Worth 1000 Words . . .

We had a few pictures taken one scorching evening . . . and Ryanne was not interested. At all. Haha! But that's part of the beauty of this age, right? ;)

I died my hair . . . because I was bored and hormonal. Not sure if that was a good idea.

Trey with his parents

Amanda Harris of 3 Lil' Bears Photography took our pictures. She has taken them since Ryanne was born and I just love her. Not to mention that the pictures get better every time she takes them ; )
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Fun in the Sun!

We went over to my Mom's this afternoon to let Ryanne play in the pool & eat dinner with them. 

 She loves going down the little slide!

 

You think she's a little dramatic? Me neither. 

 My brother is so super at playing with her, and was such a good sport to climb in the tiny pool with her.

 That's the mischievious grin. Moments after she started jumping off the slide, little daredevil!

 It's moments like these that I cherish and that makes all the other less fun times worth it.

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Ryanne's 2nd Birthday Party

Better late than never, right? Okay, good. I didn't need someone telling me that I'm a mom failure for posting birthday pictures a month later. Thanks for not doing that. ; )

 

My sweet birthday girl and I went outside to take a few pictures that morning! 

 

We had sweet tea and pink lemonade. I taped the "labels" on but the sweat on these kept making them fall off. Oh well! 

 

We had these jars of "orange preserves" or orange slices that we gave as favors to the kiddos. 

 

The table-scape. I made smores by taking marshmallows on a stick and dipping them in chocolate and then rolling them in graham cracker crumbs. They were a big hit. 

 

The adorable farm animal cupcakes! 

 

I had this balloon banner made to go on our deck (as well as a wheel barrow full of drinks and stick horses set up for horse races) but it was over 100 degrees and there was no way we were volunteering to go out there. Note to self: next year, book an indoor location!! 

 

Love the arm in the picture, don't ya? ; ) Ryanne had an awesome birthday party with her little friends. 

I spent hours decorating and then failed to take more than like 20 pictures. Oops! I think I'm going to hire someone next year to come take pictures so I don't have the same problem. I get too wrapped up in the fun.

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Blogging Tips

Not that I am a blogging expert or anything, because I am constantly learning in this world, but I just wanted to share a few of the vital tips I've learned throughout my blog career.

• Keep your blog looking "neat and clean." The text should be easy to read, and it should not be overly cluttered. Old posts should be easily accessible.
• Add a search button. For the love of all things bloggy, add a search button. I have deleted blogs from my reader before because they don't have a search button. Not that anyone cares, but it is of vital importance. If I can't find something I've already read, but want to see again I want to be able to find it. 
• Add connect buttons to your blog. People want to know more about you! Do you have twitter or a facebook page? Add a way for people to connect with you there.
• On the same note, add share buttons. Sometimes I read awesome posts and I want to tell all my friends about them. Unfortunately, I'm not motivated enough to hunt down the link, and move it to twitter or facebook. If you have a share button, you better believe I'm going to share it though. 
• Comment. Comment. Comment. One of the most amazing things about blogging is the community that you build. It's like a whole new world of "virtual" friends, but you have to make the first step! Reach out and tell people how much you love their blog. Most people will reciprocate. Or at least come read your blog.
• Don't be afraid to speak your mind. I find many people (including myself) apologizing for saying things that they think could be interpreted as offensive. It's YOUR blog. Don't be afraid to say what is on your mind. 
• Be careful. Don't share too much information. If you wouldn't want it on the front page of the metro newspaper, or on CNN.com, don't put it on your blog. I've had too many blog friends be stalked, harassed, or bothered so please be careful what you share on your blog.
• Make a blog notebook. Write down your ideas. I find that I come up with tons of ideas, but I often forget them or can't remember when I sit down to blog. So I got a notebook that I carry around with me and I jot down ideas as I think of them, so I can blog about them when I have time. 

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The Big O

Organization. What did you think I was talking about?

Organization has a special place in my heart, right next to chocolate and my first born.

Several of the blogs I read have shared their home organization notebook, and I thought the idea was just brilliant. Probably the biggest challenge for me is keeping our house clean, because I'm not organized enough to do it. Insert home organization notebook: i.e. brilliant idea to keep things that are presently scattered throughout the house in one lovely place.

My binder is just a plain black binder for the time being, mainly because I couldn't find a lovely one to use. So I made this cover sheet to spice it up a little bit.

 I made these 5 tabs bigger because they will be most frequently used. Oh, and because I accidentally bought two different types of tabs. Ha! They are daily, chores, food, Bible, and nursing.

 

These are less frequently used tabs: Ryanne, projects, finance, gifts, blog, party, vacation, and notes.

 In the daily tab, I have this week at a glance chart to include things to do so I can see what I have to do for the week, as well as keep up with activities.

 

This to-do list is behind the week at a glance. I love it because it works for each week well. I can do daily to dos and cross them off as I finish, as well as weekly and weekend to dos. I also like that it has a delegate spot so I can can donate part of my list to Trey : ) 

 

In the chores tab, I have a weekly view of the chores to keep me on top of my not-so-expert housekeeping. I know making beds seems rather obvious, but that is my one weakness & I know it will help to physically cross it off each day. 

 I also have this weekly chore checklist to remind me of things I may forget. I can check them off throughout the week as I finish them.

 

In the food tab, I have this weekly meal planner with an attached grocery list so I can make sure to have all the ingredients when I plan for the week. Behind it, I have a favorite recipes list as well as a large grocery checklist. I'm debating putting a pantry/freezer inventory in here as well. I also have a page protector that I slide recipes into for the week if it is not something I know well. 

In the Bible verses tab, I list verses that speak to me, that I want to remember, or that I know I need help with so I pray them for myself (like this one; I feel like a failure wife most days while I'm in school)

 

In the nursing tab, I have this weekly planner worksheet to lay out assignments, things to print, when my lectures are, and the like. Obviously, I'm out of school right now so it will blank for the next two weeks : ) 

 In Ryanne's tab, I list things that she says or does that I want to remember as well as questions I may have for her doctor, or things I need to remember to do for her.

In the projects tab, I'm listing things that I have working like organization projects, planning a yard sale, Church outings, etc.

 

In the finance tab, I have this worksheet to list all of our bills, their due dates, and to check off when they are paid. I also got a zipper pocket to put actual bills and a checkbook in to keep up with them easier. I also included a financial goals worksheet to help us reach our future goals. 

 In the gifts tab, I have this worksheet to keep up with occasions & gift ideas. I also have a birthday checklist, a Christmas gift idea list, and a black friday shopping list (yes, I like to plan ahead!).

 

In the blog tab,  I have this weekly planner to use to list my ideas for blog posts, as well as any photographing or other things I need to accomplish for a post. 

 

In the party tab, I have this party planning worksheet to help plan cookouts/holiday gatherings and the like. I also have an extensive birthday planning worksheet to help plan for next year's 3rd birthday party. Oh my word! Did I just say that? 

 In the vacation tab, I have a few copies of this vacation planning worksheet to help keep up with ideas and plans as we prepare for vacations.

Just having this notebook finished makes me feel so much more organized. I really think it will be revolutionary in my accomplishment of tasks. Ha! I need structure, and this will definitely do the trick.

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