more awesome that it's from right here in this area.

But, back to the coat.

I love it. And I almost don't even look pregnant when I wear it. Almost.

Now on to a completely different subject, have I mentioned the best part about my antique mantle?

Decorating for holidays!!And thanks to my favorite antique spot it Buckeystown, MD, I have these cute blocks someone made using vintage Halloween pictures to decorate it with.

Having a mantle to decorate truly makes this time of year so much better. Let the holidays begin!!

Last ditch effort

Easter is this Sunday, and I still feel my decorations are inadequate. So I stole this idea from this blog.

I didn't have a large glass jar with a lid, but I did find a large glass vase at the thrift store yesterday for only $1.50. The very cheap plastic Easter eggs cost more than the vase!

And viola! An Easter centerpiece.

Odds are high that I'll make a trip to JoAnn's to buy some super cute eggs on sale to use for next year.

I can't stop--edited

(I had to edit and and one more picture)

Hi, my name is AniC, and I'm an antiqueaholic. The real problem is, I don't want to stop. I want to antique shop every minute of every day. But I can't, so I pretty much stick to weekends. And this past Saturday was a great day for antique shopping. Mostly because I got to buy something I've been wanting for a long LONG time!

Let me start from the beginning

Thursday night I went with my friend Marci to an antique sale that we found out about. It only happens one weekend a month and I felt like an insider being there. I came across an amazing vanity, and told my friend about how badly I want one, but I figured it wasn't going to happen.

Saturday I somehow managed to convince juC that we should go back to the antique sale. So we went back and I showed juC the vanity that I loved. Much surprise and amazement, juC was on board with me buying it!! And now it's home is our bedroom!

(Why yes, that is my house coat you see reflected in the mirror!)

I honestly LOVE this thing! If I could, I'd just sit at it all day. Not because I could stare at 3 of me at once, but to stare at all of these beautiful details.

I love the little details so much, and feel like they are so important, that I spent some time this morning going out and getting my own little details for the vanity. Starting with this.

I went to my favorite store JoAnn's (for some Easter eggs which I will post about in just a moment.) I LOVE JoAnn's. And I love that this jewelry box was on sale for less than $5 so that I could convert it into a make up box. Why not use it as a jewelry box? Because I've had my eyes on this at Marshalls and have been waiting to have to perfect place to put it before buying it for my jewelry.I would say I have the PERFECT place to put it now.

And one other small detail:

I also bought this at JoAnn's...several months ago. I knew I'd need it soon. It's the perfect place to put my hair products while keeping the focus on the vanity.
Seriously folks, this vanity is a dream come true. Call me crazy if you must, but it's the things like this that keeps me happy, when other things, like the government taking control of health care, get me down.

Moving along....
I last posted about my lack of Easter decor. My favorite German living friend said "In Germany they take branches (pretty, delicate and interesting ones, not huge ones) and set them in a vase and hang painted eggs from them." I thought this sounded like a wonderful idea.

And since she also said in her comment, "I have always wanted to do that, but not sure if I will get around to it this year. I usually live my holiday decorating dreams through you anyway..." I didn't want to let her down. So I decided to give the branch-egg-vase idea a try. Of course using the vase that she gave me and the Easter eggs I bought from JoAnn's this morning.
I really have to give a shout out to JoAnn's. I go there any time I need decorations. Their Easter stuff is already 50% off. A package of 10 of these eggs was $2.50
I do have to say, I'm a fan of the branch-egg-vase thing. Although I should have probably taken more time to find better branches, I think it's great. Thanks for the tip, Meg!

tweet tweet

I LOVE decorating for holidays. I bought this last summer from Home Goods (for only 5 buckaroo's) when my sister LoW was here visiting with her family and she and I had a girls night.

Isn't it the cutest? It's my most beloved Easter decor. Perhaps because I only have 2 Easter decorations. Am I the only one that loves decorating for holidays but doesn't have enough decorations?

I think it's time for little JT and I to head out and get some more. Shhhhh! Don't tell juC!!

heart

As this month of loooOOOOoove continues, I was reminded of how I truly feel about this "holiday" by Cindy.

I remember her exact reference in the comments of my last post. It was 9 years ago that I became very bitter about the day known as Valentines Day. I referred to it as Satan's Day. My opinion of that still hasn't really changed. Any day is set up to be celebrated only by couples has to be of the Devil. I mean, c'mon, there are lots of holidays that make single people sad that they don't have a special someone to share it with. Why did the greeting card people have to come up with a made up holiday to make it even worse?

So although I still think of it as Satan's Day, I can't help but be happy that I now have an eternal Valentine to share it with.

Now...for my craft idea. After I made the Valentine card I posted about last, I first thought "Oh, this would be cute framed!" But late at night, when all the world was sleeping and my head wouldn't stop working, I thought "OH, I should paint a canvas and do it on there!!"

And so I did...

twice.

Ok, maybe it wasn't all that creative, but I still think they're cute.

I love them. And I want to do more.

Now to continue on with the things I love about my eternal Valentine.

Home boy is more patient with me than I could have ever imagined anyone could be patient with someone. I love that he deals with me so kindly. I love that he accepts my craziness with an extreme amount of patience. I'm convinced he was the one and only guy in the world that had enough patience to survive being married to me.

