Happy Mother’s Day!!

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mom’s out there!!

Kisses and Squeeze-y Hugs are the Best!

It’s been three & a half years since my life was forever altered and I became “Mommy”, currently “Mommy Spinosaurus!” – Caveboy has dubbed us the Spinosaurus Family.

Pretending to eat the dandelion!

I will never forget the joy of being pregnant and getting to “take him to work with me!” or his birth and the way he just stared at me after delivery – while I was completely overwhelmed, silently wondering if I could give him back because I wasn’t sure I was cutout to be his Mom. The joy of nursing this little mewing bundle of sweetness, his 1st smile, 1st laugh, 1st steps, 1st words and the 1st time he read a street sign to me unprompted at 12 months old!

Rolling Hay!

Being a Mom has evolved with each and every new milestone, new age, heck – each new day! Being a Mom is the hardest challenge I have ever faced. I see my personality reflected back at me daily and sometimes – I don’t like what I see, so I change it. I want so badly to get this right. I want so badly to help mold him and shape him into the Godly man he will someday be. I know today the foundation is being laid for tomorrow. I’m not always the patient, gentle, kind, or considerate Mom I should be; but there is a little boy and a wonderful man and my Savior in Heaven who love me, forgive me and help me to be those things. I am forever grateful & humbled!

Clean as new!

Caveboy has been amazing to watch as he has grown into his own unique personality. I constantly remind myself to step back and let him grow. He challenges me every day, tries my patience until I’m not sure I can take any more and then says, “I love you Mommy Spinosaurus!” and of course I melt.

Caveman came home late from work the other day and Caveboy ran to him and wrapped his arms around him with an enthusiastic “Daddy, you’re home! I love you!”. To which Caveman turned to look at me and say, “There’s nothing better, is there?”. There really isn’t!

Happy Mother’s Day!!

To Nana: Happy Mother’s Day!! Thank you for all that you do for our little guy and for all you’ve done for me too! XOXO

Casual Friday: Dressing Up a White Tee & Jeans

Most days in our office you will see any number of styles due to the nature of each individual’s job, however on Friday’s everyone’s ready for the weekend and casual looks abound. I love wearing jeans at the office however I like to keep my look dressy just in case I run into a client, there’s an impromptu meeting, etc. Today I opted for a white tee and jeans with a navy blazer, white sandals and yellow accessories.

Blazer & Jeans – Thrifted, Tee & Statement Earrings – Target, Sandals – Shoe Show, Sunnies – Ray Ban

I recently wore these yellow accessories with a cobalt cardigan here, but for today I wanted to add a little extra punch.

The navy blazer is a must with the cooler temps we’ve been experiencing this week and the navy polka dot belt/scarf helps tie it all together (pun intended).

$1.99 Red Lipstick – NYC 308 Retro Red

There’s been quite a bit of talk lately in blog-land about which shades of RED or PINK or ORANGE lipstick are best. I found this super cheap RED lipstick at Wal-mart last fall from NYC and I love it. I can make it pinker with a light application and lip gloss or I can go all out RED, as I’ve done here with a heavier dose. It’s long wearing and again – super cheap! I think I paid about $1.99 total. I have a favorite PINK lipstick I received in a Birchbox I got for Christmas that I’ll highlight Monday.

Although the temperatures have cooled somewhat, Spring is here to stay and I am so glad. I can’t wait to get out and enjoy more sun this weekend!! We’ve been continuing our Operation Outdoor Spruce up this spring so I’ll be posting about these changes and more throughout the month of May!

Joining in on these linky parties this Friday!

Fashion Friday @ All Things Chic / Two Thirty Five Designs / Favorite Frock Friday / Fridays Fancies / Fashion Informant Link Up / Vodka Infused Lemonade Thursday Link-up! / Fridays Five

Casual Friday: DIY Statement Necklace

Thank you all for your sweet comments on my DIY Skirt featured in Wednesday’s post. I really appreciated each and every one!

I love DIY projects; most are sewing projects but I have branched out to other areas via Pinterest! Recently I made this great Pin: T-shirts to Statement Necklaces

and ended up making a bracelet too!

These statement pieces were super quick and easy to make. I hope to make a couple more in different colors, but currently I have enough white tees to make more and then try some dyeing techniques – maybe ombre?!

