Wilkommen!

Welcome to the world Eleanor Jean Louise Weston!!!! 9lbs, 13oz, 20.5 inches! She's a good sized little lady! Congratulations to Heidi and Caleb Weston!

When we were Giants

Christmas Packaging

I LOVE Christmas wrap, packaging, boxes, paper, ribbon, tags, etc. Soooo, I've found these lovely ideas for some creative ways to package gifts this Christmas. What do you think? (don't forget, all the pictures are linked in case you want to see their shop for yourself.)

This gal has some really cute ideas on her blog. Studio Meez. She's located in . . . ok, someplace that speaks a different language. She doesn't have a location listed, perhaps Germany? Russia?

I love the mix of the silhouette with the kraft wrap and girly doily.

My family famously makes home made gifts, and they're always the best ones! I thought this would be a cute way to heighten anticipation.

So cute for a special mailed gift or a gift card holder.

Are You a Potter Fan?

My husband is the biggest Potter fan I know. He is re-reading all the Potter books in anticipation of the release this Friday at midnight (which is when my hubby will be watching Harry). In celebration of him and his obsession, check out all these awesome Potter crafts I found (each image is linked to an awesome etsy shop to see more!):

Happy Friday!

Friday is always a happy day. Whether I've got big Friday night plans, or sitting at home with a good book and soup for dinner. I can always count on Friday's, and today is no different. I've had only lovely customers so far this morning, I'm having a great hair day (thank you Shannan!) and I can't wait for my evening at home alone. Tonight is about cleaning and crafting! Time to get my little house in shape for the holidays! My husband loves that I clean and decorate, but he REALLY loves it when it starts looking like Christmas at home. So, we never wait until after Thanksgiving. Oh no, it's November 1st for us, so I'm technically already behind.

Tonight I'm starting on the Nieces and Nephew gifts. My new favorite little people to make gifts for. This year is full of Matryoshka dolls, whales and giraffes.

Here's a few of my new randomly selected favorite things:

Ah, this reminds me of my brother and I avoiding naps by pretending the carpet is hot lava and having such wonderful imaginary adventures. (Mom didn't care, as long as we were quiet for a few minutes a day:)
I love this emerald clutch! Actually, I have a love/hate relationship with clutches in general. They're so cute, but so annoying to hold all night.

googling

This is what came up when I google'd Headband Pattern:


Apparently not everyone has updated their crafting style. Will someone please make this for me for Christmas?

We're Back

Where were we? Las Vegas. You know how Hans and I love to gamble and drink the night away. Orrr, I had a conference for work. Either way, we had a great time walking, eating and then eating some more. Seriously, we're both on an oatmeal and Jamba Juice diet for the week. This was the first time I actually enjoyed Las Vegas though. It could have something to do with my husband letting me spend 2 hours (eek!) shopping in Anthropologie. Ahhhh, it was a nice break from the mayhem of the strip to step into my home away from home and purchase a few lovelies for myself! It was such a treat. Plus, spending the weekend away with my favorite man is a huge plus!

So anyhow, we're back and we're no worse the wear.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Hans and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary yesterday (with steak)! Can you believe it? It's amazing how time flies. But we started talking about everything we've done in the past 2 years, including welcoming a niece and a nephew, celebrating a 30th birthday, travelling near and far, buying a new car, moving to a new, tiny apartment, and so much more, it seems as though we've done a good job of making the most of our time. We had a wonderful time celebrating each other and our lives together thus far. Here's to many more Anniversary's!

Phooey Friday

Today is not my favorite day. Today I am not on my way up to the Redwoods (my favorite place on earth) with my entire family for a week of relaxation and fun. Today I am not laughing at Maddie's dolphin stories or Henry's poop smile or Josie's infectious giggle. Nope. Not me. Sitting at work feeling sorry for myself and for everyone else in the world denied of such wonderful moments on their Friday. Phooey indeed!

Whiskers on Kittens . . .

Here's a few more of my favorite things!
Summery purse . . .

Anything from Anthropologie . . .

Sewing Books!!! I've added MANY fun new books to my Amazon wish list. I LOVE getting new craft books, and I enjoy used just as much as new books.

Taking pictures! My SLR doesn't fit in my pockets . . . French tea towels! Oui Oui!

Raindrops on Roses . . .

Ok, so here's a few of my favorite things right now (not for any reason in particular . . . nothing to do with my upcoming 28th birthday or anything.) You can click on any image for more info . . . This is only the beginning of more wonderful things to come!

Matryoshka Doll Patterns . . . so cute!

I just love the big bow on this bag.

Hans . . . esposita?

Friday Treats

Every Friday morning I give myself an end-of-the-week-treat from Starbucks. I love it. I look forward to it every week. However, for the past 2 Fridays, my day was ruined by a caffeinated latte, when I specifically askef for decaf. You can imagine how jittery someone like me becomes with caffeine.

So this morning, I gave them one last chance. I even changed my order to something super easy. Caramel apple cider with no whip. Easy breezy. I stood and waited for my drink hoping they would take this opportunity to redeem themselves. I watched the barista pour the sweet liquid into the paper cup. In a moment of horror I watched him reach for the whip cream and coat the top of my drink in a long, creamy string of whipped milk (which I am allergic to). He then topped it with caramel as if that would make up for it. I wanted to throw it back in his face, storm out, and call some sort of Starbucks hotline. I did none of these. Although, I didn't say thank you. So ha! I'm sure he understood my extreme discontent from my lack of gratitude.

In response to the tragedy of my past 3 Friday's, I am determined to make my next one count. Time for a new coffee shop. NO MORE STARBUCKS. Say it with me everyone. My husband has disliked them for quite a while, and now I'm taking his side and saying no to chain coffee and poorly understood orders. I feel liberated, free from the need for Starbucks and their comfy shops and low lighting. They think they're so cool. I now disagree.

More Pictorals

More pictures for your enjoyment!

Josie was having fun playing with laundry while I was folding. These may or may not be a pair of Hans me-oh-my's.

Here's my adorable husband with my adorable niece! Aren't they a cute pair?

Here they are again. I have like 11 pictures of them high-fiving. It's fun at every age!
This is right before Hans went to Bali. We looked happy, but we were NOT! (And apparently Hans thinks it's funny to pretend that his wife is heavy. Hardy-har-har.)

2 Months

So it's been basically 2 months since the last time I blogged. Whoops.

Anyhow, we moved to our new place, which is still in