Head on Over!!

Hi! Guess what? I have Hello-Suzy up and running now! (ok, it still needs a lot of work, buuuuut it's up!!) I've got 3 new posts up too! WOAH. ok...it's time for me to go to bed.

BALANCE for 2014

Happy New Year!
Thanksgiving is warm and loving. Christmas is magical. New Years is inspirational. Now is the time to start over and set out to do the things you've dreamed of.

For the new year there's one word to describe my goals...

BALANCE

I want to work on balancing my life since having a baby has really shook up and changed my world. Not in a bad way, but I still find myself  grasping at my old life and being upset when it just doesn't work out.

Balance...
My time. To let myself relax, but also push myself to work on projects like sewing, drawing and baking.

My body. To exercise and get my body into shape again and to eat good. To feel at ease and accept this new body.

My mind. Meditate, yoga, positivity and being able to let go. To catch myself before I get too upset or overwhelmed.

My role as mom, wife and me. I will always be Sam's mom, but I need to be Rob's wife again and find time to be just that. I also need to be myself and not feel guilty about it.

Our finances. Time to grow up and take care of our money. To not waste it and plan for big things like trips or the home.

Our home. I really want to simplify the house and its clutter. To finally clean up the boxes and junk. To fix up the office. To only keep clothes that I wear, fit and of good quality.

Good-Bye 2013

This year has got to be one of my favorites! You can't beat the experience of having your first child. Totally magical. I'm sad to see it end, but at the same time...2014 is going to rock!

Here's my summary of the past year!

January
We got the nursery ready and I won $100 from EarthFare for my resolution.

Ikea furniture!

February -
Went to Myrtle Beach with friends for the marathon. It snowed!

Myrtle Beach Marathon

March -
Really getting ready for Sam. Painted master bathroom and fixed up the fence in the backyard.

Traditional St. Patrick's Day dinner for the boys

April -
Hello Sam!

We waited a long time for you buddy!

May -
Got to celebrate my first mother's day and Sam started smiling.

My first Mother's Day

June -
Celebrating my birthday and summer.

Loving the backyard

July -
Having fun at the Farmer's Market.

Fun at the Farmer's Market

August -
Tasting solid food for the first time!

Solid food!

September -
Labor day, trip to the zoo with friends and first hair cut!

zoo!

October -
We baptized Sam and my family came to visit.

Baptizing Sam

November -
New car, Thanksgiving in New York and meeting cousins.

fall!

December -
Sam's first Christmas, it was so sweet and wonderful.

Christmas!

Tackling the Closet

trust me, lots more room here!

Saturday night I was feeling inspired and productive by the upcoming new year and its goal. I decided it was time to tackle the closet and my clothes! Dun-dun-dunnnnn.

This time no holding back. Time to be realistic! I got rid of clothes that would never fit again, clothes that never looked good on me to begin with and clothes I just never wore. In the end, I ended up with 3 garbage bags stuffed as stuffed could be. Yeah, I kept some clothes that may or may not fit, some that does hold sentimental value and some that is just too fun to throw away. But the majority are my classics, clothes that lasted through the years, clothes that look good on me and clothes that'll hold me over till I get back into shape.

I also gave myself new rules to follow. Rules that I've been thinking about for years but never implemented. Now that I'm not pregnant anymore and working on getting into shape, there's no more excuses. My ultimate goal for these rules is to have a closet filled with good quality clothes, clothes that look good on me and give me confidence and clothes that all kind of go together for lots of mix and matching. I want a style, I want a look that really expresses who I am. Not the all over the place girl I've been.

Suzy's rules for clothes:

- Don't buy from stores you know that doesn't fit you properly or falls apart quickly. Places like Old Navy and Target. Time and time again I buy clothes from there, only for it to make me look dumpy. Not worth the lower prices.

- Don't buy from Good Will. While I may have found some awesome clothes at Good Will, a lot of stuff I do buy is on silly whims, thinking I can totally pull off. The last few times I bought pants there ended up looking just bleh on me.

- Don't buy clothes JUST because it's on sale.  So many times I bought things that were on sale that looked ok on me and in a color that I normally don't wear.

- Don't buy clothes in colors and patterns that you know don't look good. Lately I've been paying attention to what colors look best on me. Just because I'm a happy and bubbly person, pink is not my color. Pink is a nice accent on me. Neutral colors look best with pops of color. A grey shirt with a teal cardigan.

- Don't buy clothes in styles that aren't you. I love vintage, but I can't pull it off. I can't pull off the business casual cute or the flowy bohemian.

