Just STUFF and of course flowers..

Well hey!
So, are you guys having a good week so far? Mine has been relatively quiet. And I'm good with that.
How bout some random "stuff".

~Soccer practices were supposed to have started this week. As usual, they are on Mondays and Thursdays. However, it rained over the weekend, which doesn't make for real solid playing fields. I mean, if you're a pig, the fields were in GREAT condition, lol. So needless to say, practices were cancelled. Jayla was so bummed! When I told her practice had been cancelled on Monday, she said, "Aww MAN! I took a nap for NUTHIN!!" LOL. Then yesterday, we get an email saying that practices have been cancelled for the rest of the week. To the average person, this may not be such bad news. But when the season is supposed to start on Saturday, March 1st, you have no uniforms, and you don't know who's on your team...there inlies a problem :-). I'll keep you posted on that front.

~Jayla had Wacky Wednesday at school this week. It was Dr. Seusses birthday. So the kids got to dress "tacky". Now, this presented a little problem for me :-). I strive, on a daily basis, to make sure my daughter looks neat and color coordinated for school. Right down to her little hairbows & socks (sometimes her undies too). So needless to say, when we received the notice requesting that the kids dress "wacky", I was a little nervous. I mean, me and Jayla have a reputation to uphold :-). But, we did it and she STILL managed to look too stinkin adorable. Check her out...
I know in this 2nd picture, she looks like she's gotta pee. But that's just her posing like the little girl from "Hooville", LOL.

~I have a confession to make. I trust you guys (for the most part, lol). And I have no problem sharing my, shall we say, issues with you. So again I say, I have a confession...(deep breath)...OK...I have an addiction. No one is perfect. And I know most of you thought I lived a quiet, peaceful, problemless life. But I don't. I haven't even shared this addiction with Mister M. I'm not sure how he's gonna take it. But I love him and I know he loves me. So, some how, some way, we'll get through it. You guys, I'm addicted to these...
YES, I know, I know...HOW COULD IT BE??? I dunno. All I can do is hang my head in shame. And it's not helping at ALL that my friend, Stacey, is enabling me. She keeps going to Super Target, going to the candy isle, grabbing a bag and getting a big ole HEAPING scoopful of.... DR. PEPPER JELLY BELLY's. I mean, what kind of FRIEND would do that? She takes them with us when we ride together to Girls Night, so we can snack on them as we ride. She had a bowl sitting out of them on Wednesday night when she hosted Girls Night. Then, to add insult to injury, she gave me a snackbag FULL of them today. There they were, sitting on her porch, inside my cake plate that I left at her house Wednesday night. Sheesh...you think you know someone, then they go and do something like this to you. She even offered ice cold Dr. Peppers as a beverage. Ya know, sometimes you just gotta cut people off...oh, no, not STACEY!! Other people, I mean. LOL :-D.

~Take a look at this picture of Trae. Do you notice anything...um, different about him?

No? You don't see it? Well, in addition to Jayla having her daddy wrapped around her finger(s). She also has our dog wrapped around a few too. Poor Trae, you should see the look on his face sometimes when Jayla is playing with him. She's put a bib on him before. A tiara, necklaces, flowers in his collar and ribbons around his neck. When we first got him a couple years ago, she even, politely, filled up his water bowl with strawberry Gatorade, lol. His little snout was BRIGHT red! :-) He's just so tolerable of Jayla and just loves playing with her. He just sits there like a sweet doggie and lets her do...WHATEVER to him. You know, stuff like this...

Now do you see it? Yep, Jayla tried to give Trae a manicure. Or is this a pedicure? Oh, I know, it's a "PAWdicure"! THAT's what it is! LOL And he just sat there and let her do it. Did I mention that she did all 4 paws? Yep...all 4! And get this...she "polished" them with the pink Princess stamp that Grace, of the Rabbit Run Cottage gave her, LOL. Thanks, Miss Grace!

Ok, enough STUFF for now. How bout some pretty flowers?

You can hardly see the flowers with those cute little pups in the picture. It was too cute not to share. I mean, I may not share my Dr. Pepper Jelly Belly's, but I'll share a cute doggie picture :-).

Hmmm, wonder if Jayla could get Trae to sit in a flowerpot and pose for a few shots? I bet she could! I can see the disgusted look on his face right now, LOL.

Welp, you guys, that's a wrap for today. I'd love to hear if ya'll have any fun & exciting things planned for the upcoming weekend.

Oh, shoot...that reminds me. I almost forgot. On Saturday, me, my sister, my mom, my aunt, my sister in law and a few of my sisters friends are going out to dinner and to see this show. My sister and I have gone for the past 2 - 3 years and have really enjoyed it. So this year, we're making a big event out of it. I'm really looking forward to it. If you're ever able to go to a show, please do. It is QUITE impressive. These people are SO very talented. Makes for a really nice evening out.

NOTE: I am very aware that it's not 8:00am on Friday morning yet. But, I had all this in my head TONIGHT (Thursday), so I thought I'd better go ahead and getter dun! :-) Pretty cool to be able to change the date, huh?

