Giveaway Winner!!!

So this whole giveaway Random Generator thing is a way harder than I expected. Haha. It's taken me a little while to figure it out.

And the winner is...

YAY!!!

Jesse you're the winner!!!

Just email me {HERE}with your address and I will mail your little guy his elephant with in the week!


Thanks so much to my friends and family for supporting me and entering this giveaway!! I have more fun things planned for this coming month!!!!

Grown Up "Piggy Bank"

Look at what I made today!

Its just a little something I like to call "My Grown Up Piggy Bank". 

Yep. I needed something to start saving my pennies in. I have a list of things I want to buy and that I actually have to save up for. Carrying my money around in my wallet just wasn't working. I do love to spend. 

I will post a tutorial on this tomorrow. Yay!!

So Mick and I have made a couple new rules for each other. 

1.) He is not allowed to play his Xbox until he's worked out for at least 20 minutes. 

2.) I am not allowed to blog or get on Pinterest until I have worked out for at least 20 minutes. 

Crazy! But I think it's going to work!

Good night friends! Don't forget about the giveaway. It ends tomorrow! I will announce winners at 9:00 p.m. tomorrow night!

iSew.

I love sewing. No...I LOOOOOVVVEEEE sewing! It brings so much joy and satisfaction to my life. Sewing gives me the opportunity to create and to think. I love the noise my sewing machine makes. I love seeing a flat piece of fabric take life as it becomes something to be loved (especially when it can be loved by others!).

I decided to dedicate this post to my Aunt Patti. I remember spending a lot of time drawing dresses and outfits for myself and my Barbie dolls as a little girl. I finally sat down and made a dress I had "designed" for my Barbie out of toilet paper. I showed it to my aunt. I guess she was pretty impressed because I remember her telling my grandma to give me some pieces of fabric and thread so I could make "real" clothes! Grandma did and that is how it all began!

So Thank you Aunt Patti!!

I taught myself how to sew. I honestly don't know how I did it. I just did...fairly easily too. I guess you could say that I have a {gift}. I have often wondered what to do with this gift. I am by no means a professional. I am not the best at sewing. There is a lot I still don't know. But I am so grateful that this is a part of who I am. So very grateful! I hope to use this gift that I have been blessed with to share with and hopefully help others.

I am working on a new project this year. I can't wait to have all of the details ready to be shared with you! It is super exciting and probably will be one of the BEST things I could do with my sewing talent.

Thank you to all who have supported, encouraged, and even bought a lot of the stuff I have made! I already love this year! 2012 is truly going to great huh?!

I made this dress and it is for sale {HERE}

Who Taught My Baby How to Walk?!

I am pretty sure Kenny woke and thought to himself, "Yeah...I am going to walk today and totally freak mom out!".

And he did!

Son, you are growing up too fast! Don't you know you're not even a year old yet?

Am I ready for this?

Ready or not...it's happenin' and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!!!!!!!

My Little Man

I am seriously in love with this little man of mine. 

I can't believe he will be ONE in just a few short weeks!

Kenny is wearing my Forest Green Linen Bow Tie. To purchase go {HERE}

Little Super Heroes!

These two are just WAY too cute! 

I love that Kenny has so many cousins his age. 

He has four all with in eight months of each other!

First Family Portrait

Yeah...that's right. My family just barley had our first official family pictures taken this last September. It was a very special time for our family and I am so happy that our AMAZING friend and photographer was there to take our family pics!

They turned out so wonderful! Here are a couple of my favorites!

Pictures taken by David & Ashley Photography

I Said Goodbye...

...to Facebook.

Its too time consuming. So much drama happens on Facebook. Did you know that a "friend" unfriended me because I posted my political views on there and that person didn't agree? Yeah...it kinda hurt my feelings. 

Facebook is great. Its such a great place to keep tabs on people's lives and share your with them. So...I won't delete my Facebook. I am just going to take a nice long vaca from it. 

I feel...free.

FREEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Any bets on how long I can last?

**Well, I only lasted two days. HAHAHAHAHAHA! I guess I am weak when it comes to Facebook's pretty blue hues and  like button. Oh well...I tried.**

My Dreams for 2012

I have been Day Dreaming today. I have some...expensive...dreams, plans, and goals for this year. Mick and I both had better get jobs! ;) I thought I would share them with you!

