Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Pumpkin Time!

2008-10-07T05:30:00.000-07:00

Yay! I love fall!!! Always my favorite season! I just had to make a trip to the local pumpkin patch with Paige this year.... especially because Ellie's arrival has been pushed forward to this week - Friday!

Paige had a blast running around through the pumpkins and letting us chase her. She is getting so big and it is crazy to think how much she has changed in a year! I mean look at the 2 pictures... last year she was "propped" up against the pumpkins... just a wee 4 months old.... this year she is a big girl... standing, running, laughing, clapping, having a blast at almost 16 months old!! Just think... next year we will have both girls there! :) Crazy!

So Ellie will be here now on Friday - 10.10.08 (unless my dr says differently today). My blood pressure has gone up so they are ready to deliver me now... which is fine with me, I am feeling so DONE with this pregnancy!!!

Happy Fall everyone!! :)

We have a date!!!

2008-09-17T18:36:00.000-07:00

Ellie will be here by October 24th! Yay! This past Monday at my 34 week dr appt we scheduled the c-section *officially* for 39 weeks on October 24th! I cannot believe that we get to meet her in 5 weeks! I am getting so excited! We are starting to FINALLY get ready for her too! We've gotten down the bassinet and baby bottles, I've washed all of the newborn clothes and put them away in her dresser, and we've started to organize the girls' room! I am just giddy thinking about having another newborn (I know, I know, what am I thinking...) But seriously... we are thrilled to be blessed again and we cannot wait to meet our little Ellie Belly! :)

Here are a couple of photos from her 3D/4D ultrasound! What a cool experience!!! We think she looks a bit like Paige!

Ellie at 31 weeks gestation:

Paige at 35 weeks gestation (1 week old):

I call this.....

2008-08-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

"Enough with the F'in pictures Mama"

Taken this morning during a photo shoot gone bad..........

ONE!

2008-06-23T15:14:00.000-07:00

My sweet baby girl is ONE! How on earth did a whole entire year go by??? Paige has come a long way from the 4 lb. 14 oz little peanut a year ago. She is now 21 lbs. 3 oz and 29.5 inches long. She is walking, saying "mama, dada, and kitty" and she is into everything. She loves exploring and finding new things! Her favorite thing to play with are books!!! She just enjoys pulling all the books off her shelf and going through them one by one... they mesmerize her!

Paige turned ONE this past Wednesday (6.18) and we had a wonderful day celebrating together! The highlights of her birthday included going to the library for story hour, having a fun visit from Aunt Susan and Cousin Evan in the afternoon - complete with a wagon ride with cousin Evan in Paige's new wagon, and eating her favorite dinner - Pizza Spaghetti - topped with yummy cake! It was a fun day!!!

Then yesterday we had her birthday party! A fun luau pool party celebration with all of her favorite people! I was so happy that the little kids from daycare could come - Paige loves them! We also enjoyed a visit from Lottie, Nathan, and Corbin! And it was great that all of our friends and family were there to celebrate. Paige had a spectacular time at her party. Her favorite part was definitely splashing around in the kiddy pool with her friends! Here are some pictures from her First Birthday Party!!!

Chicago!

2008-06-17T05:22:00.000-07:00

We just returned from a nice trip to Chicago to visit Patrick's family.... it was great - family, good weather, fabulous food (italian beef sandwiches, and hot dogs... yum!).... all was wonderful except the fact that Spirit Airlines lost my luggage on the way there and I didn't get it for over half of the trip. Of course it had to be my suitcase - complete with Paige's clothes in there too.... the best part is that Spirit has like ZERO customer service... when I asked what I was supposed to do for clothing for my daughter and myself they simply said, "We do not reimburse for the first 24 hours, then after taht you can buy a cheap pair of underwear, a toothbrush, and deodrant and then you can file a claim for those and they will "most likely" reimburse you.... LOVELY... right? Of course I had to go out and buy new stuff for us... including dresses for his Grandparents Surprise 50th Anniversary party! Thankfully I like to shop, so that was not a problem for me! :)

Overall, it was a great trip. We went to the Lincoln Park Zoo (loved this!), the Shedd Aquarium, and enjoyed some time with Patrick's family whom we haven't seen in 3 years! And we thoroughly enjoyed all the terrific food that Chicago has to offer!

Twice Blessed....

2008-05-11T10:41:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Happy Mother's Day! To my BabyCenter July 05 Loss friends - we remember our angels, to my Little Sparkler 07 friends - Happy First Mothers Day, and to all of my other friends out there who are moms (to angels or children) may you have a special and blessed day!

This Mother's Day is special for me not only because it is my very first mothers day with my sweet girl Paige... it is also special because of the little baby blessing on its way!

Paige will be a big sister come this October!! We are thrilled to announce our newest addition! We should find out in the next couple of weeks if Paige will have a little brother or sister!

Catching up...

2008-02-17T11:52:00.001-08:00

So I know that I have greatly been neglecting this blog, so here is my attempt at catching up...

Paige turns 8 months old tomorrow! She is becoming quite the big girl. She eats in her high chair now... she has 2 teeth... she gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth (crawling here we come)... she weighs about 18 lbs.... she blows raspberries all the time and LOVES it.... she absolutely loves her kitty cats, especially Charlie...

She is just amazing!

Here are some recent pictures of Miss Paigey-Waigey...

With her new taggy blanket that I made for her:

My Blue-Eyed Girl:

Swimming last weekend in the pool:

With her buddy Caden:

What else is new... well other than hanging with Paige, I have been working on my photography. Kristi Mangan Photography just finished our first photo contest - you can check it out and see the winners at www.kmanganphoto.typepad.com . I am getting ready to update my homepage with a bunch of new photos and new things that I will be offering! Lots in store for Kristi Mangan Photography - it's going to be exciting!

I have also picked up a new "hobby" - like I need anymore... this one is fun because it combines my love for photography, photoshop, scrapping, and online message boards. I am a "siggy" designer at Simply Chic Graphics. You can check us out at www.simplychic08.proboards99.com . If you ever need an online siggy be sure to come by and put in a request! Here are some examples of siggies I have made using Miss Paige...

I think that pretty much wraps up our life right now. Patrick is busy with tax season so that leaves Paige and I to hang by ourselves, which is wonderful! I am very much looking forward to spring break (although its late this year - 2nd week in April)...

Thats all for now!

All You Need Is LOVE Contest!

2008-01-17T14:39:00.000-08:00

Kristi Mangan Photography is holding our first contest - All You Need Is LOVE. For more information click here...

Also, I can't possibly leave you without some recent pictures of Miss Paige.... Enjoy!

Holy Cow.... 6 months....

2007-12-20T14:12:00.000-08:00

How on earth is she six months old already? This is insane. It feels like just yesterday she was a newborn and we were waking up every 3 hours to feed her at night... and now she's a big girl (well not really - but she's much bigger...)

At 6 months...

- When she eats any foods she likes she makes the cutest "mmmm.... mmmmm.... mmmmm..." sound... So far her favorite foods are peaches, applesauce, and peas.

- Her favorite bedtime story is Pajama Time by Sandra Boynton ... and momma and daddy know it by heart! "It's Pajama Time... ooooooh ya"

- She has a full-blown party in her crib each night when she goes to sleep... she grabs her feet and kicks and rolls and just laughs and squeals with delight. It is hilarious!

-She can roll in both directions and she is quite a squirmy wormy!

-She laughs hysterically when you blow on her belly. She has quite an adorable laugh!

-She does not always enjoy her carseat - and when you go shopping forget about leaving her in the infant seat - she MUST be sitting upright in the stroller or in her Baby Bjorn so she can look around and take in the world.

..... She is the light of our lives.... a blessing from above.... our whole world's happiness. We are more in love with her than ever!

Busy Busy...

2007-12-10T20:03:00.000-08:00

Now that I have neglected this blog for almost a month... I thought I owed a post/explanation to my like 2 readers...

I have been busy with my photography - which has been awesome. I am truly loving the experience I am getting photographing families, children, babies, and couples... I think I finally know what I want to be when I grow up...

I am also greatly enjoying my new 40 D! This is seriously one awesome camera. I love having the freedom to play and experiment and learn with this bad boy!

I've been posting my work on my photography blog, but I'll post some of my latest favorites here too...

Paige is doing well too.... she is getting big - almost 6 months old! I cannot believe my little snuggle bunny is growing up - I just want her to stay my little baby forever!

Other than photography and Paige, I've been working and getting ready for the Holidays. I am anxiously awaiting my 2-week Winter Break!!! :)

That's my life in a nutshell right now... and I am loving every bit of the craziness!

