35

This month I turned 35. It was a hard age for me. Not sure why. Fortunately, I was loved and spoiled beyond comparison and it was a very happy celebration WEEK!!

Monday, the 14th, was my birthday and we drove down to visit Daddy for a few days. He was on a work trip to the San Diego area. It's always fun to stay at a hotel!

For my birthday dinner I picked Claim Jumper!

 

 It was so yummy and we had a great time together!

The next night my wonderful sister Tricia surprised me with a taco dinner and our traditional donut cake!!

 She got my favorites! It was so heavenly delicious!!

 The next Sunday my wonderful in-laws gave me a fantastic birthday celebration!

 I picked tacos, like I ALWAYS do.

 Blew out my 3rd set of candles!

 And enjoyed banana brownie splits!!

Thank you to everyone who made my birthday so special!!

The Birthday Shave

My father-in-law retired at the end of December.

He said after he retired maybe he would shave his mustache.

He even hinted that I might be the one to shave it off!!

Instead, much to my dismay and disappointment, not only did he keep the mustache but he grew a big, bushy, gray beard to match.

When we got there on Sunday, I found that he had purchased mustache max and had begun twirling the ends like an evil villain!

After I blew out my candles, I got the most wonderful SURPRISE!!

My father-in-law read me the poem he wrote, in which it stated that for my birthday I got to shave him clean!!

Unfortunately, my husband was videoing and I have no still shots of that moment, but just imagine lots of jumping and screaming.

On my part.

I was so excited!!!!

I started with the clippers.

It was amazing how much hair there was!

He'd been letting it go wild for my special day.

He had to see for himself!

He hadn't been shaved in over 33 years after all!!

Then we moved on to the razor.

I was not very good!

There was blood.

Look at that baby face!!

I had to run and get the wedding album to compare.

None of his children can ever recall him without his mustache!!

My mother-in-law with her first 2-lip kiss in a LONG time!!

She couldn't stop staring at him; it was so different!!

Thank you for the BEST birthday surprise EVER!!!

Little Leprechauns

Happy St. Patrick's Day Everyone!!
I'm feeling very lucky today, as you can see from the sign I made!

You can read more about it on my crafty blog.

In our house we take wearing our green very seriously,

much to the chagrin of my color-blind husband!
In honor of this green holiday, we had a fun photoshoot!

Really, did you expect anything less from me?

Lucky me, I've got two of the cutest kids ever!!

And lucky you, if you are Elizabeth "Betsy"!

You are the winner of the CSN giveaway!!!

Please contact me within 48 hours to claim your prize!!

ABC's of ME!

I just stole this from my bloggy friend Sarah B. I LOVE finding out the details about people that you wouldn't normally know, and hopefully you do as well since I'm givin' it to ya!!

A. Age: 35. Today. :)
B. Bed size: Queen, wishing for a KING!!
C. Chore you dislike: cleaning toilets! totally gross.
D. Dogs: They're cute. From a distance. HAHA
E. Essential start to your day: Internet
F. Favorite color: The rainbow!!
G. Gold or silver: Silver, for sure.
H. Height: 5'3" barely. :)
I. Instruments you play(ed): Piano. And the recorder very badly.
J. Job title: Mama, Teacher, Family Social Events Coordinator, Crafter Extraordinaire!
K. Kids: Jeremy the Superstar, and Kelsey, my little love.
L. Live: Southern California!
M. Mom’s name: Shirley
N. Nicknames: Beautiful, Sweetie, Sunshine
O. Overnight hospital stays: 2 c-sections. Totally worth it. :)
P. Pet peeves: When my food doesn't turn out well. When people can't see outside themselves. Bad spelling.
Q. Quote from a movie: "Now I shall no longer call you Mr. Darcy, I shall call you MY Mr. Darcy!"
R. Righty or lefty: Right
S. Siblings: Now there's a story...
T. Time you wake up: Whenever my children make me.
U. Underwear: granny franny
V. Vegetables you don’t like: EGGPLANT, brussell sprouts
W.What makes you run late: procrastination
X. X-rays you’ve had: foot, mouth
Y. Yummy food you make: taco salad, banana bread
Z. Zoo animal favorites: I love the giraffes. They are so amazing!! My favorite was when I saw a pregnant mama and I could see the baby moving around in her tummy!! Awesome!!
 

YOUR TURN!!

Beautiful Day

Behind our church building there is a big green field. It is green and filled with the first flowers of spring. I had to take pictures there with my favorite 2 little people.

They were happy to run and be free after 3 hours of church.

Kelsey is really into picking things lately, leaves, branches, flowers, luckily not her nose.

She was happy to be where she could pick to her heart's content!

So Pretty.

Jeremy picked me this one.

I'm so lucky to have such a sweet boy.

He finds so much joy in life.

Except when he has to eat vegetables.

I'm thankful for sunny days, fields of flowers, and cute kids!!

500th POST - CSN Stores Giveaway!!!

For my 500th blog post I wanted to do something really special.

And then I was contacted by CSN Stores about doing a giveaway.

I was SO EXCITED!!!

Because they have over 200 stores, CSN has anything you could ever want! You could shop on there all day long!

Recently we bought an LCD TV and so were looking to purchase an LCD TV stand.

The one on the left looks so fun for a gaming room, and I love how the right one keeps everything tidy and tucked away!

I've also been drooling over this set!!

 It would be perfect for my daughter's room!

My niece has this cool turtle that glows in the dark, turns different colors, and projects stars onto the ceiling! So cool!

I love this scale. My sister has it and I use it every time I visit her. It's so precise and easy to use.

My husband would be over the moon with happiness if I bought him these for his car.

Now it's your turn to go shopping!

CSN Stores is offering a $20 gift code to buy whatever you want!

Isn't that fun?!?

Here's what you do:

Mandatory Entry

(You must complete this in order for any other extra entry to count.)

Be a follower through Google Follower Connect.

Go check out CSN Stores and come back and tell me what you will buy with your $20!

 

Extra Entries

1 Extra Entry - "Like" CSN Stores on Facebook and leave another comment.

1 Extra Entry - Share the giveaway on your FB or blog and leave me a comment telling me you are good at sharing.

1 Extra Entry - Follow Polka Dots on Parade and leave me a comment!

The Giveaway will end on March 16th at midnight PST.

One Lucky winner will be selected through Random.org.

You will have 48 hours to contact me once the winner has been announced or I will select another winner. 

GOOD LUCK!!!

***CSN only ships to the US and Canada so this giveaway is only open to those residing in the US or Canada.  There may be international shipping taxes to Canada that the gift code cannot cover.

Polka Dots on Parade

I'm back in the crafting groove and it feels so good!
I made a big effort last year to be crafty and make money at it.
I sewed my little heart out, set up shop at several boutiques with my crafty friends, and started an Etsy shop. 
BIG FLOP!!
Alas, I did not have the crafty midas touch.
Now I'm doing it purely for the joy of the craft!!
Stop on over to my crafty blog and follow along for a fun mix of crafting, features, and giveaways!!

Polka Dots on Parade

Baby

In our house, everyone is Baby.

I call Daddy, Baby.

I call Jeremy and Kelsey, Baby.

There is one Baby that didn't quite make it.

That Baby came home with me though, in a little cup.

Daddy bought me this pot and some flowers.

I sewed a little pouch and buried it with Baby inside.

I like having a living reminder of that Baby.

And I love that the Lord blessed me
with another Baby to heal my heart.

I love you all, my Babies.