Be Inspired...I AM!!

"Borrowed" Questionnaire & Can we do this another time?

Guess what? I've happened upon, yet another fun questionnaire. This one is coming at a pretty good time. You know, since I'm thinking alot about my main man, Mister M. these days :-). I mean, his birthday just passed. We had a nice evening out alone. I've posted his "sexy cool" picture AND did a scrapbook layout of it. Good timing, huh?

Well, Miss PattyCake, had this really cool questionnaire on her site. And even though she didn't tag me, I kinda took it upon myself to do it anyways :-). Ya'll know how I love sharing stuff about myself, :-). So here's another glimpse into my "Inspiring" life, hee hee.

What is his name? Marque E. Bibbs
How long have you been married? It will be 20 years in December.
How long did you date? 2 1/2 years
Who eats more sweets? Me. But I do try to make him eat more sweets. But he's always saying, "I have to be in the MOOD for something sweet." What kind of nonsense is THAT? :-)
Who said I love you first? He did. We were on the bus. Talk about romantic!
Who is taller? He is. But he's not nearly as tall as he thinks he is, :-).
Who can sing better? I can.
Who is smarter? Oh, without a doubt, he is. I mean, c'mon, I'm the one who can sing best. I can't do EVERYTHING! :-)
Who does the laundry? I do.
Who pays the bills? I do...but only when he "suggests" it :-).
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? If you're standing at the foot of the bed, I sleep on the right.
Who mows the lawn? The lawn...that's outside where the grass is, right? He does, DUH!
Who cooks dinner? I do.
Who drives more? I guess I do. I'm always in the street. He's more of a homebody. But if you mean who drives more when we're all out together? That would be him.
Who is more stubborn? He is. No, wait, I am. He is...yes, it's him. :-)
Who kissed who first? I kissed him first. As he lay taking a quick nap in a booth of the Kroger deli. Now THAT'S romantic!!
Who asked who out first? Uhhhh, I don't remember either of us asking the other out. But for kicks and giggles, lets say he asked me out.
Who proposed? LOL! Oh, sorry, that wasn't supposed to be a funny question, was it? I'm STILL waiting on him to propose :-) Neither of us proposed. We both kinda...agreed to get married.
Who has more siblings? He does. He's the youngest of 8 children. I'm the oldest of 2.

Wow, that ended kind of abrubtly, didn't it? LOL. But it was fun though. I love these kinds of questions. Well, since I wasn't actually tagged to do this in the first place, I won't tag anyone either. However, if you feel led to answer these FUN LOVING questions, please feel free to do so.

Ok, now, I just have a quick Jayla moment to share.

At 8pm this evening, Jayla came to me and started asking me questions about...Owls! Yes, owls! Where do these questions come from? I mean, I realize she's a curious, inquisitive, nosey 6 year old kindergartener. But c'mon people, OWLS?!?

She was looking out the window, into the darkness and I guess it just came to her. Then she proceeds to tell me that owls are nocturnal (yes, she used the word "nocturnal"). So that alone impressed me :-). But the girl was answering her own questions. Well, except for the one about when they have time to go to the store if they sleep all day, lol.

ANYWAY, I'm glad that my daughter wants to know a little bit about a LOT. I'm glad that she's learning things in school and wants that knowledge to expand into her home life. I'm GLAD that she (still) thinks I have the answers she wants/needs.

However, I'm NOT so glad that she asks me these kinds of questions...while I'm in the SHOWER!!! I mean, can momma have 15 minutes alone to get refreshed and clean? And NOT have to worry about when owls have time to shop? SERIOUSLY!!

Puttin the studio to good use...

Happy Sunday everyone.

If you've got a minute, I'd like to share a few things with you. I've actually spent the past week or so since my studio has been finished, just sitting in here admiring it :-). I spend a lot of time admiring stuff, don't I? Well, it's pretty, what can I say?

Well, I actually completed my very first scrapbook layouts in my studio. Tell me whatcha think...

~This first one was obviously inspired by Mister M's recent birthday. I just can't tell ya'll how much I love this picture of him. He does NOT like having his picture taken. So to get one this natural and candid was awesome. Actually, he was just as surprised as I was to see it. As he didn't even remember this one being taken. He was just standing there talking and laughing with our friends, Trish & Juan (the photograhers), waiting for them to tell the rest of us where to stand :-). Love it! And I think the title fits perfectly. As soon as I saw this photo, "Sexy Cool" was the first thing that came to mind.

~This second one was one I've been wanting to do for several months now. Just hadn't gotten around to it. Ya'll know I'm a big Jayla fan, lol. And when I walked past her room one day and saw her "on the phone", I just had to grab the camera. She loves when me and daddy get new cell phones. As she gets to have the old ones. So there she was, laying on her bed "chatting" away on her new phone. And I just knew that this blog name would be PERFECT for these pictures of my Jayla. Tanisha, I told you I was gonna "borrow" your heading one day, didn't I? :-). Thanks!~This last LO wasn't actually done in my studio. But it's the first one I've done at our weekly Girls Night in a while. So I had to share it too. I thought it was time to spotlight the other handsome guy in my life :-).Alrighty, that's all the showing off I have for tonight. Thanks for looking.