Gobble! Gobble!

2007-11-22T05:41:00.001-08:00

GOBBLE! GOBBLE!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY EVERYONE!

LOVE,
PAIGE

Sweet Potatoes!

2007-11-18T04:48:00.001-08:00

She LOVED them!!

Paige has been doing so well on rice cereal that we thought she was ready for some "real" food! We decided to give sweet potatoes a try and she absolutely LOVED them. As she was eating she was making cute little noises going "mmm.... mmmm.... mmmm" It was hysterical! So sweet potatoes are a hit... I wonder what we'll try next!

Exersaucer Fun!!

2007-11-11T20:13:00.000-08:00

We had a blast today watching Paige enjoy her new exersaucer!! Pat put this together today and Paige just LOVED it!

She is getting so big and changing so much and we are just having so much fun with her!

Trick or Treat!

2007-10-31T06:33:00.000-07:00

Trick or Treat from the cutest little elephant ever!!!

Paige wanted to wish everyone a Happy Halloween!

Hopefully we won't get rained out tonight from TS Noel... :(

Have a Spooktacular Halloween!!!

Homemade Halloween Costumes

2007-10-28T06:34:00.000-07:00

You've got to love homemade Halloween costumes!! They are truly the best! My sister, Kim, was going to a Halloween Party and asked me what she should dress up as... well after thinking about it a bit I suggested that she could be an 80's workout girl! She instantly loved the idea and the brainstorming began. We had so much fun talking out every aspect of her costume - from her hot pink leggings with heather gray legwarmers - to her plastic bangle bracelets and earrings - to her cut-off sweatshirt complete with "jazzercise" iron-on logo - to her braided headband with a ponytail on the side. What made the outfit even better was Susan's suggestion to find an image of the "airbrush kitten" that was popular in the 80s to add to the sweatshirt and Susan also found my mom's old rhinestone machine (back from our Baton Twirling days) so Kimmie could add some bling to her ensemble.

Here is the finished product... kind of makes me wish I had a Halloween Party to go to - maybe next year...

Announcing the Kristi Mangan Photography Photo Blog!!!

2007-10-22T19:10:00.000-07:00

So... I have been working on my website lately and have decided that I need a photo blog for the site as well! I'll post some of my latest work, sneak peeks for clients, and proof galleries...

You can check out my photoblog at www.kmanganphoto.typepad.com and you can check out my website updates at www.kmanganphoto.com.

Thanks Everyone!!!

She's 4 months old...

2007-10-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

Where has the time gone.... it seems like just yesterday we were in the hospital with our tiny little peanut of a baby girl in the NICU.... Now she is a whopping 13 lbs. 3 oz. and 24 inches long! Paige is such a joy! She is absolutely full of smiles, she's "talking" up a storm, and she is learning new things every day!

We've come a long way from this....

To this... Here is one of my favorite recent pictures of my sweet 4 month old girl...

Mmmmmm........

2007-10-15T18:37:00.000-07:00

Apple Pie.... One of my favorite fall treats! The sweet, cinnamony goodness of apple pie just screams AUTUMN to me! After visiting the apple farm in Minnesota I just knew I needed some apple pie...

Now I do love to bake, but I am not a pie baker. That job usually falls on my mom or one of my sisters - all of which make incredible pies. I usually just sit back and enjoy the fruits of their labor. However after reading several apple pie recipes in the November issue of Cooking Light Magazine, I decided I needed to give it a whirl.

So I picked out a recipe and viola...

Although it may not look fancy, it was delicious!!! My in-laws thoroughly enjoyed it and I do plan on making it again!!! :)

Sleep, Finally... and Pumpkin Time!!!

2007-10-13T04:23:00.000-07:00

So I know these two topics don't have anything to do with each other, but I just felt the need to write about both!

I am happy to report that for the past 3 nights Paige has slept through the entire night. The first night was 8 hours, the second night 9 hours and last night a glorious 10 hour stretch!!! Now let's hope this sticks!!! Yay for sleeping!

And Yay for pumpkins! I just love pumpkins, they are so fun! We went to the local pumpkin patch (which was awesome this year) and had fun taking lots of pictures and picking out the perfect pumpkins. We picked three - a tall skinny one (like Pat) and a shorter plump one (like me)... and we also got one of the little baby ones (like Paige). I haven't snapped a shot of our 3 pumpkins yet but I sure will and add it to my post later!

Fall Fun!

2007-10-09T19:18:00.000-07:00

I just got home from a fun-filled family weekend in Minnesota! Paige and I flew up to visit my sister Susan and to meet baby Evan! Mom and Kimmie also came along for the fun! We had a great time despite the 80+ degree weather and we thoroughly enjoyed meeting cousin Evan who is such a cutie!!!

Some of the highlights of our trip were the fun photoshoots of the kiddos (my mom thought we were crazy) and going to the apple orchard which was re-named the "donut farm" because they have the BEST apple donuts in the world - truly the reason Susan and Eric go there and take everyone who visits there!

Here are some of my favorite pics (so far) from the trip!!! I have soooo many more to go through!

And I just loved seeing the BEAUTIFUL Autumn Leaves:

We had a wonderful time and we are greatly looking forward to Susan and Evan's visit to Florida in the end of October!!!

3 months

2007-09-26T14:35:00.001-07:00

At 3 months, Paige is...

Smiling lots!
Having fun kicking and "dancing" with her legs!
Finding her hands and putting them in her mouth!
Full of sweet little coos!
Rolling over from her tummy to her back!
Sleeping for 6 hour chunks at night - even though she still wakes up at 3:30am!
Enjoying hanging out with me while I am still on maternity leave!

And we are more in love with her than ever!!!

Seminole Baby!

2007-09-11T16:05:00.001-07:00

As many of you know, Pat and I are both Florida State University alumni and hardcore Seminole fans.... therefore Paige will be a Seminole fan, naturally. Last weekend we went down to Pat's parents' house to watch the Seminoles game. It was great because we got to see both sets of grandparents and see the Seminoles win! Yay! I just had to share some pics of Paige enjoying her first FSU game experience and looking mighty cute in her garnet and gold (if I do say so myself)...

The Beach!

2007-09-05T20:32:00.000-07:00

Last week we decided that Paige needed to be introduced to a South Florida staple - the BEACH! If she is going to be a Florida Girl, she will have to love the beach! Already she loves the water (bathtime) so I just know the sun and sand are in her too! Pat and I headed down to our favorite local beach - Juno Beach near the pier...

After being a little startled at first, she soon loved the beach too! We can't wait to take her again!

Sweet Smiley Girl...

2007-08-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

Paige is starting to smile more and more! This morning she was full of huge grins!!! It was so wonderful to watch her sweet little face light up!!!

Here's a quick little video of her smiling this morning...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4603532724294694200&pr=goog-sl

"Get the buggy off my back!"

2007-08-25T19:31:00.000-07:00

Last week was my first *official* week of maternity leave! School started back up again and let me tell you it was sooooo strange not being at school. I kind of missed it! The beginning of the school year is always an exciting time... this year mine will be delayed a bit until November when I return back to work.

Instead of meeting my new students and teaching those beginning of the year lessons this past week... I spent the week with one of the loves of my life - Paige! It was fun just hanging out together at the house! She's finally starting to get to the point where she isn't sleeping 20 hours a day - no... now it's more like 17 or 18! haha! But in those extra 2 or 3 hours that she is awake, it is fun playing with her and getting to know her!

This week during one of those play times, Paige and I invented a new game called "Get the Buggy off my Back!!!!" It went a little something like this:

She was sooo cute and she was successful at getting the buggy off her back 3 times!! She is getting so big and I am so happy that I have this time with her!

Scrapping

2007-08-23T07:24:00.000-07:00

I remember the days when I had nothing else to do in my spare time but scrap.... those were long, long ago.... In the past few months I have not had many opportunities to scrap for me, just for fun... I've just been completing projects for various design teams. While those projects are great and all and they get pages scrapped... it's not quite the same as just scrapping for yourself!

When Paige was born I knew I'd want to scrap *some* photos of her... I know myself well enough to know that I won't be able to scrap everything, but I would like to document different milestones, stories, etc. for her to have to look back on when she is older. Hopefully I will be able to keep this up!

Well, lately I have had the opportunity to just scrap for *myself*! In the past few days/nights I've knocked out quite a few pages for her album... and some of them are even projects for design teams!

Just thought I'd share some of my latest pages.... since it's been awhile since I've really scrapped!

The nerve of some people...

2007-08-21T03:08:00.000-07:00

So... I just have to get this off my chest because I cannot believe how stupid some people can be!

