the best way to spread christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear

Our Christmas was great. Lots of time with family, lots of food, lots of paper. And our evil tree made it through. But now we're not watering it so we can burn it. Burn baby burn! Kemper didn't nap all Christmas day so by the time we went to dinner, he was a wreck. He did not want to be at the restaurant and made sure everyone knew it. My parents came down the day after Christmas and brought presents. Kemper got a kitchen from Ikea and loves it. He's going to be the next best chef, I'm hoping something like Duff from Ace of Cakes. Anyways. Tj spoiled me, and I got everything I wanted. But mostly I was happy to spend the holiday with him and not via Skype.

It snowed a few days before.

TJ's dad, Teddy dressed up as Santa on Christmas Eve. Kemper wasn't really sure what to think.

Opening presents like a pro! He wasn't really sure what to think, and I think the whole day overwhelmed him. But he loves all his new stuff.

Let it Snow

Its snowing again, which is good because its been unusually warm here. And luckily I have lots to do in the house today. Because I do not feel like going out. I just want to curl up in front of the TV with my Freaks and Geeks box set. I'd like my TV area to look like this:

So maybe I'll start working on that. What do your TV centers look like?

Oh Christmas Tree

And the picture won't rotate, making me believe even more, that it's evil.

Our Christmas tree is not something very special this year. It's special in that its decorated and presents are starting to add up under it. But I'm convinced its evil. It is an evil tree sent to us by some one like Jack the Pumpkin King. First its crooked. The bottom part of the trunk is straight and then somewhere father up it takes a turn left. So just putting it up was frustrating. And its some type of Scottish Fir, which now means to me that it's a death tree. When trying to decorate it the needles were so sharp, it was like being attacked by a tree with real sewing needles on it. We thought that would go away, that it was just freshly cut and would soften up. Nope. It still sucks if we have to hang an ornament back on it.

And the other night while unplugging the lights before going to bed, it fell on me. But really I think it jumped and attacked me. And then I yelped for TJ and when we finally got the thing re-situated, my arms looked like I had been bitten by a thousand fleas from the sharp little needles.

And now its decided to die on us so the needles are everywhere, and my son feeds them to the dog which can't be good at all. Also, Kemp thought it was a good idea to take a bite of a glass ornament.... don't worry, he's fine and was relatively unscratched. But really??

Hope everyone's holidays are going well. I'm enjoying a winter wonderland, but I think I got excited for Christmas too soon and now I'm a little bah humbug. It happens every year. But the fresh snow helps. What do you do to enjoy the season?

wish list

Here are a few of my hoping for's this season:

corked necklace in color wheel

freaks and geeks

the sonnets and a lovers complaint

classic trench coat

admiral pea coat

coconut by martisse boots in tan

hair cut

Before:

After:

So Kemper had his first hair cut ever last Thursday. And there's no one in town that would cut his hair, so TJ did it. And I'm sure most of you out there are singing praises that we finally cut his hair so you're welcome.

He did really well, we decided to use clippers and just take it all off instead of trying to trim it. So I pinned his arms down while TJ took to his head. He did pretty good for the most part, there was minimal screaming, but then he started to try and climb up me, so I ended up holding him. Which was a stupid idea. First, yes we have the hair factor. So I was covered in hair. And he was crying, so we can add tears and snot to the mixture. And I guess his diaper failed him too so now I'm covered in pee. A lot of pee. It was dripping and puddling on my arm. I can't tell you how awesome it was.... at least when people call him a little girl, I can really tell them they're crazy.

In other Kemper news: When TJ picked up him from nursery (his class during church with 18 mo. olds to 3 years olds), he looked thru the window to the classroom. The kids were sitting in front of the teacher singing some song with hand movements, but TJ didn't see Kemp. So he looked around the room and there he was in the corner running around in a circle with the toy vacuum cleaner, screaming. At least he was helping to clean.

what we've been up to lately

playing on things like rhinos and 4 wheelers. And finding out just how good Kemper's car seat works kidding...

Tony and Danielle's wedding in Portland, if you want a party, invite the Hermesmans. The DJ had to shut the music off so we would leave

note where his hands are...

And of course Halloween. We had friends in town for the weekend, and went to the trunk or treat. The best part of course was Kemper Cow.

