The Joys of Owning a Lab!

Today was still freezing cold out but the sun was shining so I decided we needed to go for a walk. Our black lab Angel has been so stir crazy the last few days from being cooped up in the house. I bundled Addison up in her stroller and out we went. We recently got Angel a new training collar and it is simply AMAZING! It may look mean but it works great. I could never walk her while pushing the stroller before but now she walks so nicely next to us. You would think she was the most well trained dog if you saw us out walking. The collar we purchased is prong training collar. I'd suggest getting it if you have a dog that is really strong puller.

Once we got to the park I threw the ball a million times for Angel. Then our friends showed up with their dog Cloe, and Angel and Cloe competed for the ball making Angel even more tired. She was so wore out I wasn't sure if she would make it home. This was my plan! I wanted her so tired that all she would do the rest of the day is lie around and sleep. Once we got home she fell fast asleep on the living room floor. It wasn't till about 1pm that she regained her strength by eating a piece of frozen chicken I had pulled out for our dinner. I went upstairs for less than five minutes only to find when I came downstairs there were two pieces of chicken in the bowl on the counter instead of three. Angel had guilt written all over her face along with little pieces of chicken on the kitchen floor. If Joe were home Angel may of gotten a beating but she was lucky I only scolded her and put her on the porch for a timeout. Oh the joy of owning a Lab!!

Basketball Nursery

A friend of a friend of mine here in Kodiak is having a baby boy soon. Her nursery theme is basketballs and she was having a hard time finding things for the nursery with just basketballs and things to do with basketball. Everything had multiple sports or different kinds of balls like footballs, baseballs and basketballs. She came to me with a few ideas of what she wanted for three canvass and this is what I came up with. I think they turned out pretty cute. I hope she likes them!

First Snow!

Yesterday was a very exciting day! We got the first snow of the season yesterday and it was Addison's half birthday! That's right she is 18 months old now! She is growing so fast! We were so excited to see the snow we bundled all up and ran out to play. Angel (our dog) was so excited to play ball in the snow. Addison didn't know what to think of it all and had a hard time moving around in all of her snow gear. We wanted to wake up daddy to play but we knew he needed to sleep. Call me crazy but I am looking forward to a white winter!

Candy Land Theme Birthday

My good friend is throwing her daughter a Candy Land theme birthday party for her 5th birthday coming up. I have been helping with the decorations. Even though I'm miles away (her being in Hawaii and me in Alaska) I am still able to help. I have created a lot of things digitally and have emailed them to her. All she has to do is print and cut! Above is her invitation I created (minus the real info for privacy reasons). My friend sent me a sample of what she wanted it to look like. I took that idea and changed it to fit with the theme I've already created. I had already illustrated cupcakes for Shutterstock.com (where I sell stock images) so this made it easier to create her invite. I can't wait to see how the party turns out. I wish I could be there!

Homemade Board Book

I made Addison a board book this morning. It's not perfect by any means but I think it turned out cute. It has pictures of all her family. Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles and our dog on the cover. She instantly wanted the book when I was done and began flipping through all the pages pointing to each person. I made it from cut up illustration board that I tapped together and printed photos. I printed the photos on paper, cut them out and pasted them to the pages. I hope it helps Addison remember and learn all of her family members that she doesn't get to see all the time.

Monster Brownies

Tomorrow we are going to a Halloween party for the kids at my friends house. All the moms were told to either bring a Trick (something for the kids) or a Treat (something for everyone to eat). I have to bring a treat so I made some fun brownies. I had 2 different brownie mix boxes in my pantry so I started with those. I topped one pan of brownies with butterscotch chips and spread them once they melted and the other pan I topped with mini marshmallows and candy corn M&M candies. I then took apart chocolate oreos, put a little white frosting and a chocolate chip on them for eyes. I stuck the oreos in the brownies when they were done baking. I think they look fun and I came up with them all on my own. I call them Brownie Monsters!

Holli's Blossoms

My good friend Holli makes the cutest handmade hair bows and headbands. She made this adorable felt flower headband for Addison for Christmas. I had to put it on her yesterday to take her picture. She is so talented and makes the most unique things. She even does custom orders! I don't know how she finds the time since she has 3 small children and another on the way. She is one busy momma! Check out her sites if you are looking for some cute clips and bows for your little girl...

http://www.etsy.com/people/HollisBlossoms
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Hollis-Blossoms/117921318278423