NOW, I have another issue to talk with you about. Yesterday, I took Jayla to look for some more black dress type shoes. Being that all the Spring/Summer stuff is out now, black dress shoes are hard to come by. But not to worry, I found some that both of us like. And they were on sale too. Gotta love that, right?

Ok, that wasn't the "issue"...THIS is the issue. I HATE SHOPPING FOR MYSELF!!! Before Jayla and I left, Mister M. told me that I could find myself a few pairs of pants and maybe some tops. You know, something other than the standard issue uniform jeans that I wear on a daily basis :-). Every Sunday, I'm hard pressed to find anything to wear to church. Or for times when we go somewhere that jeans may not be appropriate.

For some time now, I've been joking around with my MIL and a few friends, that I'd like to get "nominated" for this show. At first, I thought it would be tons of fun to be able to shop for myself with someone elses money...in NYC no less. But after yesterday, not so much.

ARGH!!! I went to one store and I was totally disgusted. I literally left there with a headache. And I was only in there for about 15 minutes. I have no problem (anymore) admitting that I'm a plus sized woman. And that's actually not the problem I'm having. Because I CAN find stuff that fits. It's just that...everything these days looks so....so WEIRD!!! I mean, I'm not trendy by ANY means. But I DO like for my clothes to match and to look neat. The fashions these days look so SLOPPY!! And don't even get me STARTED on how much stuff costs!!! I will be the first to admit that I'm cheap...especially when it comes to purchasing things for myself. I have (almost) no problem spending money on my family and/or things for my home. But stuff for me...can't do it. I did, however, manage to find 2 pairs of pants that I was willing to pay for. Mainly because they were 50% off at Kohl's. So that worked well for me. But I was looking for a couple of tops and I just got overwhelmed. Ya'll should've heard Jayla lecturing me about how I should "take care of myself" (insert rolling eyes here). I'm convinced my MIL and Mister M. told her to give me a hard time about this whole...shopping thing. lol

By the time I was ready to throw in the towel and just go home, Jayla says to me, "Mom, what's WRONG with you?" LOL (yes, she asked me that again! That's twice in one week!)

Ok, so that leads me to my questions to all of you women out there. 1. Does it have to be this difficult? 2. Is it just me? Or does everyone have a problem finding "normal" looking clothes these days? 3. Is it easier to shop for yourself when you're by yourself? Or do you need "assistance"? 4. Do I just need to find someone to shop for me? Or just someone to tell me where to go? (not in a literal sense, mind you. lol) And lastly, 5. Is it easier to shop for yourself or for your family?

I wish ya'll could've seen Mister M's face when I came home with only TWO pairs of pants. It was too funny. But he knew it was quite the chore for me, when I popped 2 Advils and took a nap! ARGH!!

"Mom, What's WRONG with you??"

The other day, I was having one of my endearing mother/daughter moments :-). Being that Jayla is my baby and the last one at home, I have those quite often.

I was sitting in my studio and Jayla came in to ask/tell me SOMETHING. Can't quite remember what it was. But ANYWAY, she walks up to me and starts asking/telling me something. I found myself just staring at her, almost looking through her. To be honest, I saw her lips moving, but I'm not sure what she was talking about, lol.

SO, finally, she stops talking as if she'd just asked me a question, and was awaiting my answer (hee hee). I caught myself smiling and kinda snickered and said, "Honey, I'm sorry, mommy didn't hear what you said. But you are such a pretty girl. You are just beautiful!"

Then she just looks at me, almost with a look of disgust and says, "MOM, What's WRONG with you??" LOL. All I could do was laugh. But, I mean, look at her...

It's just amazing...when I look at my daughters, I just feel so blessed. My goodness, they're both so gorgeous. I think sometimes; God must really like me, lol. Cuz He gave ME the most beautiful girls.

Anyway, I just had to share one of the MANY moments I have like this. This particular moment just struck me as funny because of the response from Jayla. I'm sure she has wondered "what's WRONG with Mom" many times. But has never said it out loud. I only wish you had seen her face, lol.

Well, I'm about to start preparing for my date with the birthday boy tonight (see below). So I guess I'll be talking with you all later. Toodles!

Friday Flower Fix & Happy Birthday!

Happy Friday everyone.

In addition to this being the weekly Friday Flower Fix, it's also a special dedication post to my husband, Marque (aka Mister M.)

Today, February 22nd, is Mister M's 41st birthday. Saying his age, and MINE, really puts in perspective how long we've been together. We started dating when we were 19 years old! Mister M. had literally turned 19, 2 months before we met back in 1986.