And that's all I have pictures of. I've started working last month at the family business's office trying to help get them organized and learning to be an accountant. TJ's busy with work too, and Kemper keeps everyone busy. But life is good :]

entry

We just got a new console for the entry way. Mostly so we have a place to put all our stuff right when we walk in the door, and the space where its at needed something to fill the space.

While I would love it to look like the second picture, I think I'm going to tone down the color ( a little) and it will look something like the first picture. I have the credit for the pictures somewhere just can't remember...

QUESTION: DO YOU HAVE DESIGN QUESTIONS? ANYTHING YOU WOULD WANT ME TO WRITE ABOUT, OR FIND? ASK ME! I LOVE THIS STUFF

color

I think in pictures, maybe most creative types do. And our house needs a lot more color for me to be happy with it. Lately these images have been floating around my brainosphere:

found at design*sponge and strictly simple style.

And I'll leave with a question: what are you up to design wise? creative wise? life-wise? Anything.. I wanna know :]

bookshelf

source found here

Its nice to know I'm not the only one with a magazine addiction. I'm working on organizing our bookshelf, hopefully to something like this, but with DVDs

Brad Paisley and The Zoo.

For TJ's birthday I thought it'd be nice to do something big since you know, he'd be in Afghanistan. I wanted Garth Brooks tickets since that's his favorite... but I didn't realize how quickly those sold out. So Brad Paisley is my favorite, and one of TJ's favorites, along with Darius Rucker so I felt like I struck gold when I got tickets to see both of them. And I splurged so we were only 8 rows back.

The concert was amazing, I can't think of much I like more than live music. And one of the best parts was being able to see in person just how talented they are. It says something about an artist when they sound just as good live as they do in the studio.

Darius Rucker played a few Hootie songs: Hold My Hand, Only Wanna be With You and Let her Cry. And he closed with Purple Rain, which I liked better than the Prince version... sorry Prince.

Brad Paisley.. are there even words? Simply Amazing. Sorry if you hate country music... that probably means your not reading... But I love me some Brad Paisley. He had about 6 or 7 different guitars and played a two hour set! with an encore of two songs, including Alcohol where everyone on the tour came out and drank with him on stage. And he still rocked with a beer in hand. And a huge thanks to my parents who watched Kemper for the night!!

My biggest complaint of the night would've been the girl and her family in front of us. They were just annoying in general, but she had a giant neon green poster board with her. And she had to wave it around when ever any of the performers came over to the right side of the stage, where we were. She finally gave up because no one could read the stupid sign, but if she hadn't there would've been words... or a torn sign. Probably both.

The next day since we were in Salt Lake City, Alexa (TJ's sister) wanted to take Kemper to the zoo, so we did. He liked seeing the animals, but will probably get more out of it when he's older. But being in Salt Lake he was definitely not the youngest kid there.

I think his favorite were the monkeys and giraffes. And he really liked the Kangaroos as well.

So I feel like I should blog but I'm not really sure what to write. So now you're going to get a bunch of rambling:

We're settling into "normal" life pretty well. I haven't decorated the house at all, which I hate that I haven't but I'm much better at helping other people than myself..

Because of where our house is we just now have the internet, and yes I missed it, but I didn't miss facebook at all. But I do want to see the new movie about facebook.

Kemper doesn't really nap anymore. He just won't fall asleep. I'm not really looking for advice, its just irritating. Also he grew 6 inches from 12 to 15 months but didn't gain any weight. And the kid never stops eating, he just runs it all off.

I've been doing yoga every morning, and I feel better that I'm doing something, but I don't feel any more flexible. However, my chi does feel more aligned...

And I'm painting again, pictures not walls. I've got one halfway done and about 5 in my head.

I would love to see Betty White on the cover of a magazine. I'm much more interested in her life than Lauren Conrads or Megan Fox.

And thats all I got for now. We have an awesome weekend planned, so I'll make sure I bring my camera.

we're alive

and well, just tired. And I don't have my camera cord at the moment so, another pictureless post.

We spent the last three weeks in Camp Lejenune North Carolina. If you've never been, you're not missing much. But we have great friends there and its close to the beach! And then we drove three days back to our mountain town.