Jess' Goals, Dreams, and Plans for 2012

*Go on a Cruise.
      This is happening! It will be so much fun! We are going on a cruise to the Bahamas with our friends Aj and Jess Steen! We are getting together this week and planning it all out over dinner. I am so excited and I want to go right now!

*My Brother's Wedding.
      He is getting married! AHHH!!! So awesome! They are planning on a June wedding so Mick and I have to save up for that (plane tickets). I am super excited for them and a little jealous because there is so much I would do differently with my own wedding day. GOOD thing the best and only important part was marrying my best friend and the love of my life for {Time and ALL Eternity}!

*Swenson Family Reunion.
     We're going to Lake Tahoe people! I cannot wait to soak up the sun on that beautiful lake with my Swenson family! Kenny will have soooo much fun with his cousins! Family reunions are always such a wonderful and special time and I know this one will be amazing!

*Get Family Pictures Taken and Use Balloons as Props.
    I have decided that my little family needs to get official family pictures done! This is definitely an expense we will have to budget for. I am way picky when it comes to photographers. I am super excited about this though! We will be doing this in the Fall and it there will be a theme!! Be excited! I am!

*JOB
     Mick has an interview this Thursday and I have butterflies in my tummy already! I REALLY hope he gets this job. Its in Orem, Utah which is NOT where I want to settle down BUT its a really great job and it has good benefits and it will pay well. Our dream place is somewhere along the East Coast. We will end up there someday. I cannot wait for that day but for now I will be so grateful and excited for any job he gets no matter where it takes us!

*Become a Successful Blogger.
     I want to be a "Mom Blogger". I want to share my adventures and love of motherhood with others! And I especially want to be able to affect other mother's lives for good by my blogging. There are other Mamas out there that have done that for me through blogging and my dream is to be able to do that for others!

*Be a Better Photographer.
     Ever since I was a little girl I have LOVED photography! I have a natural talent for it I just have to figure out how to develop that talent and how to become successful at it. I want to photograph people and the moments that mean so much to them. I want to capture those priceless memories. Photography has a very special place in my heart and I want to share that love!

*Sell More
     I really want to become a successful "business woman". I love creating and sharing my handmade items with others. Creating is so important to me. It releases stress. It makes me so happy! Here is my  ETSY shop if you are interested in taking a look at my latest creations. I also want to be better at selling Choffy! It is one of my very favorite drinks! AND its so healthy for you!

*Tone Up.
     I am so ready to get this body in shape! I'm not fat. Just fluffy. I have a wittle muffin top, a jelly belly, and jiggly wiggly arms. Its time to tone up! I am doing a super hard treadmill workout. IT IS HARD! I have completely cut out fast food (really! I have had it only a hand full of times in the past year)! Its feels amazing! I love sweating!


Wow, there were more than I realized. I am excited though! What a fun year this will be! Hard. Exciting. Crazy. Maybe a bit stressful. All necessary to make it wonderful though!

Here's to you 2012! Cheers!

xoxo Jess

"Nerd" Glasses

My little sister Rachelle has been staying with me for the weekend. It has been so much fun and way nice having her here with us.

Today we went shopping! Of course I had zero self control and totally bought things that I technically didn't really need. I walked in wearing these glasses and the first thing Mick says is "Wow. You are such a nerd", which was quickly followed by "How much did you spend?!". LOL.

We got these babies for $10 buckaroos each at Nordstrom. Cool huh!

Here we are modeling our "nerd" glasses!

It snowed today!

So today, Kenny was sitting on the floor playing with his toys. He began screaming in this really loud, low, growler voice. He was doing this for a little while when I finally looked at him. He stopped mid scream and just said, "hi". HAHAHAHA!!!!

Confession, I am a Family Guy fan...
 

Healthy Tuna-fish Sandwich

This is seriously my all time favorite lunch! One of my best friends showed me this and I will forever love her because of it! *wink*

Ingredients:

-Bumble Bee's Solid White Albacore 

-Tostitos All Natural Chunky Salsa-Medium

-Whole Wheat bread (I use a locally-made bread)

-Avocado

-Salt and Pepper

Drain tuna and put into a bowl. Peel, pit and dice avocado and mix in with the tuna. Add salsa (I use about 4 teaspoons). Toast bread. Put tuna mixture on top of bread and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. EAT! ENJOY! 

