19 things we should say to our children

This was just too sweet and true not to share today!

1. I love you! There is nothing that will make me stop loving you. Nothing you could do or say or think will ever change that.

2. You are amazing! I look at you with wonder! Not just at what you can do, but who you are. There is no one like you. No one!

3. It’s all right to cry. People cry for all kinds of reasons: when they are hurt, sad, glad, or worried; when they are angry, afraid, or lonely. Big people cry too. I do.

4. You’ve made a mistake. That was wrong. People make mistakes. I do. Is it something we can fix? What can we do? It’s all over. You can start fresh. I know you are sorry. I forgive you.

(hair pulling)

(mommy's lipstick)

5. You did the right thing. That was scary or hard. Even though it wasn’t easy, you did it. I am proud of you; you should be too.

(1st day of ballet/tap)

6. I’m sorry. Forgive me. I made a mistake.

7. You can change your mind. It’s good to decide, but it is also fine to change.

8. What a great idea! You were really thinking! How did you come up with that? Tell me more. Your mind is clever!

9. That was kind. You did something helpful and thoughtful for that person. That must make you feel good inside. Thank you!

(yogurt sharing)

10. I have a surprise for you. It’s not your birthday. It’s for no reason at all. Just a surprise, a little one, but a surprise.

(new aprons)

11. I can wait. We have time. You don’t have to hurry this time.

(Audrey~2 months and all we did was cuddle:)

12. What would you like to do? It’s your turn to pick. You have great ideas. It’s important to follow your special interests.

                                    (Ava becoming quite the finger painter)

                                      

13. Tell me about it. I’d like to hear more. And then what happened? I’ll listen.

14. I’m right here. I won’t leave without saying good-bye. I am watching you. I am listening to you.

15. Please and Thank You. These are important words. If I forget to use them, will you remind me?

16. I missed you. I think about you when we are not together!

17. Just try. A little bit. One taste, one step. You might like it. Let’s see. I’ll help you if you need it. I think you can do it.

18. I’ll help you. I heard you call me, here I am. How can I help you? If we both work together, we can get this done. I know you can do it by yourself, but I’m glad to help since you asked.

19. What do you wish for? Even if it’s not yet time for birthday candles and we don’t have a wishbone, it’s still fun to hear about what you wish for, hope for, and dream about.

Dallas Goodies

As promised, here are my purchases...

:Ruffled 'throw' from Ikea that is not really a throw. It's huge so I'm using it on our bed for texture.

:Geometric {velvety, feather down} pillow from Ikea for the living room. At $12 it was such a steal, so i snagged two of them.

:Adding to my collection of wooden spoons :)

 :Missoni bathroom hand towel that I found at the very cool, eclectic boutique Nest. I'm probably more excited about these hand towels {adore the colorful pattern} than anything.

:All of us girls bought these eggs to add to our Easter collection. You should've seen the back of the car! We found them at the Wisteria outlet.
:Another Ikea pillow and black/white striped throw for the leather chair in the living. The chairs are large in scale so I needed a touch of feminine to tone down all the leather.

 :Ikea had this darling baking set and I just couldn't pass it up for the girls. 

:Sur la Table had these two mini-petal colanders that I thought would be perfect for eating fruit on the patio this summer. The girls love their fruit.

:Colorful cups, bowls, utensils, and plates from Ikea because you can never have enough.

 :Coral pillow and insert from Wisteria

:Blue Ikat rug, seat cushions and placemats from World Market. The bright colors make me so happy. Can't wait for patio dinners now!
:White/red wine glasses. I just loved the shape of these and I needed new glasses desperately.

There you have it.

 I didn't go completely crazy.

 I never do.

 I usually stick with my game plan which is typically items for our home and I have to love it. I always ask myself, "will you be thinking about it tomorrow if you don't get it now?" 

So that's how I do it. And I absolutely love it all. We are officially ready for summer!

Hope you enjoyed it! :))

Dallas Shopping Trip

A few ladies & I enjoyed a weekend getaway from our husbands and kiddos and indulged in our favorite pastime. That's the great thing about Dallas, only a 3-hour road trip away from fabulous shopping and fun restaurants. It was so wonderful to not be on a schedule, woken up 2-3 times a night, sleep until 8am, take a hot shower without someone banging on my door, etc.

