I Once Heard that 'Bullet Points' was Too Violent a Term.

• I am working insane hours. Like, basically, ALL THE HOURS. I've working like crazy to launch a new website that will rebrand my business, and have lots of wonderful clients that I'm working with, as well. I go to bed too late, ignore my husband and baby too much, and am generally parked in front of my computer all hours of the day. Seriously. I told Mike today that I understood why the teacher from The Freedom Writers got divorced. Not that I'm saving the world or anything. Just working 20/7.

• As much as I use LeechBlock (love!), I sometimes cheat. As a result, I've had to make a wallpaper for my desktop to remind myself to just STOP IT ALREADY. I've had a few requests to share, so here it is!



To use: click on it so it opens in another window. Then right click (or ctrl+click and 'set as desktop background.')

• I just launched an internationally best-selling author's blog today. She lives in London and just got back from a trip to Italy to meet with historians. Have I mentioned how awesome and interesting my clients are?

• Have I ever told you that I am stupidly obsessed with The View? I'm not sure if it's the fact that it's on Hulu or if I  actually like it...but I pretty much watch an episode every day while cleaning and cooking dinner. I tell Mike that I watch it to hear current events discussed...like Octomom bringing her 23 children on an airplane.  Yeah.  

• I am contemplating switching to WordPress. I still think Blogger is AMAZING in terms of what it has to offer, especially for newbies (free > $100 a year). But the plug-ins? I might be in love.

• I like Harry Potter, but I'm not obsessed. Is there a middle ground? It seems as though everyone is either FANS!!11 HARRY POTTER FOREVERRRR or...hasn't read the books.  I loved the books, but I honestly cannot handle Daniel Ratcliff as Harry. I'll see the movie on DVD. Or at the dollar theater. Are you going to take away my wand now?

•  I'm sort of tired of being a mom. I mean, not being Gabe's mom, but being a mom amongst other moms; existing in this weird world where everyone has opinions about Really Important Things like parenting and how to feed your child and take care of your child...and talking about it is tiring. Don't get me wrong, it's also reassuring and helpful to know that other people have so been there. But the part that exhausts me is the partisanship (where you belong to a parenting philosophy instead of a political party).  People get defensive when they do things differently than someone else. (I mean, there is clearly Right and Wrong about some things; child abuse = NO), but I feel like I can't ever talk about what my experiences and choices as a mother without a few people popping up to say, "That didn't work for me/That's not how we do it/Let me tell you why you're wrong." See? Tiring.

• I got two novels from the library today Mockingjay (!!!! - the final in The Hunger Games series; I almost don't want to start it!) and Matched by Ally Condie. They are both 'teen' novels. Mike may have made fun of me. (His books right now? Political philosophy and freaking Ghandi.)

• I am also reading Tina Fey's Bossypants and I am even MORE in love with her. I told Mike I wished she had a blog, but he said she's too important for that. Psh. And last night as we were laying in bed reading, I kept making him read funny bits from Bossypants (so, basically, ALL OF IT). He said, "Ha! Let me read something to you that Ghandi wrote that is hilarious."

A Quarter of a Million Dollars in Eighteen Years, They Say!

We hear ALL. THE. TIME. about how darn expensive babies are. But what no one talks about is the ways babies save you money.

Yes, you read that right: Gabe has saved us money.

Say WHAT?

Let's discuss:

- I feel like stopping for Starbucks on the way to get groceries, but Gabe has fallen asleep in the backseat and I really don't feel like waking him up. Money saved weekly: $5

- I'm running into Target for some mouthwash and Spin Pins (I lost my first set and they are essential for long-haired girls!). I don't feel like dealing with a cart, so I decide to just hold Gabe and run in and out, thereby avoiding checking out the clothing department, the baby department, and every end cap clearance section. Money saved weekly: $50

- In the first month Gabe was home, we didn't go out to eat like we normally do a few times a month. Instead of our usual budget of $75 for going out to eat, we spent $15. (Okay, so this hasn't really been as gigantic of a savings in the month since, but we certainly go out to eat less since it's more of a hassle with a baby.) Money saved weekly: $20

- While running errands, I drive past a cupcake shop/Target/fun little store and instead of getting out and indulging, I drive right by - since the hassle of getting Gabe out of his car seat and back in would negate any enjoyment I find in said cupcake. (I need a roller coaster harness in my car instead of a car seat. Push a button, Gabe is strapped in. Presto.) Money saved weekly: $10

- Buying new clothes for Gabe is far more exciting than buying clothes for myself these days. I know he'll look absolutely adorable in anything without having to try it on. I, on the other hand? Not so much. Since baby clothes are cheaper than adult clothes, I can spent $30 and get him six outfits. $30 would get me maybe three shirts. (Bargain shoppers, unite!) Money saved weekly: $20

Total money saved each week: $105. 

