Smart Shopping

Here is some fun shopping advice for all the pregger or soon-to-be pregnant mommies, start shopping! After each holiday is actually the best time to go out and hunt. Hunt, like a warrior! My family and I have been on the look out, for simple but adorable items that will fit Baby G next year. All you have to do is figure out the size your baby might be, what style you would like them to wear and most importantly, you have to know the gender. I know this might sound like common sense but some people get so wrapped up in the holidays they forget about their future baby. And who wants to spend full price on the items you could have gotten in advanced, for less, this year?

My favorite hunting grounds:

Nordstrom
Jack and Janie
Kohl's (they have really cute Carter's clothing)
Macy's

Here are some of my finds for the top holidays next year. My last mission, Valentine's Day and Easter. Baby G will already be born by Easter so I'll just have to find some fantastic threads for the following year!

The classic jack-o-lantern onsie and reindeer booties were purchased at Nordstrom. I found the Baby's First Thanksgiving bib at Kohl's but I also so it for more at Macy's.

Helping Hands

It's has been a three year tradition…and counting, that we make our ultra buttery Mini Linzer Cookies. Mr. G and I whip up a batch every year on the day before Christmas Eve for our family and friends. This year one of my besties, Edith came to learn how to make some for her family. Since they are so popular with the sugaraholics I want to share them with everyone else. Now you can make your family a batch of these scrumptious sweets.

We use the Food Network's Eli Zabar's variation recipe.

3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup good raspberry preserves
Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined, Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Roll the dough 1/4-inch thick and cut 2 3/4-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter. With 1/2 of the rounds, cut a hole from the middle of each round with a heart or spade shaped cutter. Place all the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and chill for 15 minutes.

Bake the cookies for 20-25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature. Spread raspberry preserves on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with confectioners' sugar and press the flat sides together, with the raspberry preserves in the middle and the confectioners' sugar on the top.

Here is how we make ours.

And these babies are the final products. Thanks for all your help Edith and Mr. G:)

Teachers are craft machines

Teachers are the most creative people I know. And I'm not just saying that because I'm a teacher, but because it's totally true. Each holiday, especially during Christmas, my colleagues amaze me. They come up with some crafty homemade gifts and treats to share. Let's see I've received delicious and colorful white chocolate bark, homemade personalized note cards, personalized magnets (which all teachers love for their white boards) and many more I can't remember. Last year I sewed together some felt gingerbread ornaments all dazzled up in Martha Stewart glitter. This year, I have tons to do so I just made some Snow Man Stew, curtsy of my sister Gens. So now it's my mission to share all of their fabulously crafty gifts with you so maybe you can replicate them. The first teachers to make it to my craft wall of fame are my friends;

La Monica= made the lovely hot pink scarf
Yadira, =made the decadent chocolate spoons
Stephanie=gave me a bag of Snowman poop
Inger  (picture not included, because I scarfed down her present)= made Pumpkin Cream Cake.

Pink & Green

This year I decided to wrap my Christmas gifts in two colors I love together, pink and green. Last year me, my husband and his family went to Utah for some snow boarding adventures. I'm not a big snow boarding fan so while they were hitting the slopes I decided to take advantage of the day after Christmas sales. I love me some Target so that's where I headed first. As I was searching through the isles my heart pounded with joy as I came across this adorable pink and green Hello Kitty, yes Hello Kitty, wrapping paper. I grabbed that sucker, along with many other treats, and called it a day! So, viola! My pink and green color scheme came to life with a few extra added details. My friend Svea, also gave me some wrapping pointers; she said tulle would be inexpensive and look great as a ribbon. It sure does! Now my new addiction-tulle!:)

The Ortiz Family

I haven't done a friend's family photo shoot since the summer. I'm so excited that I'm up and about taking photos again. I just love it! And although this is just a hobby, I love getting all this practice in! It is so much fun to hang out with family and friends, take snaps and make some memories.

Michelle is one of my long time elementary school friends. She is all grown up now with the most adorable family. Her, her hubby and two children are just plain cuteness. The kids were just ready to have a day of fun at the perfect-picture taking location, Heritage Park, in Santa Fe Springs. Here are some of my faves!

Looks like he is ready to play the day away!

She is all sunshine!

Okay this one is all personality, he was so funny!

Sweetness:)

Just hanging around and having a blast.

This reminds me of a Gap add, if I must say so myself:)

Big brother and 'lil sister

Michelle's hubby's VW is picture worthy for sure!

Just adorable!

A few of my favorite homemade ideas for this WEEK!

Here are some sweet homemade ideas for your last minute craft or bake-a-thon!

This is from Hostess with the Mostess blog. If I had more time I would totally do this…guess ya know what I'm thinking about baking for next year:)

Super cute ornament for all ya'll baking addicts:) See how they glitter at Prudent Bay.

Too simple but oh so sweet! Again, if I only had time….try it at eighteen 25 blog.

Lucky number 7

Yay, 7 months down! How many more to go? Well, I am officially in my third trimester and feeling not too shabby. Today, I had my monthly doctor's appointment and one of the nurses said, "You sure are all baby." I guess those extra seventeen pounds that I have gained are all going to baby G's muscles! Now it's crunch time. No more messin' around! I need to get down to business!! We have finally finished the baby shower invites. Next, on the agenda is to finish painting, crafting and ordering all the the details for the baby shower decorations. Oh ya, and we need to finish painting the trim, order the interior shutters, pick out a rug and install a closet organization system for the nursery. Jeez Louise, I…I mean Mr. G (hehehe) has a ton of things on his plate. Well, here is how I look before all the madness begins.
(p.s. don't mind all the blurriness; I'm practicing and trying to figure out how to use my new wide angle lens)

Eggplant= 25 to 28 months

Me at 7 months!

The invitations!:)

Gotta show the envelope:)

'Tis the Season to CRAFT...

Fa la la, la la, la la la la! I already feel overwhelmed just thinking about all the crafty decor and presents I want to make this Christmas. Here is my craft Christmas list:

changing the wall frame's scrap booking paper to match our new living room color- check

baby shower invites

glittering up our Christmas cards

cutting and sewing 25 felts stockings for my little rug rats

making an ornament or sweet treat for my co-workers

dazzling up my indoor holiday decor 

sewing some stocking stuffers for the family

...and I need to start and finish all of these projects before Mr. G and I go on Christmas break. HELP! Well as long as I continue to find inspiration by DVRing the Martha Stewart show, browsing through my old MS mags and always keeping up to date with my favorite blogs and a few new ones, I'll be alright. Here are some new crazy crafty blogs that I stubbled upon. Check out their creations! Fantabulous:)

These gorgeous glitter trees are from the eighteen25 blog. 

Here are similar glitter trees in a more traditional color by, I heart nap time.

Thank you to my bf Lisett, for introducing me to scrap booking our first year in college. Ever since then I can't find enough uses for this darn cute paper. I had these frames up in our kitchen nook for the past couple of years. Then we needed a change in our living room. So Mr. G painted and I recycled these frames to fit our new gray/blue & black/white living area. This is the before picture and below is the after.

Here is the "after." I love it! So for all my fam and friends, yes this is our new living room color with black and white accents.

Here is the next project that I must complete by this weekend-baby shower invites. Of course I am using scrap booking paper, card stock, Paper Source envelopes, a rubber stamp from Etsy and some embossing materials.