Paige has a birthmark on her head called a hemangioma. She can't help the fact that she has this, it's just a part of who she is.

So... last week I went to my school to work in my classroom to get it ready for the school year and I brought Paige with me (thankfully she is an easy enough baby to do this with)! When I got there one of the parents of a student in my class last year saw us and came over to say hi. She looked at Paige and said "What's that bump on her head?" So I explained that it is a birthmark called a hemangioma and will eventually go away, etc. etc. etc. Then she looked at me and said "Well, it looks like a knot.... you should call her knothead."

HELLOOOOOOOOOO - You dont' say that to someone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so shocked that she was so rude and insensitive that I couldn't quite respond how I wish I would have....

So I just looked at her and said "Or not" and walked away. But seriously.... what nerve... how does she think thats okay to say to me????? I don't get it!

Oh well.... just wanted to share..... And here's a picture of my sweet baby girl, birthmark and all!

Thank you for letting me vent!

2 months

2007-08-19T18:07:00.000-07:00

Time is flying.... Paige is already 2 months old! She is growing and changing every day! Lately she has started smiling (for real) which is so much fun! She also has discovered that she has a tongue and she plays with it non-stop. We will just catch her sticking out her tongue or rolling it or just playing with it. It is hysterical. She copies us when we stick our tongue out at her too (lovely that we are teaching this to her, right?) Paige is also making lots of fun noises, my favorites are the squeals when she is playing. Her hiccups are also fun too because she squeaks! She is still working on trying to control her head and trying to lift it when she is on her tummy. She is such a calm, sweet baby! We fall more and more in love with her everyday!

Thank You Baby Evan!!!

2007-08-12T19:15:00.000-07:00

Dear Baby Evan,

I was sooooo excited yesterday when the mail came and I got a package from you! Thank you so very much for the super-fun hat! How did you know my favorite colors were pink and green??? Momma says it looks adorable on me! Daddy loved it too! Of course then Momma had to go and take a whole bunch of pictures of me in my new hat.... you know how that goes!

I can't wait to come and play with you in October!!!!! Momma is excited to see Aunt Susan too! Here are a couple of pictures of me in my fancy new hat! I love it!!!!!

Love you,

Baby Paige

New Lens...

2007-08-09T19:49:00.000-07:00

So recently Pat decided that we needed a new TV in our living room....

I disagreed.

But, he bought one anyways.

Sooooo.... I decided I needed a new lens! Funny how that works out, huh! Now, I didn't go crazy or anything and get an L-series lens (although that would have been sweet), but I did get the 85mm/1.8 fixed lens.

Today I played with it and shot some pics of my best friend and her daughter... these are seriously two gorgeous girls! I had so much fun playing with them! Just wanted to share a few of my favorite shots from the shoot...

Smiles

2007-07-31T15:33:00.000-07:00

She's smiling... I can't believe my little girl is growing up so fast that she is now smiling! It's so fun to watch her little personality grow and emerge...

Recently she's graced us with a few little smiles here and there and I was so happy to catch one on camera this morning...

Here are also a few favorite shots of her at 6 weeks!

1 month!

2007-07-21T22:08:00.000-07:00

My baby girl is one month old!!!! I cannot believe it has already been a month! Paige is doing great! She's starting to coo and make fun noises! She's also really working hard on getting control of her head! I believe she's a little over 6 lbs now and 19 inches long.

Here are a few recent pictures...

I love her...

2007-07-01T14:34:00.000-07:00

Every time I look at my baby girl I am overwhelmed by how much I love her. I know people say that you don't know what love is until you have a child, and now I understand that. She is so perfect in every way and she just fills me up with love. I am so truly blessed.

We played around with some black fleece today and I got this shot of my sweet girl...

I love her...

She's home!!!

2007-06-24T17:41:00.000-07:00

We got to bring Paige home from the NICU on Saturday and we are sooooo happy to have her home! She is absolutely precious and I can't believe she's here and she's mine! I am sooo in love with her!

Here are some new pictures of Baby Paige...

She's here.... 6 weeks early!

2007-06-21T15:01:00.001-07:00

So, Miss Paige decided that she wanted to make her grand appearance into this world in June, rather than July and we welcomed her into the world this past Monday Morning...

Paige was born via c-section at 9:37am on Monday, June 18, 2007...

She weighed 4 lbs. 14 oz and wasw 18.25 inches long...

She came early due to pregnancy-induced hypertension that showed up over the weekend and the doctors felt it wasn't safe for me to continue the pregnancy, I needed to deliver... So, after 2 failed attempts at labor induction, they decided to perform a c-section.

She is premature - born at just over 34 weeks, but she is doing well. She's in the NICU now, and we are hoping she will get to come home to be with us soon!

We love her to pieces, she is an absolute blessing!!

33 weeks and our sweet girl...

2007-06-11T19:43:00.001-07:00

Well, I am 33 weeks and 3 days into this pregnancy! I cannot believe it is *almost* over - 6 weeks to go (and counting)...

Here is my latest belly shot (taken by Patrick last Friday night) - complete with my new haircut! :)

Today we had an ultrasound to check on little Paige and see how she is doing... I'm happy to report she is ALL-GIRL - weighing in at 5 lbs and she is head down ready to go! Here's a sweet picture of our little girls' face and her hand is up near her face. (you have to turn sideways to see it)...

We are so excited to welcome her into the world!!!

29 weeks - Vacation in Sanibel

2007-05-12T13:54:00.000-07:00

I am officially in the 3rd trimester now - 29 weeks along! I cannot believe that the "homestretch" is here! This weekend Pat and I are enjoying some nice family time relaxing in my favorite place of all - Sanibel Island, FL! I absolutely LOVE coming to Sanibel and we are here with my parents and Kim and Adam too. We've had some good beach time, good pool time, good shopping, and some tasty meals! Tonight we are headed to Captiva Island to *hopefully* take some sunset pictures and eat a yummy dinner at The Greenflash.

Here's a pic of Pat and I from last night - on the dock at Sanibel Moorings! :)

Family Beach Pics

2007-04-08T05:38:00.000-07:00

Well, everyone is in town for Easter weekend and I dragged them all down to the beach yesterday for pictures. I haven't gone through but maybe 10 pictures so far, but here is a group shot that I love... I can't wait to post more, we got some FUN pics!!! :)

Happy Easter everyone! We miss you Susan and Eric!!!

spring flowers

2007-04-04T14:12:00.000-07:00

Whoa - 2 posts from me in 2 days - don't get too excited! haha!

So, today I decided that we needed some flowers for our porch. I've wanted to get some plants or flowers for awhile, but I am most definitely not known for my gardening techniques. Anyway, today I decided to go over to Home Depot and check out what they had. I was so excited to come home with 4 different plants for my front and back porch! I even bought potting soil and a pot and re-planted one of them. As you can tell, I am feeling quite domestic! haha!

Here are a few of our new plants:

23 weeks

2007-04-03T05:30:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that I am already this far along in my pregnancy! It feels like just yesterday it was back in November when I was finding out that we were blessed with this miracle!

I had Patrick take this picture of me last weekend. I don't feel like I am showing all that much, but the maternity top sure does help! I am feeling good - soooooo glad to be over the morning sickness phase (which lasted WAY to long for me) and my appetite is finally picking up... my 2nd trimester cravings have been american cheese, outback salads, and scalloped potatoes! YUM!

I am also thoroughly enjoying feeling Paige kick me all the time! Patrick also enjoys feeling her when she is not too shy (as she usually stops kicking when he puts his hand on my stomach).

I just can't believe in 16.5 weeks (or sooner) we will be meeting our little miracle Paige! I can't wait!!!

A visit from Kim...

2007-03-29T16:04:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to post a few pics from Kim and Adam's recent visit... We had a nice time just relaxing and hanging out together - eating yummy meals out (especially Japanese hibachi which has been one of my cravings lately) and shopping! I'm so excited to see them again for Easter in a few weeks!!!

Scrapbook Heaven Online Crop

2007-03-05T16:30:00.000-08:00

Scrapbook Heaven’s very first weekend long online crop!

When: March 9-11
Where: www.scrapbookheavenga.com

The crop will begin with the first challenge when it is posted on Friday, March 9 at 6:00pmEST and end when the last challenge is posted on Saturday, March 10th at 11:00pmEST. All participants will have until Sunday, March 11, 6:00EST to upload all layouts and projects, and to complete any games.

The Queen and Princess of the crop will be announced shortly after!

The Design Team is working hard to make this a fun-filled weekend, full of games, challenges, and lots of inspiration. Prizes will be given out to the Queen and Princess as well as to random participants throughout the weekend.