I think you get the gist. On the second day, however I was missing everyone but loving every second of 'me' time I could get. :))

We did quite a bit in the short, but very sweet 2 days we were there. Here are some shots from Instagram, my new favorite way to take pics. Enjoy

~cruising through Highland Park [my dream hood]

~stopping by Soda Fountain for an old-school, glass bottled diet coke. So refreshing after shopping allll day.

~filling our cart full of goodies at IKEA

~sipping on a Mojito in the hotel bar

~sushi at The Fish

Brunch at Breadwinners with Court

Courtney, Brandy, myself & Jennifer

Packing the SUV full of our purchases!

We did pretty well and everything we got was such a bargain.

My kind of shopping!

~Wisteria outlet {new fave} and a silver table which I was drooling over

~Calypso St Barth: over priced and fab!! That birdcage wire chandelier was almost 9 grand. Crazy hu!! That bowl was pretty spectacular as well

~picking up Sprinkles cupcakes for the family

So I have a confession.

Our main focus was to antique shop while in Dallas.

I will admit we didn't hit up one single antique store. :/

Like I said before, that's the great thing about not being on a schedule! It was so fun and relaxing and I really enjoyed meeting Jennifer and getting to know Brandy more. Hopefully we can plan another one soon.

*Stay tuned for my purchases*

15 things to give up in order to be happy

saw this online today and liked it...

Here is a list of 15 things which, if you give up on them, will make your life a lot easier and much, much happier. We hold on to so many things that cause us a great deal of pain, stress and suffering – and instead of letting them all go, instead of allowing ourselves to be stress free and happy – we cling on to them. Not anymore. Starting today we will give up on all those things that no longer serve us, and we will embrace change. Ready? Here we go:

1. Give up your need to always be right.There are so many of us who can’t stand the idea of being wrong – wanting to always be right – even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain, for us and for others. It’s just not worth it. Whenever you feel the ‘urgent’ need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: “Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?” Wayne Dyer. What difference will that make? Is your ego really that big?

2. Give up your need for control. Be willing to give up your need to always control everything that happens to you and around you – situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – just allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are and you will see how much better will that make you feel.

“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu

3. Give up on blame. Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk. Oh my. How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don’t believe everything that your mind is telling you – especially if it’s negative and self-defeating. You are better than that.

“The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!

“A belief is not an idea held by the mind, it is an idea that holds the mind” Elly Roselle

6. Give up complaining. Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, events that make you unhappy, sad and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism. Give up your need to criticize things, events or people that are different than you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved and we all want to be understood. We all want something, and something is wished by us all.

8. Give up your need to impress others. Stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not just to make others like you. It doesn’t work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not, the moment you take of all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people will be drawn to you, effortlessly.

9. Give up your resistance to change. Change is good. Change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you make improvements in your life and also the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change – don’t resist it.
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls” Joseph Campbell

10. Give up labels. Stop labeling those things, people or events that you don’t understand as being weird or different and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. “The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” Wayne Dyer

11. Give up on your fears. Fear is just an illusion, it doesn’t exist – you created it. It’s all in your mind. Correct the inside and the outside will fall into place.
“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. Give up your excuses. Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. You no longer need them. A lot of times we limit ourselves because of the many excuses we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kind of excuses – excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even real.

13. Give up the past. I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. Give up attachment. This is a concept that, for most of us is so hard to grasp and I have to tell you that it was for me too, (it still is) but it’s not something impossible. You get better and better at with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things, (and that doesn’t mean you give up your love for them – because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another, attachment comes from a place of fear, while love… well, real love is pure, kind, and self less, where there is love there can’t be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, so tolerant, so kind, and so serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand all things without even trying. A state beyond words.

15. Give up living your life to other people’s expectations. Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them, they live their lives according to what their parents think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies and their teachers, their government and the media think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people’s expectations, that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need….and eventually they forget about themselves. You have one life – this one right now – you must live it, own it, and especially don’t let other people’s opinions distract you from your path.

