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recap

I am sorry there has been a lack of posts for you my dear readers. Life has been busy around here! I have been working like a crazy mad woman, and when I am not at work I am full filling orders for my Etsy boutique, Evi Luna, which by the way is doing really well so far! I am slowly getting my name out there and participating in some great giveaways. This last week was great because I sold four skirts and a few headbands, slowly but surely, right? I have also been researching the BlogHer convention which is being held in sunny Sun Diego this Summer so I need to take advantage of this amazing event, are any of you going? I have also been spending as much time as I can with the hubby and my baby. I take them for granted sometimes and I need to spend the extra time I have with them. This past Tuesday, Jim decided to surprise me by staying home from work since we typically have opposite schedules, we might see each other for a few hours on Saturday and Sunday before I head to work but usually we “see” each other by texting or me calling him a bazillion times while he is working away. It is rough, each day brings us a new challenge, usually it’s who is going to watch the baby but sometimes we’re faced with crappy things like me coming home from work at 2:30 am to find out that we have a slab leak! I laid in bed crying, asking why we are being challenged so much this week, it comes in waves but for some reason God seems to be challenging us lately with some major issues. The water has leaked into our office and our hallway, hopefully, the leak is coming straight from our hot water heater. The plumbers are coming late this afternoon to assess the damage, I know it’s an easy fix for them, we just went through this at work so at least I am familiar with the process but the actual carpet damage is what is putting another pit in my stomach. The replacement of our carpet has been on the “list” it isn’t even bad, just a tear where Delilah as a puppy wanted in our office and a few milk/juice stains from Payton, but it needs to go. Hopefully, our insurance will cover some new flooring (thinking hardwood for high traffic and new carpet for the rooms). Oh! the things life throws at us!

How was your week?

A few pics of P and our week:

Enjoying a Hello Kitty cupcake while I got my eyebrows waxed. My nail shop is the best, I have been going there for nine years and they treat us just like family. They get mad at me if I don’t bring Payton.

Tuesday we took Payton to Seaworld. Ignore the picture quality, I took out my DSLR and I forgot my SD card so camera pictures it was!

Yesterday was my nieces 4th birthday so I took Payton to the Cal Oaks sports park to waste some time while we waited on everyone. It was trippy going back to that park, it has changed a little but the sound of the swings really brought back some good memories.

At lunch, loving every minute with her birthday twin and her bff, Makayla, like I have said before these two have such a neat bond. I love watching them together. They just kept hugging, kissing and feeding each other.

Have a great weekend!! Any plans?

slimming down

I have never posted about money issues, but since it is a relevant subject in our lives I thought that I would give it a go. We make a great living, don’t get me wrong. We make well above the National median for income, we own our own house, two cars and a bunch of crap we don’t need. I am very good about purchasing items on sale, highly discounted and I am a huge coupon clipper. But I have this problem that usually leaves me with zero to no money left as soon as I get paid. I pay my bills right away, you know, the utilities, student loan, car payment, my consolidation bill, and I am usually left with a hefty sum for groceries and personal spending. My problem is I never save. I never have, and honestly I don’t know how. Payton successfully has a savings account, with money in it I mind you while her proud Mama has nothing. Jim and I set a budget a while ago, did we stick with it? NO. I am horrible. Our lives are changing and we need to figure out how to save, well, we know how it’s just, “how will Melissa put money away?’
I am always amazed by those who successfully save, but how do you do it? We have plans to move out of our house sooner than we expected, we need something bigger, and in a better neighborhood. We love Poway, I actually love our neighbors except for the ones immediately on our left. There is some sneaky business going on, teens coming and going, strangers knocking on our door and the constant torment that their “untz, untz, untz” sound causes my pup. I guess this is a random post, but what I am asking is, how do you do it? I need to learn self-control. My dear hubby is placing me on a strict budget so we can save over $5k by the Fall, it seems so daunting, I know we can do it, because it always works out.

Here are three things I need to improve on:

One weekly Target trip vs. daily or every other day. That damn store I tell you! There is something I always think I need. Problem #1
Go the route my Sister does and have the hubby do the grocery shopping. This is by far my favorite thing to do and I thank my parents. I love making my list and going up each aisle. It’s sick. Because I am such a foodie it would probably be a great idea to send a non-foodie to the store.
Eat lunch at home more often. I love going to lunch with P, but now that she is eating normal lunch I tend to spend anywhere from $13-$19 per outing. I am a sucker for Panera, Champagne bakery, etc. I guess making lunch at home would be better on my wallet.

So, what are the things you do to help save?