We hope you can join us for this exciting event! And check us out before the crop since some of the games will require advance participation.

Hope to ‘see’ you all real soon!!

It's a GIRL!

2007-02-28T18:23:00.000-08:00

We are so excited to announce that we are expecting a little girl! Paige Marjorie is healthy and perfect and we are just elated! I'll scan the ultrasound photo soon and add it to this post!

Thanks for your guesses and excitement!!

Boy or Girl

2007-02-21T16:05:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the big day - our BIG ultrasound to find out if we are having a little boy or a little girl in July. I am so excited to know who has been growing in me these past 18 weeks!

Anyone care to make a prediction??? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

New Purses, New Bedding

2007-02-10T04:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was in a shopping mood.... so after school I went to the mall - mainly to check out the new Vera Bradley purses - however they were all out of the peacock tie tote that I wanted to get.... Good news is that I tracked one down at another store and I'm going to pick it up today... it will go very well with the fun new Vera flip flops in peacock that Pat bought me for Valentine's Day (well actually I bought me but told him he could give them to me for V-day)... :)

Anyways, on my way out - totally bummed about the purse, I cut through Crate and Barrel and just happened to peruse the new stuff along the way. While I was walking through the bedding department, I found the most beautiful duvet cover set and I just knew I had to have it. I bought it on a whim, hoping Pat would like it, and thankfully he does!

I'll take some pics once I get the room all finished - I am hoping he'll put a fresh coat of paint on in there next weekend - we'll see if I can talk him into it... :)

Pat

2007-01-31T16:26:00.000-08:00

I think my husband is feeling a bit neglected right now because when he looked at my blog this week he mentioned "I like how you talk about your friends and family but not about me"...

So... this post is dedicated to my loving, supportive, amazing husband Patrick!

Reasons Why I *love* Patrick right now:

1. Since I've become pregnant, he cleans the kitchen everyday without me asking him to.
2. He goes and gets me a bagel on Saturday mornings!
3. He took my laundry up to our room tonight.
4. He takes care of things that I don't even think of and does it all with a smile.
5. Most importantly, he puts up with my sh*t and still loves me even though I am a hormonal pregnant psycho!

Love you baby! Thanks for putting up with me! I can't wait to meet our miracle that we created! XOXOXO

Photo Shoot - 3 boys

2007-01-24T16:23:00.000-08:00

Recently, I had the pleasure of doing a photo shoot with these adorable boys! They are brothers and they are just too cute! I had a lot of fun with them! Here are a few of my favorite pics from the shoot! Thanks for looking!

So exicted...

2007-01-17T17:35:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited that my older sister Susan finally announced her awesome news too!

Our family is truly blessed and I can't wait to meet my future neice/nephew this summer!

As for the baby news with me - morning sickness is still around - Not fun - but I am happy to have it if it means this little bean is doing what it should be! :)

And Baby makes Three...

2007-01-08T14:16:00.000-08:00

Patrick and I are very excited to announce that

Sweet Baby Mangan will arrive this July!!!!

Family Photos

2007-01-03T19:24:00.000-08:00

It is so rare that my husband's family is all together at the same time that we barely have any family photos. This Christmas, his brother surprised us all with a visit down to South Florida and I couldn't wait to get some new pics. The brothers all humored me for about a half hour while I snapped away. I didn't get as many as I would have liked, but these are better than none! Here are a few of my favorites from the mini-shoot!

2006 in Review

2006-12-31T11:07:00.000-08:00

I got this from Melodee at DML - thanks Melodee!!!

2006 In Review

JANUARY
1. Did you have a new year's resolution this year?: Yes, a few - mainly to stress less and get organized.
2. Who kissed you at midnight?: Pat, of course!!
3. Did it snow where you live?: No - not in Florida! :(
5. Have you ever been to Times Square to watch the ball drop?: No - but maybe one day!!!

FEBRUARY
1. Who was your valentine?: again - Pat, of course!
2. What did your valentine get you?: flowers and a card
3. When you were little, did you buy valentines for your whole class?: Yes - I still do as a teacher!

MARCH
1. Are you Irish? By marriage I guess! :)
2. Did you wear green on St. Patty's Day?: Yes I did - I didn't want to get pinched!
3. What did you do for St. Patty's Day?: Mindy and I went out to an Irish Bar with friends and had a GREAT time!!!

APRIL
1. Do you like the rain?: if I'm in the right mood for it!
2. Did you play an April Fool's joke on anyone this year?: yes, Mindy and I tried to play one on our students - but they totally didn't get it!
3. Did you get tons of candy on Easter?: No, not really - just some jelly beans and reese's eggs!

MAY
1. What's your favorite kind of flower?: gerbra daisy
2. Do you like the spring? yes!
3. Finish the phrase: "April showers bring...": Well, the typical answer is "May Flowers", but here April Showers bring mosquitos!
4. What would you think of as a spring color?: lavender

JUNE
1. What year did you graduate from school?: 1999 - high school, 2003 - college

JULY
1. What did you do on the 4th of July? Pat and I had just signed all of the papers for our new house and we worked in the house, bought a grill, and had our first bar-b-que in our new townhouse!!!
2. Did you go on any vacations during this month?: I think we went to Lake Placid with Pat's family.

AUGUST
1. Did you do anything special to end off your summer?: spent like everyday in the pool with Devanny and Mindy - just enjoying our summer vacation! We also had a fun house-warming tiki party in August!!!
2: What was your favorite summer memory of '06?: our Southern Carribbean Cruise in June
3. Did you go swimming a lot in the summer?: yes!
4. Did you go to the beach a lot?: for photo shoots - yes, but just to go - not enough!

SEPTEMBER
1. Did you attend school/college in '06?: yes, I took a class at Nova Southeastern University for my ESOL endorsement!
2. Who is/was your favorite teacher?: oooh, that's hard - I think my favorite teacher of all time ever was my Social Studies Education teacher in college! She made me LOVE to teach history!
3. Did you like fall better than summer?: YES!!!

OCTOBER
1. What was your favorite Halloween costume ever?: when I was like 8, I was an alien! I had a green unitard on and green body paint from head to toe with a silver wig and silver antenne - it was so much fun!
2. What's your favorite candy?: Reese Peanut Butter Cups!
3. What did you dress up like this year? I wore a halloween t-shirt, cat ears, and a feather boa as a cat tail! :)

NOVEMBER
1. Whose house did you go to for Thanksgiving?: my in-laws! :)
2. Do you like stuffing?: yes, we had 3 different types of stuffing this year!
3. What are you thankful for?: my family, friends, and the many blessings in my life!

DECEMBER
1. Do you celebrate Christmas?: yes - love Christmas!
2. Have you ever been kissed under mistletoe?: yes, Pat bought mistletoe in high school and kissed me under it.
3. What do you want this year for Christmas?: Just to be with family and have a good time!
4. What's the best present you ever got for Christmas?: Pat got me a sweet Tiffany's necklace this year - I love it!
5 Do you like cold weather?: yes!
6. How would you rate your year on a scale of 1-10?: 8 - overall a good year, but there were some rough moments as well - I'm really looking forward to 2007!!!!!

I hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Years Eve tonight and an amazing 2007!!!

Thankful...

2006-11-26T11:42:00.000-08:00

There are so many things I am thankful for right now. I know this post is a bit late (seasonly), but I still wanted to write it anyway. I recently started (haven't yet completed) a gratitude jounal. The wonderful gals over at DML were doing this and Mo was giving us the topics to create pages about. I have to say, that this made me think of all the things in my life that I have to be grateful for. While I was working on my journal, I came across this quote that really made me think:

"Just think of how happy you would be if you lost everything you had right now and got it back again" ~unknown

But wow, that really makes you think. I am so grateful for everything in my life - the good and the bad, because without the bad, we wouldn't know the good and wouldn't be able to appreciate it. So, at the close of this Thanksgiving season, I'd just like to leave you with that quote....

And here are a few pictures from our Thanksgiving celebration at my in-laws...

Back from Tallahassee...

2006-11-06T14:56:00.000-08:00

Things can finally get back to normal after the past 3 weekends of craziness! We just got back from a really wonderful weekend in Tallahassee. We got to visit with good friends, watch the NOLES beat up on Virginia, and enjoy some beautiful fall weather! I've got plenty more pics and details to post later, but for now, here are a few of my favorite pics from the weekend!