China Cabinet

One of my New Year's resolutions was to refinish my grandmother's china cabinet. After it sat in my garage for a year and a half, I was able to tackle that huge project of mine a couple of months ago and I couldn't love it more!

My grandma purchased it in Bethany in the 1960s so I felt, of course, it was very dated and needed a make-over to mesh well with everything in my home.

It has really great lines, handles/pulls, and is very sturdy. It's such a great piece and I feel so blessed to finally have it finished in my living room, full of treasured accessories.

I researched ideas and inspiration for a good solid year before diving right on in and painting it Old Charter white with a Permission chevron pattern on the backside with a heavy sanding.

Almost everything in the hutch was also my grandma's including this 8 piece set. I had it stored in boxes for years so I was so happy to finally be able to display it.

The red ceramic strawberry sugar cup was given to us by Conor's mom. She hand painted it when she was little at a camp. The lettuce dishes are mine and I always use these when we entertain.

This tiny little bowl was made during a pottery class I took years ago. It's my first piece to have ever made on the ceramic wheel. I totally had a Demi Moore moment and it was amazing. I loved that pottery class and I'm thinking I would love to start it back up.

I have two of these glasses and they are very dear to my heart. When I was little and would visit my Grandma on 'the farm' in Oakwood (outside of Watonga, ever heard of Watonga cheese? :) she would make her delicious chocolate pudding and always serve it in these glasses. Aww the memories!! So very special!

Grandma bought this pitcher/glasses in California in the 70s and I always use this for serving up fruity drinks for parties.

This was a clear glass vase that I painted with looking glass to appear as mercury glass.

These candelabras I found at the beginning of spring at The Rink and they are hands down one of my favorite antique finds.

I added a blue and coral to highlight the lines on the bottom cabinet and painted the handles/pulls with metallic gold paint.

lots of sanding...

I found these white wine glasses when Mom & I were antiqing in Pink, OK.

There she is!! I love her!!!

*Special Thanks to my Mom who styled it for me!*

Hope you enjoyed it.

This weekend a couple of friends and I are road tripping to Dallas to do some serious antique shopping and I couldn't be more excited. It will be so fun to get away, enjoy a nice warm meal and actually sit down while I eat (ha!, seriously tho), maybe a couple of glasses of champs, possibly squeeze some time in at the spa, and catch up with the girls. :)))

I'm BEAMING with excitement!!!!

Can you tell?

Scenes from our weekend

Loving all my perennials this spring.

I swear they are twice the size that they were last year.

This weekend we hung around the house due to the crazy weather coming into town.

It poured all evening on Friday.

I opened the back door and the girls enjoyed watching the rain come down. I was glued to the weather channel all night. Tornados give me major anxiety!!

After the storm cleared Audrey and I headed to the toy store for her 'Potty Prize'.

She picked a Rapunzel dress and jewelry box and insists on sleeping with both. She got her name on the 'potty board' at school so they will be celebrating with a pizza party for all the kiddos. So proud of our girl!!

Changed the paint color in the kitchen (FINALLY). It really opened it up and gave it new life. I'm always amazed by what a fresh coat of paint can do.

Sunday we worked in the garden, jammed to i-tunes, planted okra, and cut some fresh flowers. After the yucky weekend weather it was so nice to get outside and enjoy my hub while the girls were napping. I'll take one-on-one time when I can get it! :)

All the rain had weighed down my irises and roses, so I was tickled to add some freshly cut flowers in the house.

I've been on the Paleo diet for 7 days now and I really love it. I've lost 5 lbs and I'm feeling so great. I cut out my beloved morning coffee and replaced it with green tea. However, Sunday for dinner I totally cheated and loved every minute of it!! We ordered from our fave pizzeria and it seriously was the best pizza I've ever had. When you've been eating clean for 7 days, it really makes you appreciate a great carb! ha!

Ava girl talking to herself and playing outside. This girl cracks me up!

For Sale

I've tackled a {one of many} New Year's resolution!

My first painting for sale is displayed at Studio Grand Salon in OKC.

Look how sweet Jeff and Cory were to hang it for me.

They are the best stylists in town!

These are two men who looove their decorating.

Two men after my own heart.

'Luminous Blue'

38x46

acrylic on canvas

$380

message me for info.