You guys, I have no words to explain how amazing this man is. And not to worry, I'm not gonna get all mushy on you here :-). But seriously, he is truly amazing. This man loves his family completely. And loves me and the kids unconditionally. Now, don't misunderstand...as amazing as I think he is, I know fully that he's not perfect. And the good thing about that is, he doesn't claim to be. But he does put his family first and all is right with the world when he's around. Marque is a great provider, a wonderful husband, an awesome father, a loving son, and a caring coach :-).

I tell him I love him all the time. But I think sometimes I neglect to tell him how much I appreciate him. And that I'm SO very proud of him. So, Marque, if you're reading this; honey, I appreciate you more than you'll ever know. And I wouldn't trade the life you're providing for me for the world....with your sexy self :-).

Happy Birthday, my love!!
And before I get to the FFF, I just have to share another picture of Mister M. The reason I love this picture so much is because THIS is how we spend a LOT of our time....

Laughing with eachother (I love the look on his face...as I'm sure I said something crazy, that obviously cracked me up). We have so much fun...even after spending half of our lives together. I just pray that we never get too old or too "grown up" to laugh together and enjoy one another. Again, happy birthday sweetie.

"We cannot really love anybody with whom we never laugh."

~Agnes Repplier~

Ok, how bout some flowers! I chose these today because I think I'm about ready for Spring. I'm ready for the cold to go away. AND because, I think they're pretty :-).
Well, I don't think I have any earth shattering plans for the weekend. So I'm guessing it's gonna be a quiet one. However, tonight, for Mister M's birthday, we're going here for dinner. I even told him to give me his credit card when it came time to pay...that way it would look like I was treating HIM to dinner :-). Remember the look he gave me in the picture above? That's how he looked at me when I made that suggestion, lol.

Anyway, I hope ya'll have a great weekend. Toodles!!

Q: How do you talk politics with a 6 year old?

A: You DON'T!!! lol

Jayla has been out of school for 2 days (yesterday and today). Monday, it was for Presidents day and today was a teachers work day. OBVIOUSLY, sometime last week, the kids were taught about the upcoming Presidents Day holiday. Just about all year they have been learning different things about the presidents. And due to them being smack in the middle of learning about all the different currencies...the names of the presidents keeps coming up.

Which leads me to a conversation (actually, more like a monologue) that I had with Jayla yesterday in Target.

It went a little something like this:

J: "Mom, did you vote for George Clooney?"
M: (through caught off guard laughter) "WHAT?"
J: "Did you vote for George Clooney??"
M: "George Clooney? Sweetie, he's not the president, he's an actor."
J: "Not un! He was the first president of the United Stakes!"
M: "Jayla? George Washington was the first president of the United States, not George Clooney."
J: "WELL...George Clooney IS the president...just like his daddy was!"

NOTE: Ok, now I'm confused. Are we talking about the first president or the current president?

M: "Look baby, George Washington was the first president. George W. Bush is president now, just like his dad, George H. Bush WAS the president. And George Clooney is an actor."
J: "WELL...I just know that George Clooney lives in that big white house and he has white hair!"

Alright, time out!!! I'm no dummy...I can see that this conversation is NEVER gonna end. Simply because she's gonna believe what she wants to believe. Through laughter, I continue to TRY and tell her how it REALLY is. As well as try to think of a show or movie that she might've seen George Clooney in. The only one that came to mind was, "O' brother, where art thou?" (I love that movie). She says she remembers who he is. But then says to me, "Mom, that's just silly! He can't be an actor AND the president!" Which just makes me laugh even harder...because I'm thinking...That's what YOU think! LOL

Anyway, I finally convince her of who all the George's are. And she ends the conversation by telling me, "Mom, I love you! And I respect you too!...Mom, what is respect anyways?" LOL (that one is a little easier to explain than who's in office)

I love having conversations with Jayla. Oh, the mind of a child. Today, she asked me what the Mayor does. UGH!!! This girl is too much and WAY beyond her 6 years. Gotta love it....

And NOW...The STUDIO

Hello everyone. Did you all have a nice weekend? Ours was pretty quiet. However, that's about to change in another week or so. Soccer will be starting back up...YAY!!!

On Saturday, Jayla and I ran a few errands while daddy went to have some work done on his car. As if I NEEDED to go there on a Saturday, Jayla and I went to JoAnns. You guys, I think I got the best shopping deal I've ever gotten. Well, the best that I can remember. For those of you who scrapbook or do other crafts where you have to cut...there's a need for a self-healing mat, right? Well, I needed one for my new studio, as my old one was all yucky and too small. SO...I've just been putting off getting one because I'm so stinkin cheap. I look at them everytime I go to the store, but I refuse to pay for them, lol. As always, I went to look at them yesterday at JoAnn's. Guys, they had a 24"x36" Fiskars folding/portable cutting mat on clearance. The regular price for it was $45! Ok, I would NEVER have paid that, regardless of how badly I needed it. But this sucker was on clearance for....$9.97!!! I about passed out. Oh, and get this, it was the LAST one. Doesn't that just tell you that I was meant to have it? I'm REAL excited about that find. It pays to be patient :-D.