Lottie and Nathan

2006-10-22T20:37:00.000-07:00

We met Lottie and Nathan about 4 years ago... we were still living in Tallahassee. I was working at Buck Lake Elementary teaching 2nd grade. Lottie was also a new teacher - teaching 4th grade. Right away, I knew that Lottie and I would hit it off. She is this sweet southern girl with a great big smile and in my heart I knew she was meant to be one of my friends. As luck would have it, we had the same lunch schedule that year... so we got to get to know each other over lunch each day. Then we decided to pair our classes up to be "book buddies" - which meant more time we got to spend together. Eventually we were hanging out on the weekends and trying to make plans to get together with our husbands because we knew they would hit it off as well.

Once the four of us finally got together things just "clicked". Our friendship with Lottie and Nathan is an easy one. I adore Lottie and Pat and Nathan are great buddies! It all works so perfectly. As you can imagine, we were devastated when we had to move down to West Palm Beach and leave our new friends behind. That was 3 years ago and I am happy to say that we are still great friends. We all get together about 2 or 3 times each year... not nearly enough but we make it work.

This past weekend, Lottie and Nathan and their son Corbin met up with us at the lake house in Lake Placid, FL. We spent the weekend on the lake - laughing, swimming, and just being together. We had a fabulous time and the best part is that we get to see them again in 2 weeks when Pat and I go to Tallahassee for a football game!

I took MANY pictures this weekend, but here is one of my favorites of our good friends, Lottie and Nathan, and their son Corbin. Once I get through the rest, I'll post more of our lake adventures...

I love fall...

2006-10-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

I love fall... it is absolutely my favorite season! The colors, the weather, school, football, everything about fall just makes me feel alive and happy. Unfortunately, in Florida, we don't really get an autumn... I *know* that at some point in my life I am destined to live in a place that has seasons...

Today I made it over to the local pumpkin patch at the Methodist Church. I talked Mindy and Devanny into going with me so I could snap some pics. This is one of my favorite pics from the day. I came home with some cute smaller pumpkins. I'll wait till Pat goes with me until we pick out our pumpkin to carve!

I am so excited about Halloween this year becauase we finally live in a community with trick-or-treaters!!! We get to decorate and buy candy and do the whole halloween thing! It should be a blast! I can't wait for us to carve our pumpkin and decorate! Isn't halloween so much fun? :)

Scrapbook Heaven

2006-10-10T14:40:00.000-07:00

I just got this info from the owner of Scrapbook Heaven (an online-scrapbooking store where I'm on the DT)... just wanted to pass this along to my scrappin' buddies...

We are having a Sassafras Lass Contest!!!

Details: Your submission must include at least 75% Sassafras Lass products. The layouts will need to be posted to the Sassafras Lass contest board in our gallery no later than Midnight October 31, 2006. Our DT will be judging the submissions starting November 1 and winners will be announced no later than November 3. Good luck and happy scrapping!

Prizes: 1st place will receive the package sponsored by Sassafras Lass, $50.00 gift certificate from our online store. 2nd place will receive one of our Featured Monthly kits from Scrapbook Heaven.

Schwarz Family Photo Shoot... and random stuff...

2006-10-04T20:02:00.000-07:00

Well... for starters, two weeks ago I had the honor of shooting my friend Kara's kids. They are so gorgeous and cooperative and wonderful! I had so much fun with them! I wanted to post a few of my favorites on my blog... I'm working on getting word out about my photography down here in South Florida... mainly via friends and family and customers.

As far as "Random Other Stuff"... I am excited and proud of myself because today I joined a gym! It's about time I get off my lazy butt and go and workout after school, instead of watching ABC Family for 3 hours a night.... yes, I am a TOTAL tv junkie!!! Although, I do have to admit, I am so excited about the fact that they put the show Everwood in the nightly line-up (6pm)... because I love that show and I didn't get into it when it first started... so now I get to go back and watch the first few seasons! :)

Anyway, that's all I'm excited about now... I have another photo shoot of an 8-month old this weekend, so I am pumped for that! Pat and I are also going to a high-school football game on Friday (his boss' son's game) and I'm taking pics there too, so that should be fun!

Happy Day everyone! :)

"Back in the Day"...

2006-09-28T19:38:00.000-07:00

So lately... Mindy and I have been living "back in the day"... you know the "day" I'm talking about... the college-days. We've been thinking that we are still young and hip enough to go out on the weekends, have some drinks, dance, sing, act silly, etc.... and still be able to be rested for the next work week. (what are we thinking???)

It's pretty funny actually, considering that we didn't even know each other "back in the day"... maybe that's why we feel the need to go live it up. Regardless, we are having a good time!

This weekend we are taking a weekend off... we need a break from the maddness! So, in honor of the two of us living "back in the day", I am posting a picture from one of our recent evenings out!

Who knows when we'll get this out of our system.. I honestly think though it's because we feel like we got cheated out of this during our college years because we didn't know each other then.... I do know though, that if we had known each other "back in the day"... it would have been crazy and fun!!!

Mindy is one fun chica and we always have a good time together! I love ya Mindy!!! :)

We heart America!

2006-09-25T16:16:00.000-07:00

Here it is.... our fun 2nd grade hallway project! This is the first time I have done this project with my students and I am so thrilled with how it turned out! For my readers who are not teachers, you may or may not appreciate this as much... but let me tell you... this was a LOT of work!

First, we all talked about reasons we are glad we live in America. This was at the culmination of a unit on immigration and American Symbols. My students brainstormed a bunch of pretty good reasons!

Next, we did a vocabulary lesson on synonyms. We used a thesaurus to think of synonyms for the word "happy". We came up with some GREAT synonyms (ecstatic, joyful, tickled, elated, etc.)

Then, each kid wrote on an index card "I am (synonym for happy) to live in America because..." and they wrote their reason.

Finally, we had each student create a self portrait. We used multi-cultural construction paper, yarn, felt, pipe cleaners, ribbon, etc. Mindy and I helped with the self-portraits, giving ideas and helping them with the technicalties.

Overall, I am so thrilled with how they turned out! I will definitely do this project again next year!

(Mindy and I) :)

Bad Blogger...

2006-09-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry... I've been such a bad blogger this month... I am so overwhelmed with school and everything that I have neglected this... Oh well... at least I don't have that many readers to disappoint! :) I'll do a post this weekend with pics from a really fun project I did with my kids at school!

That's it - Just wanted to let ya'll know I'm still alive (to the few readers who may still visit me here)... :)

Happy Day,
Kristi

How Sweet it is...

2006-09-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

To beat the Hurricanes in MIAMI!!!!! What a game!!!!! My beloved Seminoles are off to a great start, let's hope the rest of the season is as sweet as our first win was! Go Noles!!!

Boredom....

2006-08-30T13:25:00.000-07:00

So, can I tell you how much I loathe hurricanes/tropical storms? We have been out of school for the past 2 days for NOTHING! It barely rained here! And now, we will have to make up those days - yuck!!! There goes our first early release day and our first teacher work day! Boo! Anyway, the media just hypes these things up and makes everyone get panicked and then it causes us to have to sit home for two days when we could be working! I am at the point too where I am pretty bored - I'm definitely ready to go back to work tomorrow!

Oh well, nothing I can do now. At least I got to scrap a bit... I finished some assignments for Scrapjazz for the first of the month and also got to scrap a bit for myself! Yay!

Here's my favorite layout that I created during my "tropical storm break":

Card Parties

2006-08-24T18:07:00.000-07:00

Yay, I am so excited for my card party tomorrow night! You see, about once a month a bunch of my local card-making buddies get together for a card party. Before hand we decide on a theme and each person makes a card and brings supplies for everyone else to duplicate that card. So, when you leave, you have like 10 different cards! We always have a blast - hanging out, gossiping, enjoying tasty beverages and delicious snacks! Everyone brings a dish to share as well. Last month, my sister Susan joined us for our card party when she was in town - it was great to be able to share this with her!

Here's my card for tomorrow's party - the theme is birthday cards:

-The Rooster-

2006-08-20T13:14:00.000-07:00

"The Rooster" - as my friends Laura and Rick call it, "will never let you down!"

Since I started drinking wine a few years back, my wine tastes have indeed evolved. I used to only prefer white wines - Chardonnay or a nice Pinot Grigio. While, I still enjoy these wines, I have recently been introduced to a whole new world of red wine choices.

I have to say that my most favorite variety is Pinot Noir. And, my most favorite brand that I've sampled thus far is Rex Goliath "The Rooster". Now, this is not an extravagent wine by any means (it runs about $9 a bottle), but it is quite tasty!

So, for all of you wine-drinkers out there... what is your favorite? I may need to give it a whirl, so I can continue my evolution in wine consumption!

Oh, and if you try out "The Rooster", let me know what you think of it!

Cheers!

Back to School...