So now, TJ is officially out of the Marines, he's no longer active duty. And has jumped head first into working for the family. We're also fixing up our new home so we can move in. It's in good shape and other than mice theres no real big problems. But we definitely have our work cut out for us, we'll have projects for a while.

Kemper did awesome traveling, and we have his 15 month old check up today even though he's only a couple weeks from being 16 months. I can't believe how much he's growing up.

And how could I forget, we adopted a puppy. Yep, because life just wasn't crazy enough. He's pretty darn cute though. His name is Bear, and he's 2 months old and is a shepherd /blue heeler mix, and probably has some other dogs goin on in there.

So thats life for now, I'll be back with pictures later.

sugar and spice and everything nice.

If you haven't already, click over on Full House. She has great taste, and I get a lot of my inspiration there. But her current post, is about her girls room that she did with $250. Yeah, and it looks great. Even if its not to your taste, you have to appreciate all the hand made and discount shopping that went into it.

You're the reason in my life, you're the inspiration

Yeah, I went there, cheesy lyrics I KNOW. But they're stuck in my head. And they're true.

So yesterday was our (husband and I) anniversary. Two year anniversary. And tomorrow is his birthday. So this is some sort of dedicatory post to us/him. Warning: I ramble, so this could get long.

When we met neither of us were looking to "meet" someone. I was pretty uninterested in dating due to my lack of good dates or boyfriends. And was more interested in hanging out with my friends and partying. TJ had a serious girlfriend. Serious enough that he had bought a ring for her, like a diamond ring.

But of course when we met there were sparks, can't deny it chemistry. I had met him once before but the time wasn't right at all. And a few weeks passed after that friendly dinner and TJ asked me to go out on a friend date. It wasn't really a date per say (remember, the girlfriend?) but we can't pretend that that wasn't when we knew we liked each other for sure.

TJ asked if I would accompany him to the cherry blossom festival, he had to write a story for DINFOS and didn't want to go alone. And I really didn't have anything going on during the day so I agreed.

And for the first time in probably years, I was actually nervous. I knew I liked him, but I wasn't going to pursue anything, also being the other woman isn't really my style. But apparently it was because I went anyway... So, moving on.

The date was great, I was nervous that we wouldn't have anything in common, since everyone told us we had nothing in common. And even though we have very different interests, there was enough that we have in common to get us thru the date with out it being awkward, except for a really awkward moment where I decided it was a good idea to play "Business Time"*. Yes... I did. But we connected and no wonder it was our last first date, because I thought it was basically perfect. Other than the girlfriend and the ring thing...

That night was the last time I decided to go out to a bar with friends, and that Sunday was the first time I went to church on my own for almost two years.

TJ and I had made plans to just hang out that day at my house, bake cookies watch a movie. I know, we're totally wholesome. Well that night I walked him out to his car, because I' a gentlelady, and we had our first kiss. Which was perfect... oh except he had a girlfriend.

Don't worry, I'm not a complete home wrecker, I felt guilty. So the next day we talked about it and I told him, that we could be friends, but I wouldn't date him unless I was the only one. And well... we all know who won that one. And a few weeks later he sold back the ring and got a Macbook which I am typing on right now... And yes, I'm laughing about it.

So, there's my story about being a home wrecker, and I probably enjoy calling myself that more than I should. But I'm so glad that I did, I've never regretted it. TJ is one of the best things to happen to me (the other being Kemper of course). I couldn't ask for a more loving, caring and supportive husband. And I can't wait to be with him again and finally never have to say goodbye. Which happens tomorrow. We'll be together tomorrow.

* by flight of the conchords. They're a new zealand comedy act, and while there are no bad words, it is a little suggestive, but I promise it's nothing bad, you just might not want kids repeating it.

wood paneling.

I wonder what the people in the future will hate as much as we hate wood paneling now?

Anyways, I've been researching, A LOT of ways to deal with wood panel without painting it. And I'm curious as to if anyone has suggestions? Please!