15-Months

I cannot believe Payton hit the fifteen month mark on Friday. She is learning so much everyday and I always wish I wrote everything down as soon as she does something instead of waiting and recollecting the past three months of growth. This stage is by far my favorite, she truly is a mini human, and a mini me! Yesterday my parents and Jim took her to her well-baby appointment, sadly, it was the first appointment I have missed since her arrival. I was worrying the entire time and I wanted my updates. I look forward to these visits to see how she is progressing, we know what she is up to but it is always nice to hear how she is doing compared to children on a national level. We love our Pedi, Dr. Martinez, she has gushed over Payton since she was four days old and is always shocked when we bring her in. Yesterday she told Jim that our sweet little girl is very advanced for her age, she was shocked by how much she understands and how well she communicates with us. We haven’t taught her sign language, I have considered getting the video but for now we have taught her “more” and “all done” which she picked up after one try. I don’t want to concentrate solely on signing because she repeats and uses words so I know if we just keep repeating everyday words she will get it soon. Her favorite word these days is “this”. She says it for everything! She will point and keep saying “this” until we get what she really wants. She loves playing peek-a-boo, reading books, the Little Einsteins (it’s the only show she stops everything for and tries singing along at the beginning), blowing kisses, closing doors (all to get a huge high-five), and finally putting her toys away after taking them all out. Her favorite activity is climbing up the slides at all of the local parks and swinging as high as the baby swings can go. When she hears or sees an airplane she stops everything, starts shaking and excitedly says, “oooooohhhhhhhh!” She has also shown us her mechanical side by finding little buttons and switches on every toy. I am a little worried that she has daddy’s mild OCD as she neatly stacks everything or makes sure that everything is lined up in a row. She has also learned how to really throw objects both frontward and backward, she has an arm on her folks! Everyday brings something new and we are loving every.single.minute!

Stats and other info:
– Head: 18 1/2″ 90th percentile
– Height: 32 1/2″ tall, 95th percentile
– Weight: 24.32 pounds, 75th percentile. LONG & LEAN!
– Words: dizzy, lilah (for Delilah), da-da (this doubles for daddy and doggie), ma-ma, duck, ooce (juice), hi, necklace, fish, ball and bye
– She loves veggies more than fruit. She will only really eat fruit if it’s pureed, like the little squeeze pouches, or if it’s a banana which she will eat the entire thing or in yogurt. She is her daddy’s girl! She hasn’t refused a veggie yet. She will eat broccoli over anything.
– She loves turkey, chicken, garden burgers, Spanish rice, black beans. mommy’s buckwheat pancakes with a thin spread of Nutella, and quesadillas ( and a french fry or two!)
– She looks for birds while were out and points when she spots one.
– When it’s bath time she runs to the tub, when it’s dirty diaper time she runs to her room and when it’s time for bye-bye she runs to the front door.
– She has all of her teeth except for her eye teeth that are starting to come through.

walkin’ with some swagger. ha ha!

Top 2 Tuesday: Two Random Facts about you!

It’s Tuesday y’all! Woo hoo! One last day of work and it’s my weekend. Thank you Lord! This week’s T2T is: Two Random Facts about You! Wanna get in on the fun? Click the image above.

1. I sucked my thumb until I was fourteen! Now, don’t go judging. There are a ton of you that still sleep with your blankies or that special plush bear with missing arms and legs but my comfort blanket was sucking my thumb. I had to stop when I got my braces and my bite plate, as there was no room for my teenage sized thumb! ha ha. There are only a handful of peeps that know this fact, so there ya go! Now, when I get tired I play with my left ear. I did this along with sucking my thumb but since I finally consider myself a grown-up I only play with my ear when I am dead.beat.tired! Whew! I feel so much better airing that. 😉 My shrink would be so happy.

2. I am obsessed with Cardigans. It’s sick. I probably own every single shade of BP’s quarter and full-length cardi’s. They are my fav. I am also a sucker for any cardigan that has an embellishment of any sort: ruffles, a cute flower, cute buttons, etc.

and a third for good measure: I have to speak to my Mother at least two times a day. I usually call her on my way to work and if she doesn’t answer or call me back before I step foot in the door I start to shake, okay, maybe not really but I have to let her know what I have been doing and to know what she and my Dad have been doing. I also have to call her as soon as I am leaving work. Y’all are probably thinking I am ridiculous, I am after all three short months away from turning twenty-nine, but it’s just one of those things. I am a mama’s girl, always have and always will be. I love her and love talking to her. I just wish we lived closer.

What are two random facts about yourself?

I am now going to hide from embarrassment.

Swooning

I am gushing over the photos my dear friend, Tessa, of Grin & Share It Photography took of our daughters for my Evi Luna Boutique session yesterday. Tessa started taking our photos when Miss P was born and from then on out she will always be our family photographer. She is so talented and always manages to capture the sweetest moments. If you live in the San Diego area or ever plan on traveling here please consider her for capturing your special moment!

Yesterday morning we met down in Spanish Village with our darling babes to take pictures of my pettiskirts and hair accessories. It was a gorgeous day and as we paid our girls with Gerber cinnamon maple snacks they were ready to get their inner model on. These girls are such hams, I cannot wait for them to get older because they are going to be the best of friends. I can totally see them now getting into some major mischief together! I am swooning over the photos and I hope it will drive some sales to my Etsy Store. What do you think?

6 weeks a part. Love them!

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