After all, tomorrow is Halloween


Well, tomorrow is the big day and Amelia is all ready. When I asked Amelia what she wanted to be for Halloween she said a 'scaredy cat'. I was hoping she would want to be something a little more creative and original, but a cat is what she said. We were in JoAnn's a few days after we had talked about costumes and she showed me some purple fabric with black cats on it. She said "Look Mama, that's the fabric for my costume". We are in JoAnn's all the time and she apparently saw that fabric a while back and that is what she based her costume idea on. I made a deal with her that I would buy the fabric and make a dress for her to wear whenever she wanted if I could surprise her with her Halloween costume. My mom made every inch of this costume and she did an amazing job! It couldn't have turned out any better. So, here she is...

Miss Scarlett O'Hara














I can't wait to take her trick-or-treating tomorrow. My entire family usually goes out with us. Since Amelia is the only kid we make it a really fun night. My sister is making us dinner and we will be trick-or-treating in Molalla.
Ashley Elizabeth
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What Amelia Wore - Meow!


I guess it's only fitting that I follow up my 'National Cat Day' post with another cat themed post. Amelia LOVES cats! I often find myself supporting her addiction through clothing. You know, those shirts that have glitter printed sayings on them such as 'I Heart My Cat' or the leggings that have hundreds of colorful cats all over them. Amelia always loves when I bring home a new cat item. When I saw this cardigan I knew I had to buy it. The look on her face when it arrived was hilarious. Who knew a sweater with a bunch of cat on it would be such a hit. We have quite a few serious pictures in this batch, but this Mama still thinks they are adorable. 





I like this casual little look with the dressy flats. The turtleneck adds a nice amount of warmth to the outfit without necessarily requiring a heavy coat.
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turtleneck: Pumpkin Patch (two years old)
cardigan: H&M
jeans: Old Navy
flats: Michael Kors
scarf: Ameliabug (I made it)
headband: She borrowed it from me... and I don't remember at all where I got it

and here are two outtakes... she saw a spider as I was snapping a few shots. hahah, her face is priceless.


Ashley Elizabeth
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National Cat Day


October 29, 2013... NATIONAL CAT DAY!!! 


Rudy

In honor of National Cat Day I thought I would share a few little cat things with you all... and of course a picture of our handsome man, Rudy!!!



Make sure you give your cat a little extra love today... after all, it is their day!  haha
Ashley Elizabeth
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FMM - What If?



If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic

What If?

1.  If you had something in your teeth would you want someone to tell you, or would you prefer to figure it out on your own?  I would definitely want someone to tell me! Same goes for my shirt having a button unbuttoned, toilet paper on my shoe, lipstick on my teeth and so on. 
2.  If you had to listen to one song on repeat all day today, which song would you choose?  This is a tough one. I have several songs that I'm shuffling through constantly, but one song... I guess I would have to say Luke Bryan 'That's My Kind of Night' because I already listen to that one a lot. I would also listen to Lenka 'The Show' because my daughter and I sing that together and I love hearing her little voice.
3.  If you could trade places with someone famous, with whom would you trade? Going back in time I would say Jane Austen... present day I would say Kate Middleton aka the Duchess of Cambridge. 
4.  If you could speak another language fluently, which one would you speak?  Spanish
5.  If you could read one person’s mind right now whose would you choose?  I'm not sure if this would be the best idea ever or the worst, but I think my husband. 
6. If you were forced to go back in time, which period of your life would you choose?  I would never want to go back in time now. I can't imagine life without my husband and daughter. If I had to choose for the fun of it though, I would say right after high school. Life was  a lot less stressful back then. 
7.  If you had to be trapped in a TV show for a month, which show would you choose?  New Girl... because that show is HILARIOUS! 
8.  If you had to give up twitter or Facebook, which would you choose? Easy! I don't use Twitter very often at all so I would have no problem giving that up. Facebook is another story. 
9.  If you could have a present today, what would you want?  Money... enough to pay for our trip this next summer :) 
10.  If you had to choose between celebrating Halloween or Christmas, which would you choose?  Definitely Christmas. It is my absolute favorite holiday. 
Ashley Elizabeth
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Pumpkins, Biscuits, Ice Cream, Thrift Shops and Laughs


Today was a really fun day! I had every intention of sleeping in very late, but instead I was wide awake pretty early today. We got up and got ready to go to a pumpkin patch with my sister Grace and her fiance Chris. We headed out to a little place in Canby. Mark, Amelia and I had been there before, but Grace and Chris hadn't.

