Monday, May 14, 2012

ramblings of a stage mom.

umm first?

damn you blogger and your new layout! way to make a girl feel stupid(er) on a monday morning. ugh.

so it's recital week, y'all. and this mama couldn't be more excited. sequins, feathers, green eyeshadow (that may be a little sketch, but i'm keeping the faith...), hot pink lipstick, and one seriously excited wild woman who can't WAIT to sing and dance like a rockette on the big stage.

we kick off the festivities this afternoon with recital pictures, then on to a stage rehearsal tomorrow, dress rehearsal friday and the big show next saturday afternoon. definitely a busy week .. but to be honest, those are totally my favorite. (the fact that we'll be too busy for me to have to cook is definitely in the top three reasons why. ha!)

in the interest of not spoiling the big moment on saturday (and in the interest of not getting in trouble with our dance teachers!), i'm waiting to post costume photos after the big show. but ohh emm gee, y'all. she couldn't be any cuter if she tried.

here are a few favorites from my phone lately ... because i'm too lazy to drag out my good camera. duh.


 
dear sweet sophie blair, quit growing up. immediately. kisses - mama.

 
ignore the fact that mama clearly needs botox - and my teeth whitened - and my roots done - and look at that sweet little dancer girl. this was after our last studio class last week ... she proceeded to bawl all the way home when she realized dance is almost over.


 
the best mother's day photo we got. promise she has clothes on ... ha! and could she look any more grown up?! really does hurt this mama's heart.

and 'cause i know y'all are thinking it - YES. i wear my 'arkansas girls rock' t-shirt pretty much every day. i do wash it every once in a while though. or at least spray it with perfume.

 
girlfriend is obsessed with self portraits on mama's phone. i love finding these!



 
this one is mildly disturbing, no? and gotta love j (my mom) in the background.

 
we did a little splashing around in the sun. i was fun mommy and took the wild woman to target for a new swimsuit, flip flops and a cover up. i tried my best to hide the princess bathing suits from her view when she wasn't looking, and i clearly wasn't quick enough. not my favorite, but as long as my girl is happy ...
side note - hey aunt hannah! CLEAN UP YOUR ROOM, yo! :)

 
hey sophie b - mama's going to need you to start looking more like 4 instead of 14. kthanks.
 

 
ohhh wild woman. when you wonder why you will NEVER go anywhere without me as a teenager?? i'll be glad to refer you to this very photo.
 
hope it's a happy monday for all you pretty girls (and boys - if there are any?) ... i'm warming up my hot glue gun to attach some feathers to ponytail holders ... because as any good stage mom knows - headpieces will NOT fall out.

love & sunshine,

j

Sunday, April 1, 2012

withdrawals.

hiya, peeps.

so i have a love/hate relationship with sunday nights.

love them because here lately, i've managed to get off my haunches and use the weekends to accomplish lots of fun things around the house, both inside and out. lots of decorating loose ends being tied up, a few updates and fresh changes in some places, pretty flower beds (although i'm pretty sure i've already killed my first fern of the season. fairly early even for moi. mehh.), and even a few crafty touches that i'm rather proud of, despite the fact that they're far from perfect. (call me crazy - but i think the imperfection is the most charming thing about a craft project. or else i'm just looking for some justification to keep my nervous eye from twitching.)

hate them because it means the weekend is GONE. gone like a freight train. gone like yesterday. gone like a soldier from the civil war, bang bang. (name that tune!)

and speaking of twitching - i have a couple of tidbits y'all might find interesting. or hilarious. or neither. but humor me ...

in the last two weeks, i've somehow convinced myself to give up two of the things i've held near and dear to my heart for YEARS. as in, facebook and (y'all hold on) .... DIET DR. PEPPER.

it's true.

i deactivated the 'book when a simple status update (that wasn't even stirring any drama!) brought on a wave of ridiculousness i still can't completely comprehend. done. over and out. maybe i'll go back one day, or maybe i'll continue to enjoy life without it.

and honestly - the only things i've really missed are the photos of all the sweet kiddos i know. and the occasional (read: every day) creeping. (don't front. we're all guilty. and not even a little bit sorry.)

now. about the ddp.

i DID NOT want to do this, but the more i read, the more i'm convinced that my beloved red and white cans are contributing to keeping me fat.

i'm working out like a mad woman (read: legit puddles of sweat have to be cleaned up from the floor every time.), and my clothes are TIGHTER than they were before i started. my eating habits, while not fantastic, aren't really any different than they were before. so it seems like if i'm eating the same stuff and working out 5 or 6 days a week, there ought to be at least a little bit of positive impact ... but no. it's the opposite. a pair of jeans that were almost baggy in november will barely button now.

after some of the stuff i've read on exercise and nutrition blogs, i'm really going to give it my best shot at staying away from the diet drinks and drinking lots more water.