2006-08-14T15:15:00.000-07:00

Oh my, how can it possibly be "Back to School" time again... Didn't we just get out for summer vacation? For the past week, Mindy and I have been HARD at work preparing our classroom for this coming school year. Today, I am happy to report, we finally finished (for the most part). I think we've created a warm and friendly atmosphere, it's home to us for the next 10 months!

Here are a few shots of our new room...

So.... would you want to spend 2nd grade with us????

**** A few of you have asked how Mindy and I share a classroom - we co-teach or team-teach. Basically we have 2 classes of kids put into one classroom. So, for example, in the past we've had 36 kids (18 each) but we all reside in one room. Mindy and I teach everything together all day long. Usually one of us will lead a lesson and the other will walk around and help kids or pull a small group, etc. It works out really well for us and we absolutely love this style of teaching!

what a day...

2006-08-09T17:54:00.000-07:00

So, today was my first *official* day back to school (pre-planning)... Of course I was excited and anxious and ready to get back into a routine... Just like any other year. Anyway, this morning I woke up early (too early if you ask me), did my hair all cute, put on make up and a fun outfit (complete with a fun new necklace from target). Then I ran downstairs to put on my sandals, grab a diet coke and be outside in time for Mindy to pick me up. Thankfully I was ready in time and we left for school.

Fast forward 2 hours... I've walked all over the place, said hello to everyone, chatted it up with collegues, etc. I'm standing with Mindy talking to a few other teachers and one of them mentions, "Kristi... do you know that you are wearing two different shoes?" I'm like "HUH???"... Of course I then looked down at my mis-matched sandals and realized how silly I looked. It wasn't long before the rest of the faculty knew too... as my assistant principal then called me up for the "best dressed award of the day"... so, yes, I started out the school year as the ditzy blonde girl who can't match her shoes...

Regardless, it's good to be back... now I just need to pay attention to my shoes, as much as I pay attention to my hair and accessories! :) Oh, what a way to start off the school year!

Luau Fun...

2006-08-06T14:04:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a recipe for fun all you need is about 15 friends, lots of sangria and yummy drinks, some fun tropical lei necklaces, and a place to party... Yesterday we had a Luau - themed housewarming party and it was a blast (if I do say so myself!)... My sister and her boyfriend came as well as some of our best friends that we've made while living down here in West Palm Beach. This was the perfect end to summer - relaxing with good friends, good drinks, and good laughs!

Here are a few of the photo highlights from the party!

YUM-O!

2006-08-02T06:21:00.000-07:00

So last weekend I was flipping through my Rachel Ray Everyday magazine and I discovered a recipe for the most delicious salsa EVER! I just had to make it for my parents who were coming over for dinner on Saturday! It was a huge hit!

Here's the recipe for Roasted Tomato Corn Salsa (if you'd like to try it):

1. First, you have to roast the tomatoes....
16 ripe plum tomatoes
EVOO
minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
a sprinkle of thyme (or about a Tbsp fresh thyme)

- Cut tomatoes length wise, gently squeeze or scoop out the seeds. Put tomatoes skin side down in a baking dish. Drizzle the tops with EVOO, add some minced garlic (about 1 clove) and the thyme. Bake at 375 for 40 minutes, turn up the temp to 400, bake 20 min more to let the tomatoes carmalize a bit, then turn the oven off and leave the tomatoes in for an additional 10 min. Take them out, let them cool, then chop them up!

2. Now, to make the salsa... you need:
2 ears corn
1 poblano pepper
the rest of the garlic
1 medium onion chopped
1/4 cup tightly packed cilantro
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
the juice of one lime
salt and pepper

-First, cut the pepper lengthwise, seed and stem it. Put the pepper skin side down in a skillet over med to med-high heat. Put the 2 ears of corn in the skillet too. Keep the pepper and corn on for about 10 min to brown the skin a bit and make the corn golden brown (you will have to turn it as you go).
- Cut the kernels off the cob, add to the tomatoes, discard the black portion of the pepper skin and chop the pepper and add it to the mixture.
- Chop the onion and cilantro - add the onion, garlic, cilantro, pepper, lime juice, and a dash of salt and pepper to the mixture.

Enjoy! Let me know if you try it - trust me, it's delish! It will keep for 4-5 days in your fridge!

A new venture...

2006-07-27T05:58:00.000-07:00

So, I've decided to take a chance, and see if I can turn my photography interest into a new side business. This is something I really enjoy doing and right now I am just happy to do it and if I can make a little money to support my crafty habits, then I am thrilled. My potential clients are mainly children and families who want casual portraits. I want to shoot outside, in fun, natural settings. Who knows where this will take me, but for now I am having fun with it!

If you want to check out my new website - let me know what you think... it's not completely finished, I'm still working on a few aspects of it. **Thanks to Nicole, who helped me with the wording on a few of the pages** And mad props to my good friend Christy who made the site for me!

www.kmanganphoto.com

Making Progress...

2006-07-24T18:19:00.000-07:00

So... we've been in the new place for a week and a few days... here's where we are at now:

We had to buy a new couch and chair since our old sectional didn't fit! So, we found this great leather couch and chair/ottoman from City Furniture. It's a distressed looking leather which I love - it kinda looks like a worn in leather jacket... and it's really comfy! So, I am happy we found something we liked that fits in the space!

Yesterday Pat and I hung all of these framed photos of our family in the living room. I love having them all in one place, although I want to add more frames and pictures eventually. I ordered all of the prints in black and white and found some wood frames at Target - I'm happy with how it turned out - we didn't have anything like this before!

We also found some patio furniture for our porch! We figured we needed to go ahead and find something since most places are getting rid of their patio furniture for back to school items - you'd think in Florida they would have patio sets year round, but unfortunately that's not how it is! So, we found this little table and 4 chairs at Lowe's... it fits nicely on the patio!

So, that is what we have accomplished so far - still lots to go... I need to hang shelves in the scrapbook room along with some framed pictures, etc. I also haven't done a thing yet in the guest bedroom or the bathrooms. Anyway, just wanted to update! I wish I had more exciting things to write about! :(

All moved in...

2006-07-16T16:21:00.000-07:00

After a completely hectic weekend - we are officially moved in!!! Yay, we are now Jupiter residents! We still have a ton of stuff to do before this place is neat and organized, but hey, it's the summer - so I have nothing but time! We did have one unfortunate event with the move - our sectional doesn't fit in our living room - yikes! Soooo... we will be furniture shopping this week. Anyway, I'll have pics and more later on... just wanted to update everyone that we are finally moved in!

He's Kind of a Big Deal...

2006-07-13T05:45:00.000-07:00

"Just so you know... I'm kind of a big deal"... haha! I just LOVE this t-shirt I bought for Pat with this classic line from the movie Anchorman... one of Pat's all-time favorite movies to quote lines from! I found this beauty online from SnorgTees - a pretty cool website! Well, I just had to order it for Pat because I knew he'd get a kick out of it! Like most guys, he loves quoting lines from movies with his brothers and other guy friends... so this is just the icing on the cake for him! Ha! Love it! And yes sweetheart.... you are kind of a big deal! :)

My Best Friend...

2006-07-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met someone who you just instantly clicked with? Someone who you just knew you were meant to be friends with? Well, for me... that's Mindy. Without a doubt, I know that the reason we moved to West Palm Beach 2 years ago, was so I could meet Mindy and start my friendship with her. I can't believe I've only known her for 2 years, because it seems like I've known her forever!

Here's a few pics that my ultra-talented sister snapped of us this past weekend...

Scrapjazz Upload Day

2006-07-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

Yay! It's the first of the month - you know that that means - upload day at Scrapjazz! Here are my layouts for July:

The thechnique was index prints - very fun! Our product was Sakura glue pens and foiling technique... if you look closely at the "she" and "turtle encounter" layouts, you can see shiny dots aroudn the circles and flowers that I added - it's a really cool technique, but it doesn't scan well.

If you haven't yet... get on over to Scrapjazz and check out the gallery - it's full of inspiration!

moving

2006-06-29T07:07:00.001-07:00

We are officially on the move! I am so excited about our new townhouse in Jupiter. Not only is it totally cute with lots of space, but it's down the street and around the corner from my best friend!!!!! Could it get any better??? So, as we prepare for our move to Jupiter, FL... we are in box city! I have taken on the chore of packing all of the odds and ends around the house - not a fun job! I am almost done and once we close on Monday, we can start moving these boxes over to the new place! We won't officially be moved in until the middle of July though.

