The Starfish Story

I was reading the latest issue of Parents magazine and came across an ad for Pepperidge Farm's new Goldfish crackers, including starfish. (It's to promote a charity that helps kids achieve goals.) Anyway, this little story accompanied the ad and I thought it was so inspiring!

The Starfish Story

A little girl was walking along a beach that was covered with thousands of starfish left dying in the sun by the receding tide. Seeking to help, she picked up a starfish and tossed it back into the ocean.

A man, amused by her action, said to her, "Little girl, there are too many starfish. You will never make a difference." Discouraged, she began to walk away.

Suddenly, she turned around, picked up another starfish and tossed it as far as she could back into the sea. Turning to the man, she smiled and said, "I made a difference to that one!"

The man looked at the girl inquisitively and thought about what she had said and done. Inspired, he joined the little girl in throwing the starfish back into the sea. Soon others joined, and all the starfish were saved.

A few sites that are fun to surf:

(I need to add them to my links...)

http://www.etsy.com/index.php

1. Etsy is handmade art, jewelry, pottery--you name it. Some of it is wierd and some of it is amazing. Very artsy-fartsy.

http://www.whoisisabella.com/

2. I can spend hours reading insightful articles by women at Who Is Isabella.

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipes/

3. Need a recipe quick? I go to My Recipes.

http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/

4. Ok--this one's not "fun" but if you want to delve into Activism, NRDC Action Fund is great--they make it so easy for a politcally challenged person like myself to voice my opinion to our representatives.

http://www.plumparty.com/index.shtml

5. Even when I don't NEED party supplies, I go to Plum Party to look at all the cute stuff I could use...someday.

http://flickr.com/

6. My love of photography is indulged at Flickr. You can post your pics to share or just browse thru tons of intriging photos from around the world.

http://www.cafepress.com/

7. CafePress is a collection of creative merchandise ranging from clothing, home and office accessories, to prints, posters and cards.

I need to spend less time surfing the web! It's one of the few mindless, quiet things I can do after Mason goes to bed and I'm tired. And it's quite inspiring, too. Later.

Horray for Mika!!!!!

You've got to watch this video clip--she rocks!!!

http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?g

I so admire this newscaster for REFUSING to do a lead story on Paris Hilton over the war in Iraq. We need more people--especially in the media-- to stand up and fight to get stupid celeb fluff stories out of the main headlines and show the real world issues!!!

Mason is Walking!!

I can't believe my little baby Mason will be ONE YEAR OLD in two weeks!!! It feels like he was just a newborn. Some exciting news--He just started walking this week! He just took off and got confident and now he's walking everywhere (and falling down a lot.) He says so many things also--hi, dog, bird, mama, dada, gigi (his great grandma) and also uh and oh, but not together!!

I have his birthday party planned--we only invited our families as to not overwhelm him (and me). I hope his cake turns out. I was so disappointed in Rick's because I called and ordered his cake and then they told me they couldn't do it b/c they would be closed the entire week of his birthday for the holiday!! I guess we'll encounter this problem every year since it's so close to the 4th. The lady at Rick's told me to just go ahead and order it and freeze it---uh, I don't think so!!! anyway, I know Harp's does a great job. My family and my work has used them many times. So I went to Price Cutter in Rogers. (same as Harp's) They seemed like they knew what they were doing, but I guess we'll see. It's just like me to worry about what a cake will look like ! It better be perfect for my baby's first birthday!!! (heehee)

Thought this was too funny...

RealAge

Click the link for a free test that will calculate your Real Age according to your lifestyle and heredity. It e-mails you your final results--I'm awaiting mine now...

http://www.realage.com/

John Mayer Concert

Since I posted The Eagles concert pics, it reminded me that I've never posted the John Mayer concert pics from my 30th b-day in February! He is my fav singer and it was a great concert! We had good seats down low, but on the side as you can see...

The Eagles Concert

I was so excited to be able to see one of the best bands EVER!!!!!!!!! The Eagles were in town for the Wal-Mart Shareholder's meeting concerts. They were so good! They played easily 20 to 25 songs--and they sounded just like the CD (which is what I like) To name a few:
Take it Easy
Witchy Woman
I Can't Tell You Why
The Long Run (my personal Fav!)
Heartache Tonight
Life's Been Good (to me so far)
Lyin' Eyes
Dirty Laundry
Peaceful Easy Feeling
Tequila Sunrise
and they saved
Hotel California and
Desperado for the encore!
Here's some pictures I took...

