I’m moving tomorrow!!

So, as I expected —and noted in the first blog of the day, my mom was not happy about the situation of the Alta apartments.  We decided to look elsewhere.    I told my mom that she could make the decision for me (This is all about safety issues – I’m just a girl and all)  ; however, I did of course have final say – if I didn’t like the place it would be a no-go.  We drove around to a few places  and either the offices were closed or they weren’t what I was looking for, or they didn’t live up to the Mommy Test.  We remembered that there were some apartments that we wanted to look at before we found Alta, but the office had been closed that day and we never went back.  We headed over in that direction and voila!  We found THE Apartment!  There are several great things this place, but I think the BEST is that I get to move in TOMORROW!!  Yay!!!!!!  I also like that it is in a very central location – It is near Pooler, Savannah, and Richmond Hill.  I also get 2 months free rent…that is a very nice incentive!

Here are a few pics of the model home:

Just click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Heather….it is not Alta – but we will SO make it a Princess Palace!  We can paint walls too!!

I am also pretty excited that I already know at least one neighbor.  😉 (Lisa, I am sad that we aren’t going to be in the same apartments after all!)

Totally random side note…Man I smell good!  =p

I am off to pack up all of my packages, boxes and bags that are laying round my room at my mom’s.  I hope you all had as wonderful a day as I did!

Joyeux Noel

So yeah….this is a slightly belated Christmas post.

I had an absolutely amazing Christmas!  I am so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends!  I got everything I wanted for Christmas…well…almost….still waiting on that list of naughty boys. lol  That’s okay.   I know a few who are probably on it.  ;-p

I got a new toy!!  I have been wanting one of these for the past few years and I finally got it!!  I had to pull it out of the box and play with it for an hour or two on Christmas morning!  My mom offered to take pics of me playing with it, but I had some Medusa hair going on so I figured I would spare you all.  It has a mind of its own. lol

I also got lots of pretty things for my new apartment.  I got new bedding, some antiques, new dishes, new towels, art work, books, craft supplies, etc.  I got some clothes and some Aerie perfume.  Now Natalie and I can go to work dressed and smelling alike.  (We are such dorks.  We go shopping together and pick out all the same clothes and then we picked out the same perfume. lol)  Everytime we have gone to the mall lately we have made a mad dash for American Eagle and sprayed ourselves with Aerie perfume.  Then all day long we have this same conversation and it goes like this:

Me:  Mmm!  I smell good!

Nat:  Mmm!  You do smell good!

Me:  Hey Natalie!  You smell good!

Nat:  Dang!  I do smell good!

Both of us:  Man we smell good! lol

(some girl gives us a a dirty look)

Nat:  She is just jealous ‘cuz we smell so good!

I spent the day after Christmas packing up my old apartment.  I put Joey to work since he is home with nothing better to do.  I get free labor and he stays out of trouble.  Good situation.  lol  Ben, I appreciate the tip on where to pick up cheap labor…but I’ll take the free labor – all I have to do is feed him. lol

Yesterday I went to pick up the keys to my new apartment and was very disappointed.  The apartment wasn’t ready and they were trying to put me on the second floor.  The people that were living in my apartment did not pay rent and did not leave.  They had to evict them.  They said that it took forever to get them out and when they finally got them out and went to look in the apartment, they almost threw up just walking in.  They had pets in the apartment that never went outside – urine seeped into the walls.  These apartments are only 2 years old.  They were going to have to replace the fridge and completely gut the place!  They said they would be lucky to have that place back into shape in a month.  They have a different apartment opening up that I can move into in two weeks.  I am going to take my mom to show it to her today since she is concerned about its position.  We are also going to look at some other apartments today just to make sure this is THE ONE since it is not the original one we thought it would be.  I haven’t signed the lease on the other one yet so I do have options.  After my apartment fiasco I decided I was in no mood to go pack up my kitchen so I took my little tushie downtown and did some antique shopping.  Didn’t get to go to as many places as I would have liked because it was the weekend and parking was scarce, but it was fun none the less.

I am hoping to go look at some upholstry fabric today while I have my mom with me.  I need to figure out what I am going to recover my antique sofa and chair(s) with.  No I am not touching my new love, The Chair.  It is perfect as is.  I do want to give the other stuff a modern twist though.  =)  You know me – I like to mix up my vintage with my modern!