I also hope to find the time to sew another skirt using the same technique I used to create my DIY Skirt I wore on Wednesday, but this time I’ll be adding a bottom ruffle or pleats to it. The main material I found is just too short for my liking. I might try to photograph my steps, but the material is black and that may or may not photograph well.

DIY Projects Around Our Home:

In the coming weeks I’ll be showing you a few DIY related projects Caveman and I have completed over the past year.

OUTDOORS: Last spring I left you with only one installment of Operation Outdoor Spruce Up, part 1. We Caveman has completed a few more items on our list and I plan to bring them to you this spring.

INDOORS: Last weekend on our shopping trip I found some great spring/summer fabric for pillow covers. I really want to update a few of the ones I made last year to incorporate some brighter colors. Thanks to Pinterest and the amazingly crafty bloggers behind Pinterest I also tried a new technique with the “A” on our gallery wall that I’ll be posting soon.

That’s all for today! Sounds like I have some serious work today this weekend! We also plan to get out and enjoy this amazing spring weather too! What are you guys planning, anything fun?

Joining in on these linky parties this Friday!

Fashion Friday @ All Things Chic / Two Thirty Five Designs / Favorite Frock Friday / Fridays Fancies / Fashion Informant Link Up

WIWW: Pattern Mixing & Colorblocking

Happy Wednesday! Fall has definitely arrived to our part of the world. We woke up to a beautiful, crisp & clear fall morning today. I am so glad I thought to add a sweater because it was still cool at lunch today.

I was attempting pattern mixing when I originally put this outfit together, but I ended up with a color-blocked outfit too!

Hope everyone is having a great week. We are just about over our colds around these parts. Caveman’s is at its worst today – poor guy, but it does mean he will be getting better now. We are hoping to get in a canoe ride soon, maybe this weekend. It’s not too early to be thinking about the weekend, right?

Fashion Friday: Turquiose & Black

Friday’s here!! I’m looking forward to a great weekend with my Cavemen. I thrifted this top last fall and have worn it a few times since then. I have paired it with my white Capri’s or jeans, but I think my favorite looks is with these black trousers.

Top – Thrifted; Capri’s – Target; Sandals – Shoe Show

Not really sure if you’ve noticed, but I’ve recently put on a few additional pounds. I’m not happy about it either! At first I was scratching my head trying to figure out the cause, but then I realized I hadn’t been exercising regularly and we were eating out way too much! So I’ve been eating more salads and getting back into the exercise routine lately. I hope to see vast improvements soon, but in the meantime getting dressed and looking nice is a challenge! I want to continue to improve my style, but the added weight makes it difficult to find the motivation to keep posting my pictures here on the blog. I’m going to use this desire as a positive though and turn it into the motivation I need to get the weight back off.

I’ve struggled with my weight ever since I can remember. When I met Caveman 10 years ago he taught me how to exercise and eat right. I achieved a healthy weight and maintained it really well for a few years but then I slowly gained back 20 lbs. I realized that I was reverting back to my old habits and lost the weight again only to repeat the process a few years later. There is usually a trigger that brings the cycle on like stress, job changes, etc. Recently I’ve been super stressed about my job situation as in if I even have one or not anymore. I always start out subconsciously eating more until I consciously realize I’m eating more, then my clothes don’t fit, I start feeling run down and unmotivated, etc. I want to break this cycle and maintain a healthy weight for good.

Ain’t that the truth!

Caveman is helping me again by being my workout buddy! At the beginning of the summer we were trying to workout in the evenings, but Caveboy does not like that situation at all and is constantly interrupting us. So we’ve started getting up earlier (read 5:30am) and working out while the little guy’s still asleep. So far, so good! I’ve read a few studies and most say that you will loose more weight because your body is in “mini-starvation” mode and it will actually pull from the fat stores instead of your last meal. Also you typically burn more fat throughout the day with little additional effort and finally researchers have shown that 75 percent of women who exercise in the morning stick to the plan, compared to only 25 percent of people who workout in the evenings. This should be great for me because I’ve always been a workout in the evenings kinda gal and stuck to that fairly consistently until Caveboy came along.

Anybody else struggling with weight issues? I’ve always found that if I just listen to my body I can find balance once again. Right now it’s telling me it’s uncomfortable and wants some exercise!!