my guy

Here he is, the tiny man who is the center of my universe.
This was back around Thanksgiving, so he was 8 weeks old-he's now almost 12!

Beautifully photographed by our lovely friend, Yan Photography.

happy home

image via Ohdeedoh

We're almost ready for the big day.
I finished most of the wrapping last night, and with the exception of one gift, am done shopping.
I baked sugar cookies last night and the house has that nostalgic scent of pine.
Just 3 more days!

not this year

This year we will not be staying up late to welcome the New Year.
We will not get dressed up or attend a party.
Hopefully, all 3 of us will be sleeping peacefully.
If I were to go to said party, and if I had already lost the rest of my baby weight, I'd wear this dress with this necklace.
I guess I could still wear the necklace...

rethink a bed

We don't have the space or floors to pull this off successfully but this bedroom has me rethinking our bed frame.

sling sleep

This little guy is literally hanging out with me right now.
Pajamas and all.

toys for Christmas

I was so looking forward to my first Christmas with Israel because it gave me a great excuse to buy some toys as gifts.
I purchased the top puzzle for him, even though it will be a while before he can play with it.
The other two are on my wishlist!

betty

I've wasted countless hours this week here!

Christmas time is here

I started my Christmas decorating last week. Have yet to buy a tree though.
Usually, I clear dressers & mantles to make room for all of my Christmas stuff! I would pick different themes & cover foam trees with meringue cookies or fill clear glass bulbs with moss.
This year I left everything in its place. I actually left most of my decorations in their boxes too.
It seems that having a newborn in the house simply creates more mess & clutter so I went a little minimal with my holiday decor this year.
I added this pom pom garland to my poster, stuffed a few glittery sprigs into vases and draped this little triangular pipe-cleaner garland over the mantle.
If nothing else, it means less to clean up after Christmas!

How is your Christmas decorating different this year?

you make me laugh

Every morning I give Israel some play time with his gym.
When I laid him down he was straight under his toys-a few minutes later, I found him sideways.
:)

confetti for Christmas

Isn't it great that Urban is carrying Confetti System for Christmas?
They're more than welcome to decorate my house for the Holiday!

white makes it all right

For some reason, all I'm craving is pure white.
I think the lack of color appeals to me because it's universally clean and calm.
What I wouldn't give to pour a bucket of thick, white paint all over my house & start over again!

find me here

Check this out!

thankful

I hope you all enjoy your Thanksgiving.
Looks like Israel & I might be spending it at home in bed, neither one of us feels great.
Still, I have so much to be thankful for!

to do

Today I have things to do
laundry to fold
bills to pay
lunch to be made
some vacuuming
and a bit of sewing
or maybe I'll just spend the day staring at your little face

blue

Sometimes, an outfit created around just one single color, works perfectly!

2010 in my pocket

I need one of these pocket calendars...seems calendars have been at the top of my list lately!

the lucky ones

Why didn't they have stuff like this when I was little?

keeping track of time

I bought this calendar a couple weeks ago, seems like time is slipping by so quickly that I need a way to keep track of it.
Strange to think that by the time I'm finished using this calendar, our little Israel Cash will be over a year old!

the many faces of 6 weeks

Countless hours of my day are spent staring at this little face.
He seems to have quite a few different ones, just like his dad.

how to hang

Sometimes the frame-collage look is done all wrong.
Here's one that's all right.

shared room

Since Israel was born our bedroom has become a laundry room, a dining room, a place to relax, a place for his baby clothes, diapers and bassinet...we have just about lived out if what used to be our bedroom, for the past 6 weeks.
I look forward to reclaiming our space, even though it may be a few more months. When we do, I'd like new bedding but more than anything else, I want it to be clutter free again. Hopefully, it will end up resembling one of these rooms instead of looking more like a junk drawer!

windy city

It's a very blustery day here.
Israel & I are staying warm inside.
If I were to go out, this would be a great windy day outfit!

oh, kitchen

I can't wait to have a kitchen like this...someday!

birthday list

With another birthday coming up Sunday, I have the lovely task of finding things I want.
Clothes are pretty much out of the question with this post baby body-or I'd want this-so I'm wanting things to dress up my house instead.
These flashlight lamps would really do the trick!

display your goods

found here

goal oriented

[Elizabeth Dunker]

My goal today is to get the babe to sleep long enough to shower + do some laundry.
Wish me luck!

fine dining

Sigh, I love the bright dining area, such a better view than I have!

Nina

These custom name plates are sweet, too pretty to eat from!

felt crave

At almost $1000, this will have to fall under the category of "window shopping" for me!

Pigeon Toe

I'm really loving this shop with their unique ceramics and even more interesting air plants.
I just ordered one of their plants, my first air plant-I hope I can keep it alive!

monday

[image from here]
All the days sort of blur together right now, but I'm thankful for the 3 consecutive hours of sleep I got last night!

shhh

Israel and I have been up since 6:00 a.m.
That doesn't include getting up to nurse for 10 mins then falling asleep for an hour and then repeating the process every hour of the night.
We spent the morning walking briskly up and down the hall, trying to soothe the little man's gassy tummy.
When he did fall asleep, he would only stay that way if he was in my arms.
I tried laying him down in his little moses basket, but within 5 mins he would wake again.
My husband, finally, got home around 3:30.
The three of us laid on the couch cooing, staring and laughing together.
After about an hour of family time, Israel put himself to sleep on the sofa.
He's still asleep.
Sigh!

darling

Another symptom I've acquired from spending so much time at home is online [window] shopping.
With a couple clicks, I'd order this!

time to think

All this time I've been spending at home with Israel has me picking apart our house.
I know I've spent far too much time staring at our living room walls but if it were to morph into this sitting area, I'd be happy with that!

autumn inside

image from here

Don't you just love the colors of Fall?

day 16

On Israel's 16th day, we went birthday shopping for daddy.
We needed to get out of the house for a bit but it wasn't without one diaper change, breastfeeding in the mall parking lot and sleeping soundly in the sling I made for him.
Everyone smiles when they see me carrying him around in his sling, I think it almost looks like he's still in the womb.
I can't get over how special my tiny man is, I can't believe I ever lived without him!
I do remember I got much more sleep in those days though...

encore

My last post featured some great wallpaper and without meaning to be repetitive, here's more.
Pretty sure I could slap this up in any room-especially my dining room!

diversion

I need some visual inspiration like this...just to think about something other than diapers, laundry, breast feeding and desperately wanting sleep!

Found on my friend's blog.

better late than never!

Our precious son, Israel Cash Hagler, arrived September 30, at 11 pm.
It was the best day of my husband and I's life!
After a wonderful birth, we slept blissfully until the next morning.
The next 5 days, though, were some of the hardest days we've seen.
We spent those 5 days in the NICU, watching our son through a plastic box, only holding him during feedings. Every couple hours, my husband and I would dress in protective gowns, masks and gloves so that we could visit our newly born son.
Monday morning, which couldn't have come soon enough, we brought little Israel home!
Life has been full of sleepless nights, very little time to eat, forgetting to put on deodorant and definitely no time for make-up!
Every second has been worth it.
Our sweet baby boy is a miracle and we love him dearly!

Needless to say, my blogging may be sporatic at best, at least for the next few weeks.