Hope you all have a lovely day!  I hate to leave you with a post with no pictures, but I am waiting on the Christmas pics from Jessie Bessie.  I’ll post them later.  Candace and I got some ahem…lovely ensembles…that we felt needed to be fully shared with the world.  lol

T’was the night before Christmas…

and all through the house….I was making a mess with my gingerbread house.  After getting inspired by Heather’s gingerbread house contest (She won by the way!!), I decided to crack open the kit that Gricell gave me and make my own.  Let’s just say this time was not as easy as the gingerbread houses I made with the girls at Emma’s birthday celebration.  To start with one side of my house was missing.  I had to improvise and make a wall of cardboard.  Here are pictures of my endeavors.  I will let them tell the story.

But let’s take a step back.  Before I got started on the gingerbread house MESS, I made peppermint bark.  I have never made it before, but it is so easy and turned out to be heavenly!  Heather, when I say easy…I mean even you could make it with no problems!!  Here are the pictures from that.

This last one is G-ma not wanting to share. lol  If you are interested in making the peppermint bark, I used a package of the vanilla flavored almond bark and 9 candy canes.  (You are supposed to use 10, but David a.k.a. the human garbage disposal ate one of them.)  Smash up the candy canes – not into powder (I had my dad smash them up with a mallet.  Helpful hint…peppermint discs do not smash easily – go for the candy canes!).  Melt the almond bark in a microwave safe bowl for twenty second intervals – make sure you stir it each time with a dry spoon.  Mix in the peppermint.  Spread it out on a wax paper covered cookie sheet and refrigerate for 20 minutes.  When you take it out, just break it up into small pieces.  Voila!

Well dahlings!  I am off to wrap up a few last minute gifts.  =)  I hope you all had a lovely Christmas Eve and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!  I can’t wait to see what Santa brings me and everyone else!

PJs and Packing

So I went to work on Friday and I forgot my camera!  Gasp!  Me? Forget my camera?!  I know!  Shocking!  So I took this picture with my cell phone.  Not the best, but what can I say.  I hate a blog entry with no pictures.  Friday was absolutely NUTS.  It was CRAZY do you hear me? Crazy!  My students were out of control and ready to party!  Thankfully I had already prepared myself for it to be a nutty day so I was able to just go with the flow. Yep.  Just another day in my 3-ring circus.  I am very glad to say that I don’t have to worry about Frog, Toad, Mimi and Lola for the holidays!  Kai and his mom are toad-sitting for me – yay!

Saturday was spent packing up my old apartment.  I got through with the bedroom and most of my studio.  I still have a little left to do in there as well as pack up the bathrooms and kitchen.  The livingroom is already done.  I am so excited!  I can’t wait to get into that new apartment.  Beth…if you are reading this, I am still waiting on a response about that paint color.  (imagine me standing with my hands on my hips and tapping my foot right about now. lol)

On a side note I finally read Twilight.  I started it yesterday and finished it today.  I really liked it and am eager to read the second book in the trilogy.  I finally took a day for just me today.  I did a lot of nothing.  Surfed the internet and read…oh and wrapped a few Christmas presents.  I haven’t had any time to myself lately.  It was very nice.  Tomorrow is sure to be a whirlwind of a day.  I am going Christmas shopping with my mom.  She wants to leave at 7:00 a.m.  and we probably won’t be done until the stores are closed.  Natalie you are more than welcome to join us if you don’t want to shop by yourself!  Normally I like to get most of my Christmas shopping done early, but this year has just been busy busy and more busy.

Well dahlings…I am off to do other things…like start reading a new book or perhaps work on cutting out the fabric for some Christmas gifts.  Yes, I still have some sewing to do before Christmas.  No I am not telling you what I am making.  You will just have to wait and see.  Maybe I will give you a sneak peak on Tuesday or Wednesday.  Maybe.  lol

Beautiful Little Blue Bird

My dearest friend Heather made me a darling painting to symbolize my new journey in life.  I just love it!

“Little Blue Bird” ©2008 Heather L. Young

Acrylic & Oil Wash on patterned paper, 8″x10″

Isn’t she talented?!  I can’t wait to find the perfect spot to hang it in my new home.  Thank you dahling!

Oh and Nat – I had so much fun shopping with you tonight!  You always make shopping a little more fun!

