Family Time: First Birthday, Christmas and Paying it Forward

First time with Santa. Caleb was a little scared, Isaac was happy!

My baby turned ONE the other day. He is soo cute and sweet and calming, and is turning into a little climber. When we took him to get his one year shots, Issac was begging the nurse "NO cup (cut) baby!! Be Careful, don't hurt Cabib!!"... yes, he covered his eyes and actually tried to take the vaccine tray away from her as she was prepping. He must be a little scared from the scissors and stitches incident...



Isaac helped make the birthday cake, he is so helpful, he just loves his little brother! Do you spy my Scentsy candle? Oh goodie, I got the Sugar Cookie melts and the Irish Cream car freshner and those make me so happy, I just want to smell them constantly!!



Okay, back to the subject at hand... As tradition that I started for my oldest child, on the first birthday, everyone in attendance got a sheet of paper and wrote him a letter for him to open when he turns 18. The letters consisted of testimonies, advice, sweet sentiments, encouragement and other great things. I created a little time capsule that I put these letters in, as well as other mementos that I will add to in his youth.


Time Capsule by For Goodies Sake

Then, on his 18th birthday, he will open the capsule, and read all of the letters, look at all the pictures (and his friends will think, wow, your parents were hot back then! I jest...). In any case, I want this to be a tradition for each of my children and I hope I don't get {too} lazy over the years and forget/lose/accidentally give to Goodwill these letters, because they are true gems. For Calbe's birthday, we had fajitas and cake (I made it, got the wrong kind of icing so the polka-dots/number ran :( The family talked, laughed, and played the Wii. Go Grandmas, GO!!





Here, we decorated the Christmas tree. I usually do an all white/silver/blue shabby chic tree, or one year I did the jewel tone and antiqued gold Victorian tree, but this year, I wanted to do something cheery and bright because Isaac is really into it now. I am a tree perfectionist. I usually unload and reload the tree at LEAST three times every Christmas, but I relented some control and allowed my toddler to help.



He handed me ornaments and tried to name them as he gave them to me to hang. Oh, the hilarity of it all when he picked up a crazy heart ornament I made as a youth and tried to figure out, "what tha heck is this thing!?". His facial expressions slayed us as we watched the video over and over again (only the first minute of the video, you can shut off the rest). Enjoy!!



And, no, I did not borrow ornaments from the back of the tree (thus making it lean forward) for the sheer beauty of a fully stocked photo, and no, I did not get the majority of my ornaments at Micheal's/Joann's 90% off after Christmas sale last year. As for my singular shelf of which I can decorate, I wanted to make a lovely Nesting Place style garland, but alas I could not find my greenery box and the shelf wouldn't hold that much weight anyways, so I used my feather boa and a strand of red wooden beads. I consider the decorations as part of the garland!



But hey, look at what I DID get! At the Antique Mall, I got these cute card ornaments. All you do, is take cards cut out the front and glue it onto a foam board and then, cut out the back of the card (the part with the message on the inside) and glue that to the back of the foam board so the message is on the back. Then, you punch holes in the top and string in some tulle for a loop and a bow. Now, glue and glitter that puppy up and you are set. Makes great and inexpensive gifts for neighbors, friends and family.



The other two ornaments I made last year. I got some paper mache ornaments, painted them and added trims and ribbon. The snowflakes are brads that I cut the backs off and glued them on. I went for the whole robin's egg blue, red and white theme, because, really, is there anything better?


Vintage Red Czech Glass Pod Earrings by Jeweled Ambrosia

Also, I started my shop on Lollishops. It is fun over there, but a little more confusing than Etsy because there is the main site, than the Ning public blog, than the Ning vendors only blog, then the Flickr group... it's just a little much. As a seller, I feel like a newbie for the first time again. I do gotta say though, that listing an item for sell is a snap, where as on Etsy, it is this major production, so I LOVE that! Compare my two stores and let me know what style you prefer in the comments. Honestly though, every time I go to the Antique Mall, I wish I would be able to have my own little booth! Oh, I would LOVE THAT- has anyone done that before??!!

Jeweled Ambrosia at Etsy vs. my new Jeweled Ambrosia at Lollishops


Friends Help You Fly by Fannie Narte

Also, I want to inspire everyone to Pay it Forward today. The other day, someone wrote me such a nice letter, and it came at the perfect time, when I needed a bit of uplifting. And yesterday, my mom was at Braum's and the guy helping her was so kind and nice (unusual for the particular location.) He even helped an elderly lady to her car. Well, my mom called and wanted to let the management know she appreciated him. They were so happy, that corporate found out and took the boy out and even gave him a special gift for a reward. All because of a phone call!!


Friends Help You Fly by Fannie Narte
What can we do today to Pay it Forward? Do you have a friend/relative/neighbor/local clerk that may need a boost? An anonymous letter or note. An overdue apology or phone call.

There was an elderly man who was the grocery cart getter at our grocery store, and I saw him get out of his car one day, so I left him a little "Thank You note" and a flower in his car windshield... Maybe, while you are scraping your car windshield, you can go and scrape someone's else's? If you are an Etsian, buy from a new seller with no sells, you can find them by using the "undiscovered" Pounce feature! Offer to babysit, bring someone some cookies, or a bag of groceries... Honestly, sometimes it helps to pray, so that you will be guided to know who needs an extra bit of help. I hope everyone has the opportunity to serve someone in some way today. Not only will it warm them, but it will warm you inside as well.