Little Sister and I
Riding the train
Husband and I
This little guy was so cute!
My Girl and I
Amelia, Chris and Grace on the train
Her pumpkin was a little too big for her to carry
The pumpkin patch has a little train to ride. Amelia really enjoyed that part. After the pumpkin patch we didn't really know what to do. We decided to just head toward Portland and see where we ended up. We decided to have linner (lunch/dinner) at a place called Pine State Biscuits and let me say... it was AMAZING! The food was absolutely delicious and my Arnold Palmer was the best I've ever had. 

My Dinner (well this was technically my breakfast, lunch and dinner)
This pictures is not very pretty, but it cracks me up. I have the smallest mouth in the world... okay well that may be an exaggeration, but they do have to use the children's x-rays on me at the dentist and even those are a tight fit. This sandwich was very tall so I had to eat it with a fork. It was so yummy though! It was lettuce, tomato, ranch, bacon and fried chicken with a biscuit for the bun. 

 After we ate we of course had to go to Salt & Straw since it was two blocks away. Chris had never been. It was quite delicious, even if we were completely stuffed when we were done.
We finished up our evening with a drive around downtown Portland, a stop at a really cool thrift shop and a stop at the new Ross store near our house. A great day it was! Now I need to clean my house. I feel like I am constantly behind on the house work and it's driving me nuts. There are so many chores that need to be done, but I'm also thinking of the long Christmas crafting list I have... and it's all quite overwhelming. I think I will work my buns off tomorrow after church and hopefully get a lot accomplished. 
Ashley Elizabeth
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My SAHM Anniversary


Today is my one year mark of being a stay at home mom. Time has flown by and I'm amazed at how much we were able to do in the past 12 months. The decision to leave my job wasn't an easy one; if it were easy I would have left when Amelia was born. My staying home was something that Mark and I had talked about from the beginning, but it was more a dream that I thought would never come true. Here is a recap of our amazing year.

We left right after my last day with ODF and headed to Colville to spend time with my mom. It was our first Halloween up there. Such a fun trip filled with a bunch of great memories. 

I have been able to improve my sewing skills greatly. I love sewing but never had the time while I was working. Now I'm much more confident. 

I've completed quite a few decorating projects around the house. 

Amelia participated in two wonderful ballets. The Nutcracker and Russe Classique. She's currently rehearsing for the 2013 Nutcracker. I hadn't ever been able to take her to a ballet class until I became a SAHM. I love being able to see her progress. 

We went to the beach a couple of times which we had only done once or twice since Amelia was born. When you work for an agency that fights wildfires it's hard to get away in the summer. My family usually had to take her to the beach for us... but not this summer!

We got to go camping a couple of times. Amelia had only been camping once before. I'm hoping next summer we got a lot more. 

I got to join Mark's family on a trip for the first time ever! I was never able to take the time off before. It was wonderful getting to spend time with them.

I planned a family reunion. It was amazing to spend a day/weekend with our family!

 We got to see a lot of new places.

 I enjoyed a lot of sunsets.

 Playing is now my job.

 We explore Oregon City regularly (where we live).

 Amelia and I made at least 7 trips up to my mom's house in a year. I think that's close to, if not more, than the number of times I have ever been up there. (they moved up there in 2008)

 Crafting has become a daily occurrence. It's our thing

I drove through the worst lightning storm I have ever seen.

Amelia set foot in Idaho for the first time. We went to Coeur d'Alene in early summer and Sandpoint just a couple of weeks ago. 

We enjoy lots of tea parties.

I have watched 12 kids over the past year. I absolutely love my new 'job'!

This is just a snapshot of our year. I can't believe all of the memories we have made. Not only do I get to spend all day with my girl, but I get to see my husband a lot more. Becoming a stay at home mom... BEST DECISION EVER!!!

Ashley Elizabeth
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