My New Glasses

I can finally see! I've had them for about a month. I can't believe I'm posting pics were I'm not wearing any makeup! It was late...

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

The Nutshell

I haven't posted in forever!!! Thought I'd post a few recent pics of Mason. He's sooo big! 23 pounds at 10 months old. He is on the verge of walking and is such a cutie! Well, here's what I've been doing the last few months in a nutshell:
(in no particular order)

1. Went Part Time at work!! Working 2 days a week and staying home with Mason--absolutely LOVE it!

2. Celebrated my 1st Mother's Day! I got a gift certificate for a spa day!! Can't wait to get a massage (did I mention Mason is 23 pounds!?!!)

3. Still a couch potato--right now my top 5 favs are: LOST, American Idol, Grey's Anatomy, Notes from the Underbelly, and Desperate Housewives (sucked for a while now getting better)

4. Ending another successful Junior League year. Still loving the League although attending meetings a lot harder with Mason in the picture.

5. On a sad note: My Grandpa just passed away. He had suffered with COPD (respiratory) for a long time and is in a better place now.
Also, my sweet furbaby, Bianca, had kidney failure and we were forced to put her down. Still working thru that pain! She was a member of our family for 14 years! That's almost half my life! Anyway...

6. Enjoying watching Mason grow and learn each and every day!! He is such a blessing to us and we are thankful he is happy and healthy. Love being a Mom (most days!)

7. Became a Southern Living at Home Independent Consultant. Love that stuff!!

8. I was Baptized on Maundy Thursday!!!! (Thurs before Easter)Finally! Have been going to church regularly :)

9. Saw John Mayer in concert for my 30th birthday in February!!! It totally Rocked!! He's my fav!

10. I Love my hubby. In a few months we'll be married 8 years--together 11. Wow.

11. I'm trying to get caught up on scrapbooking--Wayyyyy far behind. Doing some fun baby boy pages though.

There's the nutshell. Exciting, huh? :)

Mason February--April

Newsy News

This is a big thing for me--I'm getting ready to sign up to be a Southern Living at Home consultant! It's exciting and scary at the same time! Now that I'm working part time to stay home with Mason, I need a little extra income and social outlet and this has always been in the back of my mind to do someday. If I don't end up liking it--oh well. But I'm hopeful that I'll like it and even maybe be good at it! I'm not really a shy person--I can do in home parties--no prob! I'm going to have my launch party in early March and that is what's stressing me right now. I have to get everything in order and clean my house! Well, wish me luck!

Recent Random Pics

new & old stuff

I found my old blog template so my weather girl, quote of the day, japanese girl and some other stuff is back but I don't know if that means I'm not upgraded to Beta now or what??? I'm clueless with this stuff--learning as I go. I did add the cool new charities badge. Saw Kevin Bacon on The View this morning talking about his new 6 degrees charity site and thought it was right up my alley. You should check it out--and DONATE!!!!!!! ;)

One more thing

Also--this new beta blogger sucks b/c it took me forever to get my blog looking too cute with my weather pixie and animated Japanese girl--and I updated and now they are GONE!!!!!!!! Starting over on the cute stuff.

yes i'm still alive

Ok my best friend Tori inspired my to post--just got thru checking out her cute myspace page! I haven't posted since Nov!!! I'll try to post some pics soon. Mason is soooo big! He's 20 lbs 4 oz and 29 inches tall. He's such a good little boy and makes even the worst day better...

Go Hogs!

I'm really behind on Mason pictures--here he is cheering on the Razorbacks. (3 months old)

We made it

Well, I made it thru my second week back at work and taking Mason to daycare. I am glad to be at work--2 months leave does wonders for the burnout I was starting to feel before--however it's sooo hard to leave Mason everyday! He's doing great and I like where we're taking him but it is so hard to drop him off in the morning.

He's getting so big already! I'm really dreading Monday--I have to take him for his 2 month shots. That will not be fun.

He is such a sweetie--we are so blessed to have a wonderful adorable son! Speaking of...He's waking up--gotta go!