Later, Jayla and I went to Sally's Beauty Supply. It's time again to do the ole girls hair. And it is such a chore that neither of us look forward to. Actually, it touch up time...ARGH!!! My challenge was to find something that I can use on that childs head to make the washing process easier. She's too little to go "old skool" and hold her head over in the kitchen sink. She's too big to lay up on the counter with her head back in the sink. And my back can't handle the fully emersed bathtub washing. Anyway, I think we found something. I sure hope it works.

After our errands, we called daddy to see what was going on with his car. They were still working on it. So we drove over there to go meet him for lunch. But isn't it always this way...we get there and they were just finishing up (insert rolling eyes). Anyway, we still went and had a nice Mexican lunch together. I love Fajitas! (now!)

Today, we had a great Sunday School lesson and a wonderful church service. Later in the day, I took Jayla to a birthday party for my friend, Stacey's daughter. She turned 3 today. The party was so cute. Then in the middle of the fun, the tornado sirens started blaring and we had to cram all the kids in some hall closets. They were all screaming and crying and the rain was coming down in SHEETS! Once it finally let up, Jayla told me, through her tears and snotty nose, "Mom, that storm scared me out of the creeps!" I love the way she phrases things, lol. Fortunately, the tornadoes the news talked about weren't in our area. We just had some severe t-storms. But all is well now.

Well, boys and girls, guess what time it is? It's FINALLY time for the STUDIO GRAND OPENING :-). You guys have been so patient. I think I've already told you guys that I ABSOLUTELY love my new room. I am SO proud of how it turned out. I don't think there's much more I can say about it. How bout a sneak peak...

I'm such a tease, huh? Well, that's all you're gonna get for now....Ok, ok...I'm just kidding. I had SO many pix that I wanted to share. And it would've been a MAJOR overload had I put them here. So, if your interest has been peeked and you wanna see more, just click on this link. http://twopeasinabucket.kaboose.com/pg.asp?set=recent&gallery=1&cmd=display&layout_id=1302777

Oh, and I wanted to let those of you who inquired know, Mister M really liked my Valentines pictures. He asked me exactly what I thought he would. "When did you do THESE?" I was just glad to get one of those "smiles" from him. He was very impressed. And even inquired about the rest of the.

Alrighty, I think that's it for tonight. I can't wait to hear what ya'll think about the room. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and I'll talk to you soon. Toodles!!

Almost forgot again...

Happy Friday!!

Whew...I almost forgot about the FFF again! I mean, there's so much going on around here today. Ok...this week has been kinda crazy. But it's all good :-). I'd rather be busy than sitting around watching my hair turn grey(er).

Today, we're having some trees cut down on the side of our house. Remember, in April of 2006 a big ole tree branch "attacked" our house? Well, we're finally having those cut down. So I'm watching the guys out there to make sure they don't fall off those tall trees into OUR side of the yard, LOL. We've got good insurance. But it ain't THAT good!!! (Be careful up there, mister!)

So, with that goin on outside, me helping friends get their kids to and from school, and this whole Valentine photo shoot thing (see yesterdays post, if you don't know what I'm talking about)...I'm doing good to remember to do the Flower Fix before sun down! :-)

Anyhoo...that's enough talking. How bout some pretty flowers to start off your weekend....

Is that not the cutest thing? See, all walks of life enjoy a pretty flower every now and again. :-) Hmmm, wonder if I could get Trae to pose like that for me?

Well, I'm off to go check on the tree man again then going to pick my baby up. Ya'll have a groovy weekend. And don't forget...BE INSPIRED!!!

P.S. Be on the look out for my Studio reveal some time next week...

Wanna know a secret???

Before I get to THAT....

...Guess what *I* did?

Ok, I know you guys remember me telling you a few posts back that I had a "secret" to tell you. Right?

Well, it's time to share. But before I do...let me just warn you. This secret is NOT...and I repeat...IS NOT earth shattering! Actually, some/most of you probably won't even care. AND may even be a little ticked at me that this is IT??? (sorry)

How bout a little background, shall we?

As you are aware, I have a group of friends that I meet with every week for Girls Night. Three of these lovely ladies own/run this company. They had this brilliant idea, back before the first of the year, that one night for Girls Night, we should do a Valentines photo shoot for our sweethearts. WELL...that sounds like a fun idea, doesn't it? But WAIT, here's the kicker...not only will this be a Girls Night photo shoot...but a Girls Night LINGERE photo shoot!

Ok, I can already hear some of you GASPING! Trust me, you didn't "clutch the pearls" like I did! A lingere photo shoot? You mean...with LINGERE?

Alright people, now, I'm getting nervous. It's enough that I agreed to be in my FAMILY shoot for Christmas cards. But THIS...(excuse me a minute, I'm feeling faint again just talking about it. ) ...THIS is just not something that screams DAWN!!! I am the one who takes the pictures. NOT the one who has pictures taken of them.

Those of you who know me, know that I am, by no means, a "spotlight" kinda girl. I like to be behind the scenes and just watch stuff happen! I mean, I struggled with even doing a scrapbook layout of myself.