Plus, I'm hyper-motivated to cut corners so we can afford for me to only work part-time. (Hellooo, cloth diapering while traveling.)

Here's to half-full glasses, my friends. And money-saving babies.

Just June.

This is my life. The ukulele is a staple in it right now.

We've begun to settle into a routine of sorts this summer. Our days start with coffee and breakfast together (around the table - we're doing an experiment where we don't eat on the couch....that's the whole experiment: eat like civilized people), followed by a few hours of designing and answering emails while Gabe practices walking around the edge of everything he can get his chubby little hands on.

My work station: MacBook, chalkboard, coffee, and juice water. And, yes, I need a more sophisticated way to keep track of clients. Suggestions? (I have a spreadsheet, too. I'm not completely inept.)

I am home for two entire months, and Mike only works in the afternoons four days a week - this means we get a lot of family time. And I get a lot of time to work. My design work is really bustling and keeping me on my toes. I also had a photo shoot last weekend (squee!) and I was even able to finagle some sewing time this week. I don't know whose idea it was to put my entire sewing machine/fabric/crafty bits in Gabe's room, but it makes it difficult to sew during nap time. 

Sweet, sweet success.

I also updated my Etsy shop with all kinds of earrings and coasters and reusable coffee sleeves. It's been so quiet for many months, so I'm hoping to breathe some life into it. (Have I mentioned that getting things done with a baby is challenging? Oh, just yesterday? Okay, then.)

I packed away more of Gabe's clothes - and realized he has more hoodies that currently fit him than I do. What can I say? I love a baby with a hood.

This is a *3T* Snoopy hoodie we snagged from the thrift store. It's my favorite thing in existence.

We finally bathed our child for the first time in ages. Bathing babies daily is overrated - it's like with clothes, no need to wash unless they're visably dirty, am I right? (I'm not right? I'm just gross and an awful mother? Well.) Giving him a bath has gone from a pain to an-activity-that-keeps-him-busy-and-I-can-read-Bossypants-in-the-bathroom. I think there will be more baths in our future.

We also started a garden, which, judging from our history, is likely to end up in dead plant nubbins. Only time will tell.

Gabe hamming it up at the apartment community garden.

I finally took a few photos with the nine month stickers and just couldn't help but share this face:

Because, really.

If I were a kid, I'd probably call this summer 'boring.'

But as an adult? It's pretty wonderful.

And now I think we'll go for a long walk with my boys and pick up this book from the library.

Playing the Celebrity Look-A-Like Game.

 I think I must have a familiar face. I can't tell you how often people tell me I look like someone - both famous and not. Both Gabe and Mike also seem to have celebrity look-a-likes, which is sort of fun. 

So, I thought it'd be fun to show you some of the famous people Mike, Gabe, and I have been told we look like...

Hollie Marie Combs (Piper from Charmed)

I've never actually watched the show Charmed, but I've been told since high school by probably a dozen people that I look like the character Piper.  (Be careful if  you're Googling photos of her, though. That's all I'm saying. Yeesh. ) (This photo of me is awful, but I'm too lazy to scrounge up a photo of myself with straight hair. Y'all know what I look like, anyway.)

Ellen Page

The kids at school are convinced I look like 'Juno' as they say, but I don't really see it. Sure, we're both petite and brunettes...but her chin is much pointier than mine, right? Not to mention her nose is adorable, while mine is decidedly not.

Pam and Jim

Mike and I have been told we remind people, both in the way we act and look, of Pam and Jim from The Office forever. My aunts, coworkers, and even strangers at the store once, have told us this.  I do see similarities, and I'm lucky to be married to a funny guy. Mike and Jim have the same humor - so many times we'll be watching the show and I'll just look at Mike with a "Oh, that is so you."

"The Kardashian Baby" (aka: Mason)

Even Gabe gets told he looks like a celebrity! Since he was a few months old, we've heard that he looks like the Kardashian baby. I think it's probably because they both have some Serious Eyebrows and dark coloring. I can actually see some similarities between the two of them. 

Who is your celebrity doppelganger? :) I'd love to hear!