Monkey Boy

Here's Mason's Halloween costume--I hope he fits in it by Halloween! I ordered it online and it arrived yesterday. It's way too big for him right now, but we've got 2 more months for him to grow into it. I need to find him a banana as a prop!

growing so fast!

Look how much Mason has grown! Top pic is just a few weeks ago! He weighs about 11 lbs now. He's cooing and smiling at us and is very responsive. He's too cute!

Women Building Better Communities

Look! I do have a life outside of home! (just barely) I took this at our (me and Christy's) Advisor Social at Johnny Carino's. It was fun and great to get out of the house and have adult talk! Interested in learning more about Junior League? Here's our NW Arkansas League's website: http://www.juniorleaguenwa.org/
And AJLI's site: (Assoc. of Junior Leagues International) http://www.ajli.org/
I love being a member of the Junior League. It's very fulfilling and a great way to meet new people--a very successful, inspiring group of ladies in my community! This is my 4th year. (3rd active) I get more excited about it each year as I learn more about the league, the needs of my community and just general skills such as conducting business meetings, the structure of committees, bylaws and policies, and fun stuff like socials and icebreakers. Well, that turned into an ad for the Junior League!

Start Saving Now for College

Being a Mommy...

There's a company called Upromise that saves money for your child for college when you go through thier search engine to purchase stuff online. You can also set up local grocery store cards, etc. and everytime you buy stuff they contribute a certain percentage to your college fund. Too bad our local stores don't have grocery cards--it's mainly big city stores like Kroger and Whole Foods, etc. But it's a good idea if you shop online like we do.

Here it is...

in all

it's glory.

R.I.P. Gardenia

This beautiful gardenia that my brother-in-law and his girlfriend (now fiancee!!) gave us at the hospital...


...is now DEAD!!!


They got it so it would bloom each year and grow with Mason--how thoughtful! However, we put it in the sunroom and it was too hot :( Wayne brought it back from the brink of death once but then it went ahead and went to plant heaven. I can't keep any plant alive--that's why you see fake plants at my house. I'll have to take a pic and post of how pathetic it looks now--it really is sad --and yet kinda funny to look at. I even looked for one at Wal-Mart to try to replace it but had no luck. The worst part...they don't know we killed it. (yet)

Extreme Close-Up

My sweet baby boy!

He Has Arrived!

Mason Cole is here!

7 lbs, 10 oz

21 in

What to Expect When You're Expecting...

*ultrasounds*excitement*heartbeat*swelling*joy

*pain*hormones*cravings*stretch marks*weight gain*soreness*anticipation*rest*picking names*decorating*dr's appointments* questions*bathroom breaks*morning sickness*due dates*smiles and tears*

"Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother."
--Lin Yutang

9 MONTHS!!!

Here I am in the nursery--it's ready to go, we just need the baby! I had professional maternity photos taken around this same time--just a few days before my due date!

Fire! Fire!

This is our fire pit that we bought early this summer. We bought it at Lowe's. We roasted marshmallows and made smores for dessert for family night at our house. It was nice sitting around it talking--although a little on the warm side! This fall it'll be nice when it's a little brisk outside.

Showered at Work

My work threw this baby shower for 3 of us that were pregnant. (My 4th shower!!!) They do that every few months or so--there's always several employees that are pregnant--it's in the water. (well it IS a women's hospital!)

The cake was too cute! My friend's cousin made it--she has a cake business. I plan on using her for any cakes I need in the future. She does awesome work. The other girls in the pic are on thier 4th and 5th kids!! Holy moly--count me out on that!

Baby Shower

My baby shower in May--lots of friends attended and I got tons of much-needed baby stuff! My car was full! Ang and Tori were hostess' and they did a great job. Thanks everyone!

8 MONTHS

Just a few self-portraits of me in the nursery at 8 months...