Ok, ok...enough rambling. The plan was for us to wear something that we thought our husbands would find sexy and/or attractive. Ya'll my daily "uniform" is jeans and a shirt. If that's not sexy...I don't know what is! lol When I tell you that I stressed over this for weeks...you've gotta believe me. When the day finally came, I felt sick to my stomach. Literally! I DON'T do lingere! Some of the ladies even went and bought cute little nightys for this historic event. And we all thought long and hard about what our hubbies might think...again, I felt sick. They even had someone come and do hair and makeup if we wanted.

Anyway, I guess you're wondering if I actually went through with it? Yes, I did! Again, I was still very nervous and VERY out of my element. But fortunately, I'm good friends with the photographers and I trusted that they'd keep my apprehensions in mind. They did an awesome job with suggesting poses and the right "looks" for us. It was actually pretty fun. I think the part I really enjoyed was that they tried to make sure our wedding rings were visible in most of the shots. Again, trying to get us out of our day to day "routines". And prove that, even though we're moms and wives, we should sometimes be pampered and made to feel special.

Alright, so you wanna see some of my shots? (I can't believe I'm showing these to you.) But...here goes. This is the group of pix I put together to give to my sweetheart for Valentines Day. This is only 3 of the 10+ that were taken.So, whatcha think? You think the mister is gonna like them? I think that's what I was most nervous about. But we'll see...

And now, the fine print....
NOTE: All of these ladies that I spend several hours with week after week, are Christians. The main focus here was to do a photo shoot that would make us, "regular" moms & wives feel special and pretty. Each of our shoots were done separately and not in front of everyone. It was up to us as to whether or not we wanted to show our pictures to eachother. We were not "forced" to do anything we didn't WANT to do. The photographers and the photos were very tasteful.

Alrighty, that's it. I told you it was nothing earth shattering. Just a little "different" for me. I will admit, I'm glad I went through with it. But that doesn't make it any easier to be the "subject". Another thing, DO NOT expect to see these on a scrapbook layout, lol. Something tells me this is the last you've seen of these.

Happy Valentines Day!!!

More fun questions...AND answers! (NOTE: this is a long one)

That Susie Q has been at it again. She had this MACK DADDY questionnaire on her site the other day, and I just HAD to do it. Some of the questions are a little quirky. But it's really fun to do stuff like this. That, or I'm just a sucker for letting people know the REAL me! :-)