One of the things I am most excited about is the fact that I will have my very own scrapspace! No longer will I be sharing my scrapspace with the guest room/office... I will have a room all to my own!!! (well, at least until a few kiddos come along)... but for now... it's all my own!!! That is the first room I plan on decorating. I've had fun looking at paint chips, and organization, etc. I love this Behr Website because allows you to play with different color combinations and it shows you them on the walls, etc. Right now I am thinking a periwinkle blueish/purpleish color for the walls - not too dark though, with white trim. It will be a change for me, but I think it will work! I also am thinking about these yummy crown-molding ledges from Pottery Barn in white! I think they would look cute in there!

So anyway, I'm off for more packing!! :)

Charlie!

2006-06-25T18:32:00.000-07:00

Yay! We've adopted another kitty! Here is our new fur baby Charlie! He is super sweet, very playful and he LOVES to be around people!!! Emma and Connor are not super fond of him yet, but I have a feeling they will warm up to him eventually!

-Cruise Review-

2006-06-16T07:49:00.000-07:00

Well, we had an amazing time our our trip! We got to see some of the Carribbean’s finest islands in all of their natural beauty! I am so glad we chose this itinerary because I absolutely LOVED all of the ports we visited!!! Here are a few highlights of our trip:

San Juan – We went to the fort – El Morro – before we boarded our ship. We walked around and admired the amazing views from the very top of the fort! We also walked around the old cobblestone streets of Old San Juan.

St. Thomas/St. John – We took a ferry over to St. John Island to go to Trunk Bay National Park. What a gorgeous, unspoiled paradise! We went snorkeling and hung out on the white sandy beaches! Later on that afternoon we took a cable car ride to the top of a peak in St. Thomas called “Paradise Point”. We saw a stunning view of the harbor below and enjoyed some tasty drinks in the bar at Paradise Point!

Dominica – They call this the Nature Island and it is!!! We hiked through the rainforests of Dominica to the Emerald Pool and Trafalgar Falls. This is such a lush, tropical environment filled with all kinds of interesting plants and gorgeous waterfalls! Pat jumped into the Emerald Pool and swam in the 60 degree water! This was a gorgeous island!!!

Barbados – Here we did an excursion that took us snorkeling with the sea turtles – how neat was that!!!!! We were swimming amongst these gorgeous, peaceful creatures. We were able to touch them and swim with them, it was incredible! I loved this!!!!

Aruba – This would have to be one of our favorite ports! Did you know that Aruba is a desert island??? It is! There are like cactus’ everywhere! We took a tour and saw almost all of this small island. Then we hung out at Carlos and Charlies in the afternoon before heading back to the ship!

All in all, we had a fabulous time!!!! I can’t wait to take another cruise!!!

We're baaacccckkkkk.....

2006-06-12T14:25:00.000-07:00

After 7 days relaxing in the southern Carribbean, it's great to be home... we really enjoyed our trip and I will definitely post about it with lots of pics... but for now, here are two quick pics... one from the beach in Puerto Rico and one from a formal night on our cruise... be back later! Can't wait to catch up and read everyone's blogs to see what's going on with them! :)

Happy Day! :)

School's Out for Summer....

2006-06-01T14:50:00.000-07:00

Woo-hoo... the school year is OVER!!!!!!!! The party has begun!!!!! I am sooo ecstatic that it is finally SUMMER!!!! And better yet, we leave for our CRUISE on Saturday!!!!! We fly to Puerto Rico then Bon Voyage on Sunday!!!!!!!!!! I am just in heaven!!!!! So, peace out friends... I'll be back with TONS of photos in a week or so!!!!

(this is a cake we had for our students on the last day of school)

Annual Memorial Day Weekend at the Lake

2006-05-29T16:59:00.000-07:00

We just got home from our wonderful and relaxing weekend at our in-law's Lake House in central Florida! It's this cozy little town (Lake Placid, FL) where all we do is relax, go out on the boat, and participate in some water sports!!! We had a great time and I'm sad that we are home (especially because I have 3 more days of school this week - YUCK!) I just love this weekend though - it's like the official start of summer!!!

Here are a few photo highlights of our trip - I'm not in any pics - I was behind the camera all weekend, and loving it!!! :)

Happy Hair

2006-05-21T12:17:00.000-07:00

Yay, I have happy hair again!!! One of my most favorite things is to go see Llani and get my hair done! Even though I live an hour away from her, I still make the trek down to Pembroke Pines for her to do my hair.... I've been going to her since I was in middle school, I think!

Yesterday, Pat and I both needed haircuts, so we spent the morning in Pembroke Pines. While I got my hair colored and cut with Llani, he went to his place and got his haircut too. Then we had lunch with his mom and brother and his Aunt Michelle and cousin Samantha - it was fun seeing them, I only wish I'd brought my camera with me!

I made Pat snap this pic of me yesterday afternoon, of my new do... nothing really new, just blonde again and trimmed up! Anyway, I love when my hair is all fresh and happy! I have happy hair!

* DML Guest Designer *

2006-05-15T15:00:00.000-07:00

Yay! I was so honored when Jill asked me to be a guest designer for Down Memory Lane this month!!! I had a lot of fun creating layouts and projects to be featured with the rest of the Dream Team girls in Inspiration Alley... So if you get a chance, check out all the amazing stuff in the Alley this month! Thanks Jill!!!!

Here are a few of my favorite creations:

The Learning Curve

2006-05-12T18:31:00.000-07:00

So... I am trying my hardest to learn how to take GREAT pictures... today I did a photo shoot with Mindy's daughter, Devanny. Devanny is 7 years old and is a total ham! It was really hard to get her to "calm down" enough to look natural for the pictures. I got a few shots that I liked, but none that I absolutely loved... I am working hard, and hopefully one day I'll be able to get great shots all the time!!!

CRUISIN'

2006-05-06T14:01:00.000-07:00

I'm soooooooo excited I can't stand it!!!!!!!! We just booked a southern Carribbean cruise for June 4-11!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am soooooooooooo excited!!!!!!!!!! We fly into San Juan on Sat, June 3 and our cruise leaves on Sunday. We get to go to San Juan, St. Thomas, Dominica, Barbados, and Aruba! It should be so much fun! We are sailing on the Carnival Destiny - we are first time Carnival cruisers, so I hope they are good! We've sailed RCCL before, but Carnival was offering better deals this time! If anyone has ever been to any of these places and has any recommendations for us, let me know!!! :)

(images courtsey of Carnival website)

Yay!!!!!

And we're back...

2006-05-02T18:49:00.000-07:00

Wow, that was a long and busy weekend!!! We had a blast in Tallahassee, I had forgotten how much I truly love that town! As soon as we arrived on Thursday evening, I was in awe of how pretty it is there - very different from South Florida. There are gorgeous canopy roads filled with old trees with moss hanging down... It's green everywhere and the houses are not all squished together... it truly is a great place!!!

Here's a quick re-cap of our weekend highlights:

Friday: We got to hang out with Pat's brother, Philip (the Graduate) and we walked around campus. We also went to the Governor's Square Mall where I found the perfect dress for my cousin's wedding this summer (score)! Friday night we went out with our Tally friends (Lottie and Nathan and Jon and Stacey)... get this to a karoke bar!!! And guess who sang.... no... not me, but Pat! He sang "Sweet Caroline" and he was actually pretty good!!! It was a blast!!!

Saturday: Graduation day! We arrived at the Leon County Civic Center at 8:30 - graduation starts at 9... we got one of the last parking spaces... so we are waiting for everyone to arrive... Pat's family got there about 5 minutes later... then we are waiting.... waiting.... waiting for the graduate.... where is he??? At about 5 till 9 we get a call saying he is on his way... he is running up to meet us at 9:05 am... looking a bit hung-over (if I might add)... needless to say, he made it on time (luckily) and we got crappy seats... but oh well... we got to see Phil graduate and we were all proud of him! Remember how I said we got one of the last parking spots... well, Pat's parents ended up having to park in a lot near campus... After graduation we went to the front of the school (the Wescott fountain) to take pics.... Once we were done, we all headed to lunch... except for Pat's parents... who couldn't find their car.... we looked all over... and yes... it was towed... just another fun highlight to add to our trip (not!)

Sunday: We woke up and had breakfast with Lottie and Nathan and their sweet baby Corbin! After breakfast we all got ready and went to MaClay Gardens State Park for a photoshoot! They are such an adorable family and we had such a GREAT time! After lunch, we had to hit the road for our loooonnnngggg 6 hour car ride home! :(

Overall a GREAT weekend... here's a photo re-cap:

Off to Tally-Town

2006-04-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post - we are leaving for Tallahassee tomorrow afternoon! I am anxiously awaiting spending lots of quality time with my good friend Lottie and her sweet baby boy, Corbin! I already informed her we would be doing a photo shoot - LOL! We are going up there for my brother-in-law's graduation from Florida State University!!! We are so proud of him!!! Should be a fun weekend, I'll definitely be back with pics on Monday!!! Have a great weekend everyone!