Well, heres two pictures I've found that I really like both from Apartment Therapy:

This made me laugh. A lot... enjoy. Found here.

why having a toddler is like being at a frat party:

10. There are half-full, brightly-colored plastic cups on the floor in every room. Three are in the bathtub.

9. There's always that one girl, bawling her eyes out in a corner.


8. It's best not to assume that the person closest to you has any control over their digestive function.

7. You sneak off to the bathroom knowing that as soon as you sit down, someone's going to start banging on the door.

6. Probably 80% of the stains on the furniture contain DNA.

5. You've got someone in your face at 3 a.m. looking for a drink.

4. There's definitely going to be a fight.

3. You're not sure whether anything you're doing is right, you just hope it won't get you arrested.

2. There are crumpled-up underpants everywhere.

1. You wake up wondering exactly how and when the person in bed with you got there.

chalkboard

I just love the idea of having chalkboard paint somewhere in the House. I think I'd like to put some in Kempers room or play room. Or even our dining room. Plus I have to write everything down if I want to remember it or if I want to think straight so it'd be perfect to write on the wall. And I like the idea of having some framed in the living room for an ever-changing piece of art, like the picture with the Christmas stockings and cards...

vivafullhouse for credit

both at design*sponge

charleston mag

ohdeedoh

outta my head

I get images stuck in my head just like songs. I can't get these images out of my head. So I'm sharing. The below kitchen I think I'd like to incorporate into our new home. And the living room is what I had in my head when we moved in here, and did not turn out that way at all.

I saw our new house last week... and we're going to be busy with it for a very long time.

both found at design*sponge

all the single ladies

Single mothers. I don't think of myself as one, seeing how I am married, just separated due to the military. But technically, I am a single mom. I think in questions. Its how I function, I ask as many questions as I can until I feel like I fully understand something. Tonight I kept asking, How do they do it? How are there women out there who are single and doing it all themselves? They have kid(s), and work and sometimes even manage school. On their own. Alone. Sure maybe they have support, but I'm sure there are plenty who don't. How do they do it. How do they keep going? And then wake up in the morning and do it all again.

I've been working a lot lately. Housekeeping at one of the family's motels. I live rent free in a house TJs family owns so I basically "earn my keep". Its pretty simple work, not rocket science, I have someone to watch Kemper for free, but it is time-consuming. And my back is typically sore by the end of the day. My own house is a disaster and I'm glad no one visits, because I wouldn't want anyone to see. I try to put Kemp down to bed as early as possible, because my patience wears thin. And then instead of cleaning up, I usually put a few toys away and decide I'm tired, turn on a netflix movie and go to sleep.

Its the summer, tourist season, busy season. So I've been working a lot lately. Kemper has a hard time being somewhere different, playing with new things, he misses out on naps. So when I got home this evening I put him in his highchair, gave him some snacks and five minutes later hes passed out. I take him upstairs and figure he is down for the night. I sit myself down on the couch and zone out for a while. It isn't until a while later I realize my baby is crying. And not the whining I want attention. He was crying so hard that he was barely crying. It had to have been for awhile. I know this could happen to anyone, but I felt like because I was so tired, I was being neglectful. The stress hit me and I cried with him as I cuddled him back to sleep. And I thought, "How the hell do people do this?" I can barely keep it together just knowing that there is a light at the end of my tunnel. I won't be single parenting for very long. And I know I'm blessed but I just lost it today. Maybe I'm overly sensitive, or emotional. But my emotions did all flood me tonight. And I cried that I wasn't strong enough to be the working single mom. I am so thankful for the people who care, and for my husband who serves this country. But it can not be over soon enough. Only nine more days.

And single ladies, your next drink is on me.

a wedding possibility

So if you know us, you know we didn't have a wedding. We just went to the court house and that was that. And I don't regret it one bit. And wit TJ almost home, we're getting ready to take temple prep classes and we'll finally be sealed.... But I DO want a wedding, I guess the princess in me is coming out. Anyways, this wedding was featured in Martha Stewart Weddings and its pretty much perfect. Except ours will hopefully be held outdoors. I love the dress, I think I'm going to try and find one similar. I know TJ won't like the suit, but the color theme is perfect if he wants to wear his dress blues. Anyways, enjoy.

TJ was home

And he's gone again. But of course it was amazing to be back together again. I just can't wait until it's for good. TJ is opting for the early out choice and should be back home in only a few short weeks. Most of the two weeks were spent catching up with friends and family. We did take a day and a half to ourselves and drove up the mountains to a town called Ouray and visited Telluride. It was great to be just the two of us, I forgot what that was like.

Anyways, enjoy some pictures!