1. If your doctor told you TODAY that you were pregnant, what would you say? Well, once the amonia/smelling salt kicks in and I came to, I'd ask him for the $100 back that I paid for the IUD I got myself for Christmas. THEN, I'd go get myself a stiff drink (Dr. Pepper, of course). Once I'm good an inebreated, I'd call Marque and tell him to start working some MORE overtime, because we're gonna need to get that Tahoe after all!
2. Do you trust all of your friends? Why yes, I think I do.
3. Would you move to another state or country to be with the one you love? Considering I'm already with the one I love, I'd have to say yes. But let it be known that I'd go kicking & screaming.
4. Do you believe that everything happens for a reason? Yes, I do. Although, sometimes those "reasons" are beyond my reasoning.
5. Can you make a dollar in change right now? Probably not. Change is the one thing I'm usually out of. OK...who am I kidding?...I'm usually out of any kind of money. Anybody got some money I can borrow? The person who came up with these questions needs change...
6. Which one of your friends do you think would make the best doctor? Hmmm, probably Lisa M. She is just the sweetest thing and I bet she'd have a great bedside manner. And she's a great baker...so I know she'd do her rounds with a big ole plate of brownies!
7. Are you afraid of falling in love? What's there to be afraid of? I do it everyday. I see my husband and my daughter's faces in the mornings and I fall in love with them all over again.
8. Have you been overseas? Hmmm, I guess driving OVER the Mississippi River on my way back from Mount Vernon, IL one year isn't the same thing, is it? In that case, I don't think so. I've been to Jamaica...but again, I don't think that counts.
9. Is there someone who pops into your mind at random times? Yes. I think of my Great-Grandma quite often. She'll be 104 years old in July. And I think of my dad a lot too. Probably because I'm always scared...ahem...concerned, that he'll just show up on my doorstep from NY. Don't laugh...he's been known to do just that on several ocassions. And sometimes even at my place of employment...which in todays case, would be my (home) doorstep. :-)
10. What’s your most favorite scar? What kind of question is this? I can't say that I have a FAVORITE.
11. When was the last time you flew in a plane? In 1995 when me and my hubby went to Jamaica for Christmas.
12. What did the last text message you sent say? "On Macland Rd. next to Publix". My husband asked me where the nearest UPS store was today.
13. What features do you find most attractive in the preferred sex? Eyes, smile, teeth, and a confident walk.
14. Fill in the blank. I love ________.… My life right now. Chocolate. My weekly girls night. My new studio :-). My husband. My daughters.
15. What is a goal you would like to accomplish in the near future? To finish my studio. I'm not a real good organizer. Hey, that's a goal, isn't it? To become a better organizer. Oh, and to become debt free.
16. If you were to wake up from being in a coma for an extended time who would you call? (I love Susie Q's answer to this one). I'd have to say my mom and dad. But I'd hope that they'd already be with me. But I'd also like to have quick access to the nearest Chick Fil A and see if, since I've been in this coma, do they now deliver. WHAT???
17. How many kids do you want to have? Do I WANT to have? Well, I already have 2. So let's stop there...that's a pretty round number. Although, if I were younger, I'd consider having another.
18. Would you make a good parent? I WOULD!!! But DO I make a good parent is a better question. And to that, I'd have to say, not always. My intentions are really good though.
19. Where was your favorite picture taken? As far as pix of me and my honey, I'd have to say at a company Christmas party. We look so sweet together. And as far as other pictures go...one of my favs was taken of my oldest daughter when she was getting ready for graduation from the 6th grade. And another of my hubby at the hospital holding Jayla the day she was born
20. What’s your middle name? Monique
21. Honestly, what’s on your mind right now? HONESTLY??? How many more questions do I have to answer. :-) And wondering if I'm gonna sleep well tonight.
22. If you could go back in time and change something, what would it be? Very sneaky...I'm not answering this one!!! Ok,ok, I'll bite... I'd go back to this morning and pick out another bra to wear. This one is about to itch me to DEATH!! :-)
23. Who was or will be the maid of honor/ best man in your wedding? My sister, Kimmy. Even though she didn't even want to be at my wedding. She was SO mad at me that day, because instead of being able to go somewhere with her friend, she had to go to her "SISTERS stupid wedding"!
24. What are you wearing right now? Some purple capri lounging pants, a purple golf shirt, some socks and an itchy bra :-).
25. Righty or Lefty? Uhhh, righty, I guess. What does this mean?
26. Best place to eat? Anywhere that I get to sit down to a hot/warm meal. Be SERVED. Have matching plates & silverware. Where the glasses are actually made out of glass and don't have Dora The Explorer on them. And where a dog sitting under the table waiting for someone to drop something is optional.
27. Favorite jeans? As I've stated before, any ones that fit.
28. Favorite Animal? My dog, Trae, that sits under the table waiting for someone to drop something.
29. Favorite juice? Orange
30. Have you had the chicken pox? Yes, when I was 5. But I'm still not sure that I even liked chicken when I was 5. So I still question how I even got the "pox".
31. Have you had a sore throat? Uh yeah! One that led to strep, even!
32. Ever had a bar fight? Uh no! Never been to a bar.
33. Who knows you the best? Probably my hubby. Poor guy!

34. Shoe size? 9.5 (that just seems a little smaller than putting 9 1/2)
35. Do you wear glasses or contacts? Glasses. They're even new!
36. Ever been in a fight with your pet? WHAT?? Uh, I don't think so.
37. Been to Mexico? I've been to a Mexican's house before. Does that count? What about a Mexican restaurant?
38. Did you buy something today? Yepper! I bought a mirror and some candles for my studio. Some canned air and toilet paper from Walgreens. And the #1 combo with a Dr. Pepper from Chick Fil A. WHAT???
39. Did you get sick today? Nope.
40. Are you angry with anyone today? Nope. But that's subject to change without notice, if these questions don't end soon. But I guess the question would be, WHO would I be angry with? Susie was simply the messenger. Hmmm....
41. Did you get in a fight with someone today? What's will all this VIOLENCE??? Who am I, Mike Tyson? NO, I didn't get in a fight with anyone today. Sheesh!!
42. When is the last time you had a massage? Professionally? Never. At home while watching TV? A few months ago. Hey, that's a good idea for tonight...
43. Last person to lie in your bed? My hubby & Jayla.
44. Last person to see you cry? My dog, Trae.
45. Who made you cry? That guy who planned such a romantic proposal on TV for his girlfriend.
46. What was the last TV show you watched? House Hunters
47. What are your plans for the weekend? Not real sure if anything is going on on Saturday. But Sunday, Jayla has a birthday party to go to.
48. Who do you think will repost this? I'm thinking Cheryl. She likes stuff like this.
49. Who was the last person you hung out with? Once school was out, Jayla. But earlier today, I hung out with a my new friend, Amy and her son.
50. If your significant other asked you to marry them TODAY, what would you say? Oh, absolutely YES!!! I'll tell ya, that man still catches my eye from across a room. :-). I think this is a good time to mention this...he never really "asked" me to marry him in the first place. We just wound up at the same church at the same time, we were both all dressed up, so we figured what the hay? Let's get married. LOL. Only part of that story is true. He NEVER did officially "ask" me to marry him. We just kinda "agreed" that that's what we were gonna do. But IF he were to ask me today, once I came to and stopped crying like a blubbering idiot, I'd say yes in a heartbeat!

Well, that's about it. That's ENUFF, huh?? Oh, c'mon...it was fun! I think at this point, I'm supposed to tag someone to do this too. But ya know what? I'm just gonna throw it out there and invite whoever wants to, to join in. So...consider yourself tagged!