Congrats PHILIP!!!!

tagged

2006-04-23T18:58:00.000-07:00

Tagged by Nicole...

OK, Nicole tagged me with this so here goes:

In my fridge

1. 2 packages of chicken breasts to cook this week

2. tons of bottles of water!

3. I think 3 different types of beer – nice Pat… (although I think I’ve got 2 bottles of wine in there myself, so who am I to talk)

4. left over roasted red pepper dip that I need to throw out – it’s olllllddddd

5. honey maple turkey and muenster cheese – which means yummy sandwiches for me this week – yay!

In my closet

1. A yoga mat – I’ve got one too Nicole!!!

2. a laundry basket full of flip flops!

3. all of my purses lined up on the top shelf

4. 2 bags of clothes that I need to bring to Goodwill

5. piles of laundry to do!

In my purse

1. my Disney ticket from last weekend

2. lots of reciepts

3. a mini-pack of tissues

4. my wallet

5. about 5 hair rubberbands

In my car

1. lots of my big cups that hold my diet coke during the day

2. white organizing baskets - that need to be taken to school

3. a couple of class-sets of books that were given to me by another teacher – again, need to be taken to school

4. 2 pairs of sunglasses - backups

5. cd's – Jimmy Buffett, Dixie Chicks, Kenny Chesney

On my TiVo

1, Days of our lives

2. Gilmore Girls

3. Grey’s Anatomy

4. Amazing Race

5. ??? something dumb that Pat DVR’d – probably from the history channel

Ok.. I tag....

Whirlwind Weekend

2006-04-23T12:36:00.000-07:00

We are back from Disney World, truly the Happiest Place on Earth!!! We had such an amazing time, and it was much too short! We started off the day at Animal Kingdom, then went to Epoct, then finally Magic Kingdom! I am exhausted, and my legs hurt from all of that walking (hey, at least it's good exercise)! I'll post more later our trip, but I just wanted to put up a few pics and say that we are back and had a great time! :)

The pic of the tree is at Animal Kingdom on the Safari ride! :) I'll post more later, I need to upload from my other camera too! :) TFL!

The Happiest Place on Earth

2006-04-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

So, I got a phone call from Pat this morning... went something like this:

Pat: "Kristi, I made plans for us this weekend..."
Kristi: "Really... I was hoping to just relax... I hope it's not something dumb"
Pat: "Well, if you think Disney is dumb then maybe we shouldn't go"
Kristi: "Disney... Did you say Disney???"
Pat: "Yep, you've been wanting to go, so how about this weekend?"
Kristi: (screaming) "YES!!!!!"

Yay! So, we are off to Walt Disney World for the weekend!!! I'm so excited, I haven 't been to Disney in years! We are staying at the All-Star Music resort and we are getting park-hopper passes! Yay!!! I wish I were better prepared as to what I want to take pictures of, but oh well.. it will just come to me! I'm soooo excited!!!!! So, see you all on Sunday, with lots of pics of Mickey and myself!!! :)

Happy Friday!!! :)

9 years

2006-04-17T17:54:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that it has been 9 years since Pat and I started going out... Today, April 17, is our dating anniversary. It was just 9 years ago, our sophomore year of high school, that we met and started dating. We've been on quite a journey in these past 9 years! I'm amazed at how much we've gone through together, we've really grown up together.

Here we are in 2006

Way back in 1997

I love you bunches Pat!!!!! I can't wait to see what the next 9 years brings us... :)
XOXO

April 15 and Easter Eggs

2006-04-15T13:36:00.000-07:00

Yay!!! Tax season is *almost* over - which means I get my husband back!!!!! I always hate tax season, because Patrick has to work so much! These past few weeks especially, he's been working 80+ hours a week! So... since today is April 15, it's the last day of that, Hooray!

This afternoon I decided to dye Easter Eggs! I love Easter eggs! The colors are so much fun! I remember as a kid, we would all have a certain number of eggs to dye, usually like 6 or so... and we'd take turns dipping them in the fun colors, making interesting designs with the clear wax crayon, and always competing to make the "coolest" egg! It was always so much fun!

Here are a few pics from my egg-dyeing experience today!

I wish everyone a very Happy and Blessed Easter tomorrow!!!! Enjoy your day!

spark

2006-04-12T18:26:00.000-07:00

I had a very horrifying experience this week... I stepped on a scale. After being completely shocked and saddened by the number (which is to remain nameless... haha), I decided I needed to get my butt into gear and do something. One of my friends at school told me about www.sparkpeople.com. So... I checked it out... It's this great website that's free, that basically tells you how many calories you can eat a day and how many you need to burn per week in order to lose the amount of weight you want to... It gives you meal ideas, exercise ideas and how-tos, and it just seems so practical. I've been doing it for the past few days and I am really liking it so far... I am just hoping that it will stick! Anyway, if this post lit a "spark" in you to try something new or different, you should definitely go check it out! Please put my username Kristi1229, as the person who referred you!

So... come on and join me... let's all do this together!!!!

Babies and Blankets

2006-04-09T17:55:00.000-07:00

Today I got to go and see baby Olivia - Alina's baby girl! She is totally adorable! Of course I brought my camera with me and snapped a few pics. We are going to set up a real photo shoot soon!!! I need to think of some good ideas for that! Alina looks great and is in good spirits! Baby Olivia is just too cute and definitely has her mama's nose! I had so much fun visiting with Alina, Gregg, and Olivia!

Also, today I decided to figure out how to make a tag blanket! I've seen these before and have though to myself, "I'm sure I can do that!". Well, I am proud to say that I was successful!!! I found some adorable buggy fleece and used lots of fun ribbon to make the "tags" and I am really happy with how it turned out! Now I can make these for all of the sweet babies I know! Yay!

BHG!!!!!

2006-04-06T16:50:00.000-07:00

Woo-hoo!!! I got my April 2006 issue of BHG today and got to see my first-ever BHG LO published!!! It's one of my favorite layouts of my sisters and I!!!

Beauty Day

2006-04-05T13:43:00.000-07:00

Today was so much fun! Mindy and I played hooky from school, took a "mental health day" and had a fun beauty day! After meeting for a tasty lunch at Panera, we went shopping for make-up! I stocked up on eye-shadow at my favorite make-up store, MAC. I got 4 fun colors - shroom, honesty, gleam, and mulch.... they don't sound all that fun (especially mulch), but I like them!!! After make-up shopping, we went for pedicures and left with happy toes!!! Then we went to get our eyebrows waxed! It was a such a FUN day!!!

Miracles

2006-04-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

Very rarely do I get a phone call during the middle of the day... I'm a teacher, most of my friends are teachers, so my phone just doesn't ring during the day. Well... I was sooo excited today when my phone bust out ringing "She thinks my tractor's sexyyyyy" (my good 'ol Kenny Chesney ringtone) in the middle of my class... My good friend Alina called me at 11:30 to tell me that her water broke and she was on the way to the hospital!!! I jumped up and down screaming in excitement for her! Then I told my class that Mrs. Orenstein was having her baby and they let out a big cheer for her!!! I am just so thrilled for her to become a mom, she will be an amazing mom!!!

~Sending you quick and easy labor vibes Alina ~

These pics were taken of Alina a few weeks ago when we did a maternity photo shoot!!! Soon I'll get to take pictures of her sweet baby girl!!!!! Yay!!! Miracles do happen!!!!

Happy Birthday Mike (my FIL)

2006-04-02T15:37:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to wish my father-in-law, Mike, a very Happy Birthday!!! I hope you all enjoy your day at the lake!

This picture was taken last weekend when my ln-laws came up to West Palm Beach for dinner. We went to City Place and had fun walking around and taking pictures after dinner!

Photo Shoot!!!

2006-04-01T18:15:00.000-08:00

About 2 months ago, I got my new camera - my bad boy - my Canon Rebel XT digital camera! I absolutely love it! I am working really hard to learn how to take great photographs. These days, I pretty much beg anyone and everyone to let me do a photo shoot. Today, I was lucky enough to shoot my friend and her two adorable daughters! We had a blast! We found this great little park that was right across the street from the beach - perfect location! Anyway, I just wanted to share a few of my favorites from the shoot today - any CC is welcomed!!!

Happy Day!

Let's See if this works...

2006-04-01T07:48:00.000-08:00

Well, I've decided to enter the blogging world... I think this should be fun! Now, I just have to figure out how to make this work!

Testing... 1... 2... 3.... Testing