Two

Well...with all the hustle and bustle of Isabel getting sick on her birthday, it never really did hit that my baby is TWO! How did it happen?

I love how she's progressed into a little person of her own, with her own thoughts and her own words. She's absorbing everything like a sponge.

And I love how she's just a silly little ham sometimes

I love that she's slowly mastering words to express herself

I love the way she stops and thinks about how she wants to phrase something so that I'll understand.

I love the way she'll make me repeat what she says to ensure that I really got what she was trying to say.

I love how she loves shoes.

I love how she's getting into role-playing and using her imagination. The imagination is one of the most important quality a person can have - with it, one can dream of bigger and better things, one can escape the wearies and the troubles of an existing life, one can have hope.

I love how she'll try and mimic me and try to do the things I do

I love how she'll say "Momma, hand!" whenever we are out and about

I love the way she says "Momma, hold" when she's in bed, getting ready to fall asleep

I love the way she makes me feel like I'm a good person. A worthy person. And how it makes me all the more determined to be strong, to carry on, to be a good mother who'll be worthy of her love.

I love you, my darling girl. Momma loves Izzy.

This Is What Miserable Looks Like

Made even more miserable by the fact that I had to go shovel it.

Remind me to move to a place where I'll be able to handle the maintenance of the place single-handedly.

Or at least, where I won't look like a bundled up bag-lady when I go out and tackle it.

The things I do to amuse myself when I am alone. Thank God for Netflix Instant Play. And online shopping. Although I'm not so sure my bank account is too thankful for the latter. Ah well...New Year's isn't here yet.

Back to my Marilyn Monroe marathon.

Sad

I've taken to singing "My Favourite Things" at the top of my lungs when I start feeling really sorry for myself. My dog thinks I'm crazy.

But that's ok. I brought in reinforcements.

Along with some Christmassy movies - with Christmas in Connecticut thrown in for good measure - Amanda - I took your rec.

And if all things fail, there's always ice-cream, chased down by buckets full of Diet Coke Lime.

I'm off to wallow now.

Post Note: I LOVED "Christmas in Connecticut". Since I already live in the state and have the baby, I just need to find a farm and a sailor to marry!

Bah. Humbug

Well...my daughter is off for her long trip out to Michigan with her dad. Please keep your fingers crossed, or say a prayer that she'll return home, safe and sound to me.

With that, I'm now allowed to to mope freely.

Although we got a LOVELY package last night, with lovely, LOVELY stuff inside that gives a good dose of cheer



Isabel concurs as the first thing she said was "KITCHEN! Open Momma!"



Then "Rabbit Hat!" and promptly put it on her head

And then "Izzy Color?" And grabbed her crayons and went to town with the card
For some reason, she only likes to color on the writing.



Then she grabbed her mouse and a cup and a spoon and sat on the rocker to feed her mouse



And finished the rest of the imaginery mum-mum herself.



See? I told you I had a fab brother. And he has fab taste. Because I honestly LOVE everything! And that's not particularly common with me (although it would be so if they just really knew me. At least I have one person who does!)

So thank you, m'dear!

Back to moping - if things get lonely, I'll just start dancing to my theme song for the season:

Puppy Tales

This poor little guy has been neglected for well over a year.

But he's finally done and he got some well-deserved loving from Isabel.

And stickers too, for being such a good dog.

The problem with putting off projects, is that over the course of time, I couldn't remember which tutorial I was using. And I lost some of the fabric. So there was some "winging" involved. Which is probably why he looks like he's about to take off with his ears.

I'm not a fan of hand-sewing, if you must know.

But anyway, he's done and the little guy has been shipped off to his new home.

Hair Rising

Little handmade gifts for her little friends at school...

For the girls at least. (Boys got Hot Wheels cars)

Isabel was nice enough to model one (or five) for me. All at once.

Buddy too

I'm all about homemade this Christmas

Isabel helped with the making of the cards
(she helped me glue the patterned cards to the cream cardstock)

After she picked up the hairclips she wanted to keep
 (The pink snowman stays. As does the small penguin as that one is just ugly)

I was so happy to have them all packaged up...

Only to remember that I didn't get her teachers anything.

Dang it!

Meet My Brother...

The real one this time.

He's 4 1/2 years older than me.

And he was my yardstick for all things male for a long time

I was that annoying little sister who tagged along with her older brother and tried to do all the things he did...I worshipped him. And lucky for me, he didn't seem to mind it (most times, at least)

One of the best memories from our younger days is sitting by his side when he's playing his video games on the computer - he'll actually let me know when he's going to start playing so I can get situated. Games like Legend of Kirandia, Alone In The Dark, Cluedo and Leisuire Suite Larry are remembered fondly.

Now that we are all grown up, we don't talk much anymore. In fact, I can't even seem to find a picture of just him and I in our old-age glory.

Perhaps we just have that special relationship where regardless of how much time has gone by, we're still able to connect like no time has past. He's always been there for me. Through the rough patches, and eventually the disolution of my marriage, I counted on him. And he was there.

Kor, I don't say this much (or maybe not at all), but you know I love you and I wish that we lived closer (like, in the same town. You still have yet to change ONE dirty diaper).

Happy birthday, old fart.

P/S: Isabel SO looks like me in that last picture!

List

Since things are kinda depressing around here, I'm going to attempt to cheer myself up with a little wish list that I'm pretending that I'm going to get...

I'll start off with the big bucks first:

Simple black CL Pigalles - because I honestly only have 2 pairs of black pumps. I'm flabbergasted.

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Balenciaga Money Wallet

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I've been on a Rebecca Minkoff kick lately. Which is good and bad on my wallet.

Good - because it's waaaay less than what I usually lust after and they can be found on sale frequently.

Bad - because it's "affordable", buying a few here and there adds up to a lot....

Morning After Mini in Black & BBW - Exclusive to Revolve. It's starting to look like I'm building a collection of these

Boyfriend Bag 

Dear tote - a good laptop bag!

 

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Oh...and a dang purple dress that fits! 

Chicken Little and Other Sad Stories...

We are feeling sad around here these days

Poor baby developed a high fever on her birthday and was looking a little worse for the wear

Turns out that she has a little bronchial virus and was hooked up to a nebulizer (which looks like a chicken) at the doctor's to see if it will help her wheezing.

It didn't. As with everything, we'll just have to rough it out until things get better.

Which means LOTS of Elmo for Izzy and Momma

Movie Of The Week

Movie of the week: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers - recommendation from a colleague at work.

Ms. Tiny Mouse - the brothers are all redheads. On a farm!

Snack of the week: Candy Cane Joe-Joes from Trader Joe's...Like an Oreo cookie, but with peppermint cane filling...chocolatey with a minty tinge...yummy goodness that's far more economical than the Salted Caramel goodies!

Completed with a steaming cup of green tea.

I'm going to resemble a heffalump by the time February rolls along.

Chores...

Are more fun when one has a little helper...



Especially when it's something like giving the dog a bath



Although after awhile, she was more interested in covering his head than drying him



And reveling in it too!