Friday Flower Fix...2 weeks in a row, even!

TGIF!!

Hey there, everyone. Well, we've successfully made it through another week. WHEW!!

Ok, at this point, I won't even venture to try and remember what all I did this week. So let's just say, I spent tons of time running around here and there. And doing a lot of this and that. Yep, that about sums it up!

How bout a status on the studio? Ok, great idea...thanks for asking :-). Wellll, the room is coming along swimmingly. You guys, I absolutely LOVE it!!! I don't say this often, but I am very proud of myself. As it stands right now, the room is about 75% done. Right now, I'm in the relocating/organizing phase. So this may take a minute. But again, the room is gorgeous.

Jayla goes in there all the time and says, "Mom, WE are gonna have funnn scrapbooking in HERE!"

Uh, WE!?!?!

What's up with THAT?? WHATEVER!!! :-) Man, I've been wanting to do a room like this for so long, that it's gonna take an act of congress for her to be in there with me as often as she thinks she'll be. Wonder where I can order an ID card reader, retna scan machine, fingerprint reader and voice recognition machine. Anybody got any suggestions? lol

ANYHOO...I'll be ready to share pictures REAL soon...I (kinda) promise :-).

Also, after Valentines day next week, I'll be (kinda) ready to share the other "secret" I talked about a few posts back.

Alrighty, guess what time it is? It's Flower Fix time. So, whatchall in the mood for? Something Springy? PERFECT! How bout this...

AGAIN...I have no clue as to what kind of flower this is. But it sure is pretty!

Okie dokie my dear friends...I've gotta finish my lunch, go move a table into my studio, eat a donut hole :-), then go pick Jayla up from school. So I'll be talkin to you guys later. Have an awesome weekend! And...Be Inspired....

Guess who???

Hey ya'll!

Ok, tell me something...how come, there aren't as many days in the WEEKEND as there are in the regular WORK WEEK? I mean, did "they" run out of words that end with DAY? lol

The weekends just seem to whiz by, don't they? While the work week takes a little bit longer...like, 3 days longer :-).

ANYWAY...no matter how much I question it or try and make sense of it all, it's not gonna change a thing. Oh, I'm not complaining, mind you. I''m just sayin...

We had a really nice, semi-quiet weekend. On Friday, I had a little "Dawn" time. As Jayla went to a friends house after school for a few hours for a playdate. Why do little kids like to take their shoes off outside...the day after it's been raining? Beats me! Then on Saturday, Jayla and I ran a few errands while daddy went to soccer practice. Later in the day, I did some more work on my studio while hubby, Jayla and Trae worked/played in the yard. Sunday, we had a great service at church followed by a yummy dinner...at a real, live restaurant :-).

Yesterday, the volunteer rotation started back at Jayla's school. It was so nice to see the little kiddies again.

Oh, and guess what else happened yesterday? My hubby had to work late :-(. But he came home with this:

Oh wait...wrong picture!

LOL Silly me! That picture looks SO much like this one...

Doesn't everyone get a Black Chevy Tahoe and a Purple LG cell phone confused? No? Maybe it's these new glasses!LOL

But really, isn't that the prettiest phone? I ALMOST wanted to save it til Friday and use it as the flower fix! :-) I about fell over when I saw this phone. Over the past couple years, it seems that "colored" phones have really been making their mark. However, no one had ventured out to make a purple one yet. Being that purple IS my favorite color, I kept the hope alive. THEN...it happened! LG came out with a "Plum" colored phone. Close enough!!! I've had my eye on this baby for a few months now. But I had to wait until after the first of the year to get it, because we had to wait until our contract ended so hubby, (who is an AT&T employee) could get on the employee plan. SO, on Sunday after dinner, we went and looked at the phones. But we couldn't get them then because, contrary to popular belief, my husband does NOT wear his work badge to church :-). ANYWAY, since he had to work late yesterday, he went and got the phones on his lunch break. What a surprise! He even got the exact same phone...but in black (BORING!) :-) Hey, maybe the black one is what I was thinking about when I "accidentally" clicked on the black Tahoe! Yeah...that's what happened!!

Welp, that's all I've got for now. I hope ya'll have a great rest of the day. And don't forget...Be Inspired...I AM!!!

I made it!...with 14 hours to boot

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Yes, I said FRIDAY!!!

Can you believe I'm actually doing a post on a Friday?

Someone, who will remain nameless, (but her name rhymes with Jacki...oh, wait, that IS her name, oh well...lol) sent me a "sweet" little reminder email last night to do the Flower Fix TODAY...and to not pull a Britney again. Boy, with friends like that....

ANYWAY, although I'm about to walk out the door and take my MIL to run a few errands, I decided to stop and smell the roses, so to speak. What roses you ask? THESE roses...

Aren't they pretty?

Alright my friends, I've gotta run. And if I don't decide to post again today, I hope ya'll have a great weekend. Talk to you soon!!!