DIY Bow-tie {For Babies}

What You'll Need:

-Fabric

-Interfacing (I used a fuse-able fleece)

-Velcro

-Needle

-Thread

(All seems are 1/4")

Step 1:

Cut your fabric and interfacing according to these measurements;

       Bow: {Fabric}10" by 5" {Interfacing} 9 1/2" by 2"

       Neck strap: {Fabric} 14" by 3" {Interfacing} 1" by 14"

       Center: 3" by 3" 

       Velcro: 1" by 1"

Step 2:

Begin your bow! Fold your 10"x5" (right sides together) in half long ways and sew along the edges. Turn right side out and pull the interfacing through the fabric tube. Make sure you center the interfacing inside the fabric tube. 

Next fold the ends together meeting in the middle. Sew down the middle (short end to short end) to keep it in place. 

Now fold the bow section in half and then fold the edges toward the center. Tie a string around the center to hold in place. 

Step 3:

Now its time to make the band! Fold the 14" fabric (right sides together) in half the long way (to make it even more narrow) and sew to make a long tube. Turn (right sides out) and pull the 14" interfacing through the center of the tube. I usually use a safety pin to do this step but I could not find one anywhere so I just used a bobby pin. LoL. Press flat. To make those unfinished edges look a bit neater simply tuck in the two sides and fold the edge down into a point. Place the piece of velcro over the top and sew around the border. Do the same thing to the other end ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE!

Step 4:

Now for the center of the bow! Sew the last piece of fabric you cut long ways (right sides together). Turn and press. OR...you can just sew along and press so you don't have to turn it. After taking a half hour to turn that band I decided I was so over the turning thing! Don't worry about the edges, they will be tucked under and sewn later. 

Step 5:

Now its finally time to put it all together! Line up your pieces in this order; center piece on the bottom, bow, and then the band. Wrap the center piece around the bow and band and then fold the unfinished edges under. Whip stitch the center piece. 

(Sorry about the blurry pictures!)

Hooray!!! You have a bow tie for your little man!

**If you wish to purchase this bow tie go {HERE}

I Just Decided...

I am making my own birthday cake this year...

Just A Little Thing Called Love

Yep. I am totally tearing up just thinking about my baby turning one. 

My poor child has a basket case for a mother. 

Oh dear...

Sponsors

I have decided its time to start getting some sponsors for my little blog here and maybe sponsor others blogs! So if you are interested in a sponsor swap. I am your girl!

Contact me {HERE}. 

Uh oh...

I am itching for another baby. DONT worry. I am just itching. I (or should I say WE) are just not ready yet. Mick needs to get his job lined up and we need to get to our "forever" place. I'm craving tiny baby smells and itty bitty baby features.

Kenny is getting so big and he is no longer a baby. Besides he loves babies and I think having a baby brother or sister would be so much fun for us both. At least I think it would. I guess he may not love having to share me with another. It would be hard. I might feel guilty...

Whoa...I think I just talked myself out of baby #2. HAHA! Yeah...I am just not ready. I am sure I will know when it will be time to get one that one. Not right now though. Sigh...I really want a girl. I almost bought the cutest little girl's dress yesterday. It was the sweetest thing I have ever seen. It really made me want a baby girl so badly! I know those things cannot be planned but It doesn't hurt to hope. 

Anyways. 

Kenny just experienced the flu for the first time. It was interesting. He didn't act sick most of the time. He was so happy, smiley, and simply wanted to play. NO resting! He would get the most confused look on his face when he would vomit. It was truly the saddest thing ever! I had to fight back tears several times. 

I am completely exhausted. He has been so sick these past several days. First with a really bad cold. He kept waking up every couple of hours because all the mucus would build up and he couldn't breath. THEN...he got the flu and was just restless. And now he has the worst, smelliest diarrhea I have ever smelled. YUCK! I hope that this will be the end of his sicknesses for a little while at least. 

He has really been struggling with his sleeping. He use to just lay down in his crib and go to sleep. Then the holidays started up and we started traveling a lot and his sleep has been getting worse and worse. He wakes up at about three a.m. and will not go back to sleep unless I come get him. He has only been taking like one thirty to sixty minute nap. We're all struggling. Any advise? Suggestions? Stories? 

Comments are welcome! Don't forget to enter my little giveaway {HERE}!

Dream Catcher Baby Giveaway!

