currently...

I have loved these posts but haven't written one before...so today is as good as any!

Currently happening right now...

Listening to the freezing rain and thunder outside of our house and the sounds of my little boy playing inside the house.  Snow day!

Loving that this baby girl is using one of the same blankets her big brother did when he was a baby.

Reading Kisses from Kate...finally!

Excited about getting into our new church building this weekend...that's another long story to tell soon!

What about you?  Have you written a Currently post?  Leave me a link in the comments!

happy {heart} day...

from my two little valentines!

MK's two month well-check...

Mollie Kate had her two month well-check with our favorite Dr. Sam on Monday.  The nurses scheduled her check for us, which ended up putting us at her two month well-check when she was 11 weeks and 1 day old.  Oh well! :)

**I had to get a picture of the band-aids on her chubby little thighs**

 Here are Mollie's 2 month stats:

Weight: 11 lbs (25th%)

Height: 23.5 inches (50th-75th %) - up 2.5 inches from birth!

Clothing: 3 months (but she is growing out of those length-wise, she's a tall girl!)

Diapers: Squeezing into Size 1 for the last few diapers :)
Sleeping:  8-9 hours a night!
Tricks: Smiling at everyone (but saves the best smiles for her brother) and cooing, which always results in the hiccups

Here's a little comparison for you:

** Grayson after his two month check up, with band-aids on his chubby, little thighs **

Love these two kids!

{DIY}: LOVE hand and footprints

I know it's just 2 days before Valentine's Day, but I have a cute, simple, and inexpensive craft for you!  It would be the perfect Valentine’s Day present for your children’s’ grandparents.

I started with a 1”x8” board that was about 24 inches long. Be sure to sand the rough edges so your littles won't 

end up with splinters!

I gave it two quick coats of paint in Cherry Cobbler.

In order to figure out the spacing for the hand and footprints, I traced the “L” (Pharmacy font size 515) and the “e” (Pharmacy font size 492) onto my board with a ball-point pen.  I simply traced over the letters that I had printed out on my computer, which made a little indention on the board.

Next, using white paint, I painted my little guy’s hand and pressed it on the board to form the “o” and my little baby girl’s feet to form the “v”.  After their hand and footprints were complete, I simply filled in the “L” and “e” with the same white acrylic paint using a small paint brush.

I love having this on my mantel of the great and wonderful blessings that the Lord has given our little family!

Linking up to:

Tutorials and Tips Linky Party @ Home Stories A to Z

Someday Crafts

36th Avenue

Tidy Mom

Whipperberry

Tatertots and Jello

Six Sister's Stuff

I Heart Naptime

It's Overflowing

Be Different Act Normal

Home Stories A to Z'

30 Days Reader's Choice Link Up

Skip to My Lou

Pinterest Test Kitchen: M&M Giant Cookie Cake

I was browsing Pinterest for a dessert to bring to a Superbowl party with a little 5-year-old peeking over my shoulder.  Of course, when the cookie cake pin came across my little iPhone screen, Grayson immediately decided THAT was the dessert we needed to bring.  And I'm so glad he picked it!   This recipe is DELICIOUS and easy-to-make.  I should have taken a picture of it as soon as it came out of the oven, because there is one little, tiny piece left to photograph...and then after quickly snapping an instagram pic I ate that little, tiny piece.

The only change I made was the advice of the author and using 1/2 cup of butter and 1/2 cup of butter-flavored shortening.

This Cookie Cake was SO much better and more flavorful than those super expensive ones you can buy at the mall.

Check out the recipe here at Cookie Madness: http://www.cookiemadness.net/2008/08/mm-chocolate-chip-cookie-cake/

mk's dresser...after

Back in August, I showed you the "before" of MK's dresser.  It was HIDEOUS shape to start with, but had a beautiful shape.

In September, I tried out Annie Sloan's Duck Egg chalk paint and loved the ease that the paint went on with and loved the color...I just didn't love the color against the gray walls of the nursery.

Anxious to save some money and try out some of the DIY chalk paint recipes floating around Pinterest, I set out to paint the dresser in a different color.  I chose Sweet Nothing by Behr, a gorgeous, barely-there pink color.

I came across this recipe from Dear Emmeline and picked it...simply because I already had the ingredients at home! :)    You can pick up a sample pot of paint from Home Depot for $2.94 (exactly 1 cup of flat paint) and a box of baking soda for less than $1!  I am thrilled with the results, for less than $4 - less than half of the price of AS chalk paint.

The dresser was missing a few of the drawer pulls so I simply threaded ribbon through the holes for a few months until I found what I was looking for. On a weekly trip to Home Depot I came across these pulls (they were originally brass) that look simply sweet on the dresser with a coat of white spray paint.

I would definitely recommend this DIY chalk paint recipe and will continue to use it myself!  It has held up remarkably well (I finished it with a coat of Minwax paste wax) over the near-constant use of the dresser/changing table.

Another peek of the dresser from the door to MK's room...it turned out exactly as I pictured!

Linked up to:

 Furniture Feature Friday @ Miss Mustard Seed

Someday Crafts

36th Avenue

Tidy Mom

Whipperberry

Tatertots and Jello

Six Sister's Stuff

I Heart Naptime

It's Overflowing

Be Different Act Normal

Home Stories A to Z'

Skip to My Lou

30 Days Reader's Choice Link Up

instagram highlights: january

Where did the month of January go?  We spent a pretty good portion of the month hanging out with our sweet baby Mollie, as evidenced by some of my Instagram photos for the month.

holding a sleeping baby...best job ever // squishy cheeks //a little dresser photoshoot

our birthstones - my Christmas present to myself // my sewing supervisors // so jealous of my kiddos' eyelashes

a little felt flower crafting // Mollie was Grayson's "special guest" for "M week" // crazy kids, blessed momma

rockin' an awesome headband // crafting for MOPS // heart-a-day for February for Grayson

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You can follow me on Instagram here

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My Christmas present to myself was a set of stacking rings that feature all of our birthstones (Grayson and I share blue topaz for December, Mollie's birthstone is Citrine for November, and Scott's is Pink Tourmaline for October) from All Wired Up Jewelry Designs on Etsy.  Pennee was not only fantastic to work with, but she worked FAST!  I had my custom-made ring just a few short days after ordering.  She doesn't know that I'm mentioning anything and I didn't receive anything for this, just thought it would be a GREAT Valentine's Day gift for someone out there! :)