Run-on Sentence of my Current Life

Yes, I'm still alive! I haven't posted due to many other higher priorities....
ya know, like growing a baby. I only have 4 weeks left! We're so excited to meet our baby boy! Here's what I've been up to: decorating the nursery, cleaning everything, working 40 hours a week, having 4 baby showers, finding a place for all that baby stuff, writing thank you notes, spending time with family, buying lots of stuff (including a new digital camera!!) , going to Dr's appts, and scrapbooking 16 pages in 2 days!!!!
I needed to catch up sooo bad--I did Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, our b-days, and some other random pics I wanted to scrap of friends, family and my cat. I'm a very slow scrapper, so 16 pages completed in 2 days is a new record for me. I better get used to that with a new baby around.
We're having family night at our house this Sat. We're grilling out hamburgers & hot dogs and we bought a firepit for the backyard, so we'll have smores for dessert! yummy.
Well, I'll try to post again soon, but I can't guarantee anything. Next time I may have baby Mason... :0

Word Cloud

This is too cool. Go to www.snapshirts.com/custom.php to make your own blog word cloud-thingy! (takes random words from your own blog and put's then in this cool collage format.) Neato!

Organizing Like Martha

I have been on the craziest--most-needed-nesting-cleaning-organizing-getting-old-crap-out-of- my-life-- spree lately. And I must say, it's awesome! It's really working for me. I made this out-of-control To Do List a couple weeks ago that has HUGE projects on it--and I'm actually tackeling them one by one. It's very rewarding--especially to a pregnant anal-organized person like myself!
Here's some stuff I've done:
1. Cleaned out the small hall closet & organized all the towels--they look so pretty now.
2. Cleaned out the big hall closet--most proud of my rubbermaid bins that hold gift bags, tissue paper etc. that I labeled with my Dymo.
3. Made a receipt basket for the office--a home for debit receipts waiting to be processed.
4. Cleaned out and totally relabeled the entire filing cabinet (2 shelves) and filed ALL invoices from the last YEAR!!!!
5. Cleaned out the Nursery closet and organized my scrapbook stuff inside so I can open the door & scrap! (required emptiying approx 10 boxes of keepsake-stuff--it was hard to part with some of it, but I managed. The rest got reboxed and sent to the attic)
6. Emptied (almost--still working on it) Armoire so baby clothes can go in it. I moved all my scrapbooks and photo albums to the living room entertainment center cabinets that weren't even being used yet.
7. Put out Easter decorations.
8. Got Easter cards ready to mail.
And Wayne taped off & primed the Nursery walls!
Goodbye pink--hello blue! Yes, it's sad to see my scrapbook room go! :(
So I think I can go by "Martha" for a while. I still have about 6 things on the list to do, so I better go!

So I'm a terrible blogger. I know.

Since I haven't posted in over a month, her's what's going on:
1. IT'S A BOY! Mason Cole is growing and moving all around--it's so awesome!
2. Grandma is on her last dose of cancer treatment & doing well.
3. I like my new position at work in the Nursery, but it's stressful.
4. We have picked out the Crib and bedding for the Nursery!
5. It's Spring! The weather has been nice lately!
6. I finally started working on our "New Home" scrapbook now that we've been here almost a year!

TO DO: Plan a yard sale, paint the nursery, buy a trillion baby things, Spring cleaning everywhere in & outside of the house, catch up on my scrapbooks before the baby arrives....
Gotta go get busy with all that! (you see why I haven't posted??!!??)

Happy Birthday to Us!

It's my Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeah! It's also Wayne's birthday!!!!!!!!! (the big 3-0!) We're goiong out to eat at Copeland's tonight. yummy. Happy b-day to us!

Here's the lowdown on what's happened in the last 2 weeks:
1. Suddenly developed Carpell (sp?) Tunnel due to pregnancy. Hurts like a bitch-been to the Dr. twice and now I have to wear a wrist brace everyday and night for it to be bareable. I guess it's payback for not being sick in my 1st trimester.
2. Started my new job in the Nursery this week! I think I'm really going to like it once I learn everything. It's been a little overwhelming but what new job isn't? The bad part--the person who's training me (which just happens to be one of my best friends) was out sick for 2 days during my training. So I flew solo for 2 days! It sucked. And I have a gimp hand/wrist.
3. The Nursery nurses got me a b-day gift on Friday and card that everyone had signed and got cupcakes and sang me happy birthday! It was so cool and made me feel very welcomed. My friend, Amanda, also got me some scrapbook goodies,etc. and a balloon :)

Next week: Wayne's on vacation, family night at my parent's, my ULTRASOUND!!!!!!!