My New Love

Wow!  So much has happened since my last blog!  Last week was just beyond filled to the brim with places to go, people to see and things to do!

I FINALLY graduated with my masters!  With a 4.0 G.P.a. I must brag!  Yay!!!

This is me with my youngest brother.  I am hoping some better pictures turn up on other people’s cameras because I am not to fond of this one.  At any rate….I am done!  Hey Mama!  Check out my hood!! lol

My grandparents came for graduation and gave me the best gift a woman like me could ask for!  A chair!  lol  Not just any chair but an antique Victoria chair that I discovered and fell in love with over the summer.  If you know me, I am just a tad chair obsessed.   Folks, I would like to introduce you to my new love -The Chair!

Isn’t it beautiful?!!   I just keep thinking about all of the different ways I can rearrange my furniture in the new apartment and how I can best showcase my new love. – for my mom’s sake ignore the stuff going on behind the chair…they are still working on Christmas decorations.  =-p  Speaking of the parents – their gift to me was amazing too!  They are paying the deposit on my new apartment.  Yay for that!  Thanks Mom and Dad!

Tonight I went to Emma’s birthday celebration.  Happy Birthday Emma!!  We went to a Gingerbread House making party.  Here are some pictures of the fun we had.

Here are Emma and Maia after I helped them assemble their houses.

Joy and Lia being silly as usual!

Maia and Me decorating her gingerbread house

The rest of my week is shaping up to be pretty crazy too!  I can’t wait for dinner tomorrow with Heather and getting my very own Flyoung Studio original painting that is just for me and inspired by me!  Thanks Heather!!  For a sneak peek check it out on her blog. Friday is the last day of school before Christmas break!  We will be having a Polar Express/Pajama Day.  Y’all know I love to go to work in my P.J’s and pigtails!  I am so excited!!!  I need a break and I will be doing lots of packing since the move date is rapidly approaching!  I am sure by the end of the week I will have posted another blog or two about the insanity of the week!  lol

Oh!  And did I mention I am teaching French this week?  Christmas Around the World – the students had me singing French Christmas carols for them since the internet was down and they couldn’t listen to them.  lol  So glad I’m not shy.  And I love teaching the kids about Pere Noel but even more about his companion Pere Fouettard!  I am so mean!  lol

On a side note, I just finished reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath.  If you haven’t read it, you really should!  The writing is wonderful!

Also, just had to share!  I heard Britney Spears’ “Oops!” song this morning on the way to work and it just made me laugh because I sang it the way little Maia does “Oops!  You Stink I’m in Love!” It just cracks me up!  What a fun way to start my morning!  I love when she gets to the part that says “I’m not that innocent!”  She is all of 4 years old!  She is so sassy and does the dance too!  Gricell…we really need to record that so the world can see the preciousness of your daughter! =)

Hope you have a fantabulous week!!

I just can’t stop thinking about it!

I am beyond excited about my new place y’all!!  I am just dreaming up all the different ways I can furnish it!  It is going to be a completely posh princess palace.  I have the distinct feeling that I am going to have to kick Mom, Heather, and Natalie out on occasion and send them back to their men. lol

Because all I can do is imagine at this point, I thought I would share my vision.  You know I just love some shabby chic stuff!  Here are some links and pics of things that I would like/things that I am working on.  So…for those of you attending my house warming party or searching for that perfect gift for me for Christmas….hint hint! ;-p

I picked up this little gem at Goodwill.  I am going give it a little love.

I am moving this furniture into the living room:

Umm…minus the Usry on the pillow of course!  This is my antique furniture from my granny.  I really need to get it recovered, but until then, a vintage cover will do.  I also have a wingbacked chair and a Queen Anne style chair to match.

I am set on getting a coffee table like this.  If anyone comes across one for a reasonable price…please…let me know!!

These are a few of my favorite things!

Antique French Frame

Stool

Antique French Mirror

Tiny Frames

Table

hooks

candle sticks

And so on and so on….you get the point.  =)  A lot of that is white or whitish, but I do want to punch it up with some color!  I like to add a little modern flair to my vintage style.

I am off to go scout out some  more things lovely things for apartment.  I wish I had the money to just go crazy in Urban Outfitters!