i don't really expect y'all to find that interesting, but i wanted you to have ample time and opportunity to find ways to avoid me until the withdrawals wear off. i haven't had a drink (of the diet persuasion) since friday afternoon ... i was totally fine yesterday but have a RAGING caffeine headache today.

here's hoping i can do this. without harming small children or animals or any of my friends in the process. (notice i didn't say any of my family there ... ha!)

oh. while we're still existing in the twilight zone, i'll go ahead and tell you that i'm one of those idiots (and i say that with love - don't get offended.) who gets up at 4:30 to go to the gym at 5 IN THE MORNING.

yah. i work out with my super awesome dad, and he convinced (read: insisted) me that morning exercise is better for us that evening exercise (read: he wants to be home in time to crush all the teenagers he plays against in black ops. stupid xbox. it really is the devil.)

so now that i've confessed (read: whined) - i wanted to show y'all a few of the crafty things i've been attempting lately. thanks to pinterest (or curses to pinterest depending on how you look at it) i'm coming up with all kinds of new endeavors to add to the list before i even get an old one crossed off. (hi. my name is jill and i'm the queen of starting 43943 projects at once and not finishing any of them.)

by some stroke of luck, i'm actually managing to finish a few things here and there ... fingers crossed that streak continues.



this fun little cutie is hanging on our front door and i LOVE it. i wrapped a straw wreath form with twine and made a few fabric flowers with an orange/white print and a green/cream print. hung it with a strip of the orange fabric and couldn't be happier with it. perfect? definitely not. pretty darn cute? absolutely.


sneak peek at a project i'm working on for the wild woman's big girl room. some canvas, some paint, and some cute pink buttons. can't wait to get it finished! (fyi - in the last week i've ordered one THOUSAND buttons from etsy. truth.)


forgive the dark phone photo, but i got the itch to work on a razorback something or other for our front door during football season - or when we head to omaha for the college world series! WOO PIG! now just imagine it without the buttons (went with something else...) and with the e in sooie. planning to add some fun ribbons to hang it with, and it should be SO cute. think burlap on the canvas, houndstooth canvas fabric, and spray painted chipboard letters. go hogs!

there are a few other things floating around my brain, but the button project has GOT to be put to bed first before i'll let myself jump into anything else. (y'all pray for my will power.)

i'm leaving y'all tonight with some photos from our weekend, which was spent mostly at various ballfields around the county watching my sweet nieces play softball. so excited this time of year has arrived! crazy aunt jill is ready! (yes - i'm THAT crazy aunt who has nearly been ejected from the tball game. it happens. sorry i'm not sorry. ha!)


yeah. she's gorgeous, smart, a varsity cheerleader, and the only freshman on the varsity softball team. love you, tater bug!


the wild woman, sweet kennedy, and my growing-way-too-fast nephew lawson. i remember the day that kid was born! and now he's almost 7. knife to the heart!


blowing kisses.


adison, aunt jill, and the wild woman. love those precious girls so much. i remember when adi was younger than sophie ... another knife, y'all. seriously. STOP GROWING.


crazy aunt jill. reporting for duty. armed with my chair, ice chest and bubble gum. bring it!


in case of a stray ball. seriously. 5 games going on simultaneously all around us? my kid would DEFINITELY be the one to take a line drive to the head. just saying.


and for those of y'all who know me well, you'll know that this was a big deal. my house manages to stay pretty clean, but my poor vehicle is ridiculously neglected. it finally got so bad i decided to wash it (read: drive through boomerang. ha!), wipe it down and - wait for it - VACUUM the inside. boom!

happy sunday, y'all. this chick is headed to bed. 4:30 comes TOO early.

love & sweet dreams,

j


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Thursday, March 22, 2012

she'll have the duck face down in no time.

so i thought we could all use a little giggle on this fine thursday afternoon.

my sweet dad came over last weekend to help me plant my flower beds (now watch it freeze 18 times between now and easter ... ha!) and in between sessions of digging in the dirt and watering the driveway with the watering can, the wild woman apparently grabbed my phone for a quick photo. or ten.

i found these the other night and couldn't help but share them with you ... i hope these bring y'all a smile or two ... they're pretty fantastic if you ask me.















.... this one is my personal fave :) ....







.... we were invited to a for real princess/mad hatter tea party last weekend, and i let her completely dress herself from head to toe. these shots were snapped after she visited the make-up station and slathered on as much blue eye shadow as her little fingers could muster. ....




this last one is a treasure i found while i was digging around dad's office this week ... can y'all guess who the kiddo with the hairbow is? it made me realize sophie b is looking lots more like her mama than i used to think. and is it just me or does my dad remind anybody of tom cruise back in his less crazy days? love! (for bonus points - can anybody guess where that photo was taken?)



smooches, kids. love y'all so much!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone