Week in Instagram #4

*I love doing these posts. It totally eliminates my guilt for not journaling. *

Shane was gone this week. He left last Thursday morning before I woke up and got home yesterday. He went to his brother's wedding reception in Arkansas for 5 days and then a couple days of business. It just wasn't feasible for the kids and I to join him. But I was so happy Shane had a few days vacation without the kids. How often do we get that? Shane really deserves it too. His job is insanely stressful and has very long hours. When we were in Hawaii he made the mistake of turning on his phone after a few days to check the weather and he found 145 voicemails. 145! He needs detox time. 

I do too, but he needs it more.

How cute is this thumbprint guest list?

Congrats to the beautiful couple!

Back at the home front, I had a little stay-cation of my own.

Usually while Lydia is at school and Collin is napping, I clean. 

But what's the point when no husband is going to see my efforts?

Instead I had a week of naps. The house got really messy.

Bought the kids some "treat" cereal. 

Two boxes = two backs to look at. No fighting. 

We made rice krispy treats too.

Lydia made everyone saturday morning aprons showing off their favorite shapes. The placement of said shapes was a questionable choice, but then again I've never really understood high fashion.

We bought a ton of strawberries and made freezer jam.

Found this teeny tiny tupperware at the Dollar Tree. 

Wouldn't these be cute to give away at Christmas with homemade bread?

Oh wait. I don't make bread. But now I make jam!

Made myself dinner only I like.

Looks like boobs :)

Collin made me wait in the garage until he finished his apple and book.

Got caught up on facebook.

Lydia was supposed to be vacuuming the kitchen. 

When I came in, I found this note:

"I wint to play outside..Ha Ha"

She was looking in from the window laughing hysterically. :) Awesome.

Had a totally crappy weekend. 

Lots of drama. And after having a period that was eight days late, I found that I wasn't pregnant. 

Eight days late! Totally sucked. We've only been trying a few months so it's not that big a deal, but when your period is over a week late, you kind of think, hey, I'm having a baby! Just reminded me of the two years of trying before we got pregnant with Lydia. 

Anyway, I felt bad. I wanted to make out, but Shane wasn't here. 

So I made myself some comfort soup. 

Ina Garten's Roasted Tomato Basil soup is AMAZING.

(I add a bit of heavy cream to my bowl right before serving. Heaven)

My friend Heidi heard I was having a bad day, so she brought me some chocolate comfort.

But even though I'm not pregnant, I have some pretty great babies already.

I mean, come on! So darling!

Shane got home early yesterday, armed with little gifts from his voyage.

More chocolate! 

He got home around 1am and then left again for work before the kids were up.

(Told you, long hours)

So the kids didn't see him until he surprised them at lunchtime. 

(Lunchtime. Notice Collin is still in jammies.)

They had welcome home signs ready.

Collin had to explain his. 

He drew a picture of "dirty laundry" Not kidding. 

Do you think he was trying to out me that our home was a disaster before the day long "daddy dash" cleaning effort the day before???

Traitor. 

Shane got the last of the tomato soup so the kids had to settle for chicken soup with rice from the freezer. They weren't happy about that. So we watched "chicken soup with rice" on YouTube to inspire enthusiasm. It worked.

Good thing he got home since today is our anniversary!!!!!

Spending the day looking through my wedding album and getting our evening planned. (It's my year to plan the festivites. It's going to be epic. As epic as an 11th anniversary can be.)

(Camera photos of my wedding album then put into instagram. Not the greatest. But I'm too lazy to scan them.)

Isn't my family so cute??? Man I loved that dress. Good thing, since it took me months to find it even though I worked in a bridal boutique, and I totally had the sleeves redone. I was determined to have a 2/3 sleeve wedding dress, even if that was unheard of at the time. 

Look at my sister Molly! A 13 year old bridesmaid. Now she has a husband and a baby. This may be the last photo of her with her natural hair color. Oh, me too.

Since this photo we've added a dozen more folks to our clan. Not bad for little over a decade.

******

Don't forget to call your mom this weekend!

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Not on instagram? I post all my instagram photos to my Twitter account @natssentiments

(I know! I have a twitter account! I just haven't used it until now.)

Simple canvas art and a pretty shelf above the bed

May 14th update...just posted a $75 Shabby Apple Giveaway! Make sure to enter!

I went through quite a few paint samples before I found the right one for the guest room and the guest bathroom. Bless Shane's heart. He was very patient with me.

So many pretty colors. I knew there must be something I could use them for.

How about a little canvas art? I painted three canvases a nice base color. White would be fine too.

I waited for the base to dry completely. Then I made patterns with paint tape. I wanted squares.

Paint the exposed canvas. Let dry. I recommend two coats. 

Hello yellow.

Even a couple pops of color works.

Once dry, carefully pull the tape away.

Voila! 

I wanted a little "Pottery Barn like" shelf collage...

to go with my (big splurge) Pottery Barn bedding and Etsy pillows

Love it.

This shelf over the bed trend is fabulous. 

Yellow and turquoise together is scrumptious.

Creating art for super cheap is my favorite. 

See who I'm linking up with here.

****

Winner!

The Winner of the Pillsbury gift pack is Shanny. 

Congrats! Email me and I will get you your prize. 

Breaking the Diet Coke Addiction

I have some pretty exciting news. I've officially been off Diet Coke for a month.

A month.

No diet coke.

Yay for me!

It's been rough.

Now, just to clarify, I have no problem with Diet Coke. It's like summertime in a can. What I don't like is needing Diet Coke. I didn't like not being able to go a day without it.