Oh…and while packing up somethings in my studio on Saturday I found some fun things!  Negatives of pictures from fun times and some awesome mixed cds -thanks Matt!  They made an otherwise mundane day really bright! My evening got even better when I got to hang out with friends drinking pomegranate martinis by a fire.  Thanks Heather and Nick!

Have a lovely evening!

A New Lease on Life

I haven’t posted in a while because of all of the strange things that have been happening in my life over the past two months. It all started out when the aliens kidnapped my soon-to-be ex-husband.

He started going through some sort of quarter life crisis and I think he lost his mind. I won’t get into all of the hairy details on the web. We all know what he did and I don’t feel the need to waste my time rehashing it. (If you don’t know, and are dying to, email me.) I am a strong woman and I am handling this well. He has pushed me away for the past few months and it has made life so much easier for me. My family and friends have been supporting me and keeping me busy since I left him on Tuesday. I am so thankful for all of them! They really helped me get through my first holiday as a single gal.

On to the positive and fun stuff! I am very excited about my new lease on life! I have so many things that I want to do and I started out by finding my own apartment! That’s right! I am officially out of the ghetto!! I have a FABULOUS new apartment in a gated community near my school. (Hey Lisa!  We are going to be neighbors!)   I have a two bedroom, on the ground floor.  I can’t wait to get all moved in, decorate, and have everyone over for a housewarming party! I won’t be moving in until the end of December, but I can handle the wait. =o) It gives me plenty of time to get everything organized, boxed up and ready to move. Thanks Mom and Heather for helping me pick out the perfect Princess Pad!

I have taken over as Lead Teacher for second grade. This is something I am happy about because, well…you know me…I like a little extra responsibility and being in charge. =op They don’t call me the Princess for nothin’! Congrats to Anne on her new little bundle of joy! I can’t wait to meet little Macie!

I am graduating with my Masters of Arts in Teaching next month! I am VERY excited about this! I have worked so hard and will graduate with a 4.0 gpa in addition to getting a HUGE pay raise! This is going to be a major season of celebration!

So here is to changes, celebrations, exciting new beginnings and buying all the shoes and fabric I want!

P.S. Happy Be-lated Thanksgiving! This year I have a lot to be thankful for!

Oh and I just can’t stand it! I have to add one more thing for your entertainment! I had a child poo, not just a little bit….I am talking a big old TURD on my the floor of my classroom on Tuesday! Wow that was really a metaphor for the entire day! At least I can look back at it and laugh!

Bewitched

Alas…my dream did not come true.  *sigh*

Usually I stay late on Mondays to get everything in order for the week, but I had to make a trip over to AASU today to take care of some graduation paperwork.

I came home and started cleaning up a storm.  I do not know what came over me.  Maybe it was prompted by my dream. lol I was such the 1950’s housewife this afternoon!  I started a roast last night and let it simmer in the crockpot all day today so it was nice and ready for supper tonight.  Mmm!  All the while I had the  Bewitched theme song was playing in my head.

Work was a bit of craziness again.  I had 2 students with birthdays – double the cupcakes!  Double the sugar!  Double the hyped up kids!!

It has been too long…

since my last blog entry.  I have been beyond busy.  My life has been crazy hectic – but in a good way!  I started teaching at my new school.  So far, so good!  I will post pictures of the updated classroom later.  I don’t have them on this computer.  I have a sweet little class.  We have so many students in second grade that we are creating a 5th class.  This will start on Monday.  It is nice for me because I will have less students and can spend time on the ones that really need me the most.  I have made lots of new friends at work and I feel like I have a good support system there.  Since I switched over my classroom website to the new school, things have been haywire!  The links are not all working and neither are some of the graphics.  So crazy!  I will hopefully be working on that later today.

On the house hunting front…we went again this morning and found a new house that we would build that we like the absolute BEST!!  It is in a great neighborhood and close to work for me. The house is spacious and has an open floor plan.  I am very excited about it!!  One thing that I really like about this company is that they let you pick all of the options, paint colors, cabinets, etc.  The other place we were thinking of building does not have that.  They are also giving us a deal since I am a teacher.  =)  The amenities center is really nice too!

Click here to check out the model.  It is in Savannah Quarters in Pooler.  The East Haven quarter in the Hamilton Grove neighborhood.

Well I am off for now….stop by and visit again soon.  I will hopefully have some pics to post.  =)