So number 2, he's patient with me beyond what I deserve. For that I am grateful!

life happens

the last several days have been busy, busy, busy.

i've been out of town and now i'm back home with a visitor. all of this busy-ness reminds me of exactly 2 years ago. it was such a busy day!

i started off the day by going and getting my hair done. it desperately needed some help.

then i went to the temple with family and friends.

after that, we took lots of family pictures and such.

when we were done with that, we went and had an amazing lunch at a place called duke's---best bbq on earth.

after lunch we had time for a short little break, only to rush to church to prep for a dance party of sorts.

and then we devoured lots of goodies and treats that my sister made.

i'm telling you people, it was a BUSY BUSY DAY.

oh, and on top of all of that busy-ness, i also got married!

ohhhhhhh...the memories! what a great day it was! what a great 2 years it has been!

it hasn't been perfect but it's been great. it hasn't been easy but it's been great. i dont always get my way, but i guess it's still been great. and the best part is that for the rest of my life, cinco de mayo will be the greatest holiday ever!!

-ed

i love my husband clean shave-ed.

i love my husband (creepy) beard-ed.

i love my husband weird sideburn-ed.

but i'll tell you what... i'm really loving him right now goatee-ed.

you can't tell me he doesn't look good. you can try...but i won't believe you.

today, for valentines day, he got me some lotions (is he saying i'm ashy and smell bad?) and was so thoughtful to get me ones that weren't too strong (i'm a picky smeller, ya know). then he took me for a drive. (i LOVE drives!) and we ate at cracker barrel. (seriously people, some good ol' comfort food). and i reminded him that just 3 short years ago, he broke up with me right before valentines day, so he didn't have to do anything for me. (he loves when i bring up the past "bad" stuff)

it was a fabulous valentines day with my sweethearts. (i can't forget little j.t. too!)

things i love

i love presents under the tree. and i am in shock by how many are under there.

the siblings in my family decided to draw names this year. (or i convinced them to) so instead of buying for everyone, i was buying for one...yet somehow there are more presents under the tree than probably ever before.

oh yeah, that's right...i have a child now.

i love my favorite canadian, shelley. thanks to her it's Christmas on my fridge too! and even though she tries to deny it, she obviously loves me too. sending magnetic cute manger scenes to someone is a true sign of love.

gracias

i would like to publically thank jo-ann fabric and crafts for having their Christmas stuff already marked down 60% so i could add these cute little items to my holiday decor for a fabulous price.

taggity

"On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me..."

1 embarrassing moment: every time someone talks to me and knows my name and i have no idea who they are and what their name is

2 best friends: shad and LoW

3 things you buy regularly: diapers, milk, cereal

4 places you want to go (and might actually REALLY go): germany, hawaii, ireland, the beach

5 goals for the upcoming year (that you might actually do): make dinner regularly, take more pictures, finish painting the house, finish decorating the house, grow my hair out (c:

6 things most people don't know about you: unless i know you pretty well, i dont want you to stand close to me. i love buying holiday decorations, i'm not shy, i was engaged before shad, i want to be crafty, i was in musicals in high school

7 things you would never say: "i love tomatoes", "i dont want to go on a date", "no thanks, i dont like pie", "i love my current haircut", "family schamily", "no, don't come visit", "changing diapers all day long rocks!"

8 things you love about the Christmas season: family, decorating, Christmas trees, egg nog, giving presents, my moms Christmas morning breakfast, the music, baking

9 things you say to your kids: "you're stinky", "you're so cute", "go to sleep", "i wuv you", "why are you crying?", "use your big boy words", "shhhhh", "its ok", "that was a short nap"

10 things you do a lot: blog, laundry, shop, take pictures of baby j.t., watch tv, talk on the phone, cut baby j.t.s finger nails, change diapers, sleep, eat

11 things you would rather not live without: shad, baby j.t., family, friends, the mall, ice cream, computer, music, pumpkin, my car, heat

12 people to tag: cindy, LoW (even though we are still warring), jess, melissa, shelley c., chira, erin, morgan, lauren, chris, megs, paige

make a list

poor thanksgiving. stuck smack dab in between halloween: the "holiday" kids get a bunch of candy, and Christmas: the holiday kids get a bunch of presents. i feel like thanksgiving, for most, has become the redheaded step child of holidays. which seems ironic since thanksgiving is the one we are supposed to think about the things we are thankful for. but i often wonder how celebrated it would be if people didnt get the day off. and it doesn't help that the stores have Christmas paraphernalia for sale before they even get all of the halloween stuff put away.

if it wasn't for the fact that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus, i think i'd boycott it and only celebrate thanksgiving.

and i hate to admit it, but i've given into the Christmas hype over thanksgiving. all the way back in august i told shad i couldn't wait for Christmas. he of course assumed i was excited about Christmas because i wanted presents. but that wasn't true at all. i got all giddy just thinking about decorating our house and the smells and the food and the music and being with family and the reason for it all. plus i can't wait to put up the big pre-lite Christmas tree we bought after Christmas last year.

there i go again. Christmas.Christmas.Christmas.

so to get into the thanksgiving spirit, i thought i would make a list of things that have made me thankful this year. there are so many things...and the year isn't even over yet.

so in order, starting with the most exciting.

1. our sweet little baby being born healthy and cute.
2. my parents, shad's parents, and tamara and elayna and bennett actually came to visit us.
getting to go to vegas and slc to visit shad's family, and going to s.c. to visit my family.
3. pumpkin pancakes returning to ihop.
4. buying our first home.
5. jim and pam getting engaged.
6. getting a new car.
7. going to the beach
8. finding out several of my friends are pregnant.
9. surviving.
10. getting to move out of the noisy basement apartment.

so, with that said...i urge all of you to think about the things you are thankful for, and try not to take those things for granted. and wait until after thanksgiving to put up your christmas decorations. and buy me lots of presents shad. oh...did i say that out loud. i mean...presents aren't important.