I have been promising a giveaway for such a long time. I finally decided it was time to just sit down and get'er done! I still have lots to do for my new shop/online business. It's definitely time consuming and with an eleven month old...well, there isn't much time to focus on anything other than him. I don't mind. He's pretty awesome!

So here it is.

I am giving away one Plush {customized} Elephant! This is my classic Plush Elephant. It is made out of all natural linen with your choice of blue or pink embroidery.

For the embroidery you have 3 choices:
~First name of child (or whomever...maybe you?) on the ear,
~"I <3 YOU" on the ear,
~Or a big ol' heart on the bum
(look for examples at my {etsy} shop). 

This would make a great gift for your little one or to give as a baby shower gift!

How to win: Please follow these steps!

{Mandatory Entries}:
     a) Follow my blog! Pretty simple. There is a follow button on the very top just click that and let me know!
     b) Let me know what color you want {pink or blue} and out of the three embroidery choices which one you would like on your elephant.

{Extra Entries}:
     1) "Like" me on Facebook {HERE}!
     2) Follow me on Twitter {HERE}!
     3) Blog, Tweet, or Facebook about this giveaway!
     4) Pin this!

Giveaway ends January 31st at 9 o'clock pm. GOOD LUCK!! Make sure you check back then to see if you've won! ***NOTE: if you won and do not contact me via email {HERE} then I will have to chose a different winner. So sorry!***

The Paper Mama

What was your favorite picture of 2011? Mine was this one. It was the only picture that after I uploaded onto the computer, did a few edits, went and had it immediately printed and while it was being printed I went and bought a frame. I had the photo in the frame even before I left the parking lot! HAHA!
 

So one of my all time favorite blogs is this one...{here} by The Paper Mama. I love reading about other's "mama-hood" experiences. The Paper Mama has a ton of really cool giveaways and fun posts so you should definitely check out her blog!

It is almost Kenny's first birthday. I already have a big portion of his "little" b-day party planned! It is going to be SOOOOOO much fun! Mostly for me I think. HAHA! Raise your hand if you started planning your baby's first birthday party like 6 months before the actual birthday. ME!

Wow! A week has already gone by in this new year. I haven't gotten much accomplished other than laundry. And that still isn't finished. Oh well.

Remember how I was going to do that Photo A Day Challenge. BAHAHA! Yeah...I obviously haven't been doing it. Maybe I will still catch up. We'll see.

I just added new items to my etsy shop. Go check them out!

One word.

AMAZING!


Another year has gone by and it was truly AMAZING! There were hard times to be sure but for the most part it has been my favorite year so far.

Major events of 2011:

-Kenneth "Kenny" Robert Swenson was born February 20th at 4:24 pm in Payson, Utah. He was 9 pounds and 3 ounces, 21 inches long and just so perfect! I have never felt such happiness as I did when I first saw him and then held him and then through out the year watched him grow, learn and experience new things! (I will go into more detail next month for Kenny's 1st birthday blog post!)

-Our big move to Sioux Falls, SD at the beginning of the summer. I enjoyed living there for the short period of time we did. It brought up a lot of old memories from my not so great childhood that I had to actually acknowledge and talk about for the first time EVER. I know it was good for me. It was also so nice being close to family (even though we only got one visit in).

-Our next big move to Abilene, TX. Not my favorite place. In fact probably my least favorite place I have been to. Oh well. It was an adventure to say the least.

-My new business adventure. It is still in the process but 2011 was the year it all began. I am so grateful for the talents the Lord has blessed me with and I hope that 2012 will be the year I get to really share them with others!

-My brother and best friend came home from his 2 year mission! I was lucky enough to be able to surprise him at the airport! Best surprise ever! He is so wonderful and I am very lucky to have him as MY brother!

-Mick and I had the opportunity to see my parents sealed in the temple to my new little sisters! It was amazing seeing my entire family in the temple sealing room. That wont happen again until our youngest sister (age 6) goes through for herself.

-We got to go to Sacramento for Thanksgiving this year. It was such an awesome trip for me for a few reasons. First of all it was just so much fun! I love Mick's family and I pretty much got the BEST sister's in law EVER! We also went to San Francisco!



2011 was such a wonderful year full of happiness for our little family! Our biggest joy of course came from our sweet baby boy! I never imagined I could feel so happy and have so much love for another!