I knew it was not going to fun getting off the juice. I suffer from insomnia and drinking (a large) Diet Coke for lunch keeps me from totally crashing. My doctor says that drinking it that early in the day wouldn't effect my sleeping, but I wanted to be sure. And I know it's not exactly a Flax smoothie health wise. I just needed to get it under control.

So one Monday I woke up and decided I was done with it.

Cold turkey.

Wow, the first week sucked. I'm really sorry if you crossed paths with me during that time. I was not a happy camper. And I was so tired I was barely functioning. On my fourth day I went to bed at 5:30, the moment Shane walked in the door. I sleep until 8 the next morning.

The headaches were insane the first three days, but I've been taking an Aspirin every morning since and that seemed to help.

The cravings were pretty harsh. It's almost embarrassing to admit it, since it's not like I was detoxing from cigarettes or crack. But I just couldn't stop thinking about Diet Coke.

I went to the gas station to get Fresca instead. Even though it wasn't what my body wanted, just having soda of some kind helped. Drinking a Diet Coke, by myself, after Lydia was at school and Collin was napping was one of my favorite parts of my day. 20 minutes to myself to read emails and check the news. That part of my day is my time. That part of my day is non-negotiable. It saves my sanity. Even after the severe cravings had past, the habit still stayed fast. Having something fun to drink helped out a ton.

Now I'm drinking a simple smoothie for my treat. Skim milk, ice and pineapple. It's yummy and actually healthy!

After two weeks I started letting myself have Caffeine Free Diet Coke with a bit of grenadine. I don't really like the taste of C.F. diet coke, but the grenadine makes it just about as good as the really thing. But it's not every day. Since the caffeine cravings are mostly over, C.F. Diet Coke is a super fun treat.

And the best part, I'm sleeping so much better. I still have bad nights, but for the most part I'm asleep within an hour of laying down. That's huge for me.

The plan was to detox off Diet Coke and then let myself have it every few days. I've changed that. I may have it occasionally at a restaurant but I think I'm just going to steer clear. I really don't want to risk the addiction. It feels really good to not need it. Well, for the most part. Some days it's still really hard.

Anyone else attempted to get off Diet Coke? Think you're up to the challenge?

This Week in (mostly) Instagram #3

This week was all about visitors! Shane's sister came to visit, along with her husband Rusty (my good friend from high school), and their two kids. They just moved from NYC to SLC. Went from a 900 sq foot apartment to a historical home in the Avenues. Can't wait to see it for myself. 

And as for my house, it was perfectly clean in anticipation for our guests. 

Perfectly clean. Stayed that way for about 15 minutes. 

That's the joy of little children!

Lydia loves her little cousin Lucca. 

And little Jonah is scrumptious! This was our first time seeing him and he just turned 1.

The girls had a slumber party every night. Sometimes they even slept. 

Mostly they danced.

Shane is telling them a story to get them to sleep. He's a really good story teller.

They woke up to french toast with whipped cream.

These kids these days have no idea how good they have it.

 Sara snapped this photo of Lydia leading Collin, Lucca and me on her jump rope.

 It was a good evening.

Lucca called me "Aunt Natalie". It's the first time I've heard that. 

So I immediately made her a dandelion crown.

Went shopping. Collin found some peeps to hang with at the mall.

Came home to do some shopping in the closet.

(this is Lydia's doing)

Got a babysitter and headed out for dinner.

Wow. We have the exact same hair style.

Mission companions turned Brothers in law.

They have the same hair too.

Couldn't decide on dessert. So we got one of everything to take home.

Played cards. I won :)

I napped. Woke up to the best smell.

Sara made the most amazing zucchini bread. Seriously delicious.

Lydia was so sad to see them go. 

She comforted herself in the warm laundry.

So nice to finally live close to family!

Had a Supermom day.

Made a big breakfast. 

Organized the pantry.

And the cupboards. Or at least this one.

Like my one little pop of yellow? It's a sickness, I know.

Took the kids to the park. 

Lydia has requested to have her hair cut to her shoulders :(

Long enough for locks of love?

Came home to May Day flowers from Shane. 

A little later we heard a knock on the door and Lydia found a little May Day treat for herself. 

We have a sneaking suspicion it was her new best friend across the street. 

Anyone else celebrate May Day with flowers?

******

Other things I'm loving this week.

Tom wedges? Yes please!

I think this print would be perfect to remind me of my goal this year to simplify. 

Needing me a leather book shelf.

Lovely Mother's Day cake printable.

Been loving all the vertical planters around. 

Perfect girl nursery.

Finally, Etsy weddings!

Really wanting to snag one of my mom's vintage suitcases to make a coffee table.

Loved this post by Jacy on getting to know new people and make better friends. You might not think so by my blog persona, but I can be a little hesitant on making new friends. She had some great advice!

 

Just one more.

Not the most reverent time to take a photo, but Shane was helping Collin say the prayer and I had to capture the moment. So glad we have family prayer every night. It's the best part of the day.

What's the best part of yours?

follow me on instagram .....natssentiments

Don't forget to enter to win a Cookie prize pack! 

Zak Baker Photo

A couple weeks ago I met Zak Baker, a local photographer who I just had to showcase. Zak shoots with 4x5 film on a camera he built himself.  He develops the film himself. He has great thoughts on how shooting with film can make you a better photographer. And he's a really nice guy.

And he is a pretty fantastic photographer.

Incredible right?

(I want that first photo hanging in my living room so badly!)

Head over to Zak's blog to read about some of his thoughts and to give him some love.