we came, we shopped, we conquered...

and we had a blast!!!!!! i'm so blessed to be able to call these girls friends. i can't remember when i've had such a fun time. everyone brings something different to our group. it's just a perfect mix. with so many women together one would expect at least a little drama and conflict. but we didn't have any. i love that although we might have quite varying opinions on a lot of things, we all respect and accept our differences. i can't imagine a more supportive group. i'm so inspired by all of them in so many ways. i could go on and on about how much this weekend meant to me. i'm having a hard time putting it in words. and wilson's currently climbing on me ready for a nap. but i really want to say thanks for such a great weekend, girls!!! i love you!

(i stole our picture of kelly's blog.
our shopping included a few GREAT antique stores, nell hill's, curious sofa, paper source, and urban arts and crafts.

a little randomness...

all of these were done with the february it kit. i love it!!! i used the ki lace paper as a mask for the canvas and painted over it with watercolors. i can't wait to play with the prima paintable paper in the kit too.

i'm a little embarrassed to admit this, and i'm sure kurt will give me a TON of grief about this. but please tell me i'm not the only one that cries at american idol. when they get the gold ticket and walk out the door, the emotion of it all just chokes me up. i love seeing their faces and their joy of seeing their dreams realized. and i love the support their families show for them.

i'm reading the book Eat, Pray, Love, and denise and i were talking about our favorite quotes from it the other day. she posted two amazing ones on her blog so i thought i would share one of mine too:

• I can decide how I spend my time, whom I interact with, whom I share my body and life and money and energy with. I can select what I eat and read and study. I can chose how I'm going to regard unfortunate circumstances in my life - whether I will see them as curses or opportunities (and on the occasions when I can't rise to the most optimistic viewpoint, because I'm feeling too damn sorry for myself, I can choose to keep trying to change my outlook). I can choose my words and the tone of voice in which I speak to others. And most of all, I can choose my thoughts.

locks of love...

anna donated her hair to locks of love. she had a 10 inch ponytail, and had 11 inches cut all total. she loves her new hair! but it took awhile for her to get to that point. she was quite upset friday and saturday. in fact she threw quite the tantrum at the hair salon, and even suggested i should try to sew her ponytail back on. friday night she declared she wasn't going to leave the house until it grew back, or at least for a whole year. some time saturday afternoon she must have caught a good look at herself in the mirror, though, and decided she loves it! phew!!!! she was still pretty nervous to go to school today. but everyone in her class loved her hair (except kennedy. lol! i think kennedy just has a bit of a hard time adjusting to change.) i think she's going to really love not having kurt and i yank on her tangles any more. i love it too! except it does make her look quite a bit older. :( she's growing up too fast!

wilson had his first hair cut too. sarah gave him a squirt bottle and he did such a good job of sitting while she cut his hair. that was pretty amazing considering anna was still bawling and carrying on. he's quite the handsome little man! :) ella had her hair trimmed too, but to be honest i'm not sure if this is before or after. lol! after anna's reaction she wasn't really up for much change. lol! happy monday!

and here's jack...