- Don't buy clothes that are not comfortable. That means too tight, weird cuts and fit.

- Don't buy shirts from events and concerts. Mens shirts rarely fit good! Save the cash, keep the memories.

I can't wait to see how all this hold up and how different my clothes and closet will be by the end of the next year.

Sam & Suzy This Week

I couldn't help it! hee hee

This week just flew by! It's actually nice having Christmas on a Wednesday, it helps break up the week.

Sam's been at Rob's parents for the week. It's so sweet to see them together. Sam does love his grandma and grandpa. ALWAYS smiles when grandpa walks by. Hopefully one day soon, Sam will get to spend more time with them. For now, this is great.


Sam:
Sam is beginning to be a bit clingingy and will cry if I leave the room. Secretly, I've been waiting for this moment...come on, it's sweet! He really does love me! Buuuut, at the same time, I do feel bad. I don't want him to cry. He doesn't cry when we leave in the morning, but if we come home and I say go to the restroom, he'll cry a little. He also likes sitting in my lap and doesn't want to be anywhere else sometimes. I think right now, a lot of it is him teething a bit and he's not feeling the greatest. He's like that as well when he's tired.

Suzy:
It's been a lovely week. With the excitement and joy of the holidays and the sunshine we've been getting, I've been feeling great. Working on Sam's cardboard house and the mat and pillow was a lot of fun. Reminds me that I truly enjoy making things. I also got to bake a pie! Apple pie with beer soaked apples.

AND!! I have gotten a lot of alone time this week with being sick one day and baking the pie another (2 hours to soak apples in beer!!). It's such a weird feeling and I get to the point where I start to get very lonely. But I got to watch a cheesy Christmas movie, catch up on Once Upon a Time, walk the dogs, and just sit. *dreamy sigh*

Sam's Cardboard House

For Christmas, Sam's FIRST, I really wanted to make him something. I love to make gifts. The thing is, I waited till last minute to do something for Sam. I looked through my books and everything either required time or to buy a lot of supplies. I then searched on Pinterest for DIY baby toys and I came across this cardboard house and I KNEW that's what I wanted to do! It'd be a fun little place just for Sam.

here's the house!

I knew my Honest diaper boxes would be great. Not only are they big, but they have a nice design on the outside and is teal on the inside. I got a roll of white duct tape to piece everything together and to contrast with the colors of the box. I modified the house a little because I needed to use two boxes instead of one. This house also folds up so we can put it away easily. Once put together, I put up a couple pictures of Sam and us and I put start stickers on the ceiling.

the interior and cloud pillow

I also made a little mat for the bottom. And I couldn't help but make a cloud pillow just like the one in the tutorial. I had left over fuzzy white fabric that was perfect for a cloud. If Sam really likes being in his house, I was thinking maybe putting up a curtain so he can have some privacy.

Sam loves the photos

I'm really happy how it turned out! It was a fun project. It's hard to tell if Sam is into it since he's still overwhelmed with Christmas and he's just a bit young. I like to give him his morning bottle in the house.

chillin'

Sam's First Christmas

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas.

Our's was just wonderful! Seriously, it couldn't have been a more perfect first Christmas with Sam.

On Christmas morning we all went downstairs and showed Sam his cardboard house that I had made (I will have a separate post coming up about it, cuz I think it's just swell!). I think he likes it. He enjoyed seeing the photos in there and the stars on the ceiling. I gave him his bottle in it, which he liked looking at the ceiling while drinking. We then gave him his other presents, a xylophone, a wooden helicopter and a couple books. You could tell he was a bit overwhelmed. "Look at this! Now look at this! Ooh! Look!" And then a wonderful thing happened, Sam took an extra long nap and I got to sit and drink my coffee (good stuff too from Rob) as slow and relaxing as I wanted to. For a while, I just sat there in silence, look off into nothing.

We spent the rest of the day with Rob's parents and brother. It was nice and relaxing. Sam enjoyed the toys he got from them. Rob and Sam also got to start the tradition of getting a Hess Gas Station toy truck for Christmas. This something Rob, his brothers and his dad have been doing since they were kids themselves. Very sweet! I got to talk to my family, who all sounded happy (despite colds and flus going around). I even got to video chat with my sister, thank goodness for iPhone right? It makes being so far away a bit easier for me.


Sam had an awesome day. It was everything I had hoped it would be!

Hanging out in his cardboard house

Opening presents at home

Tools!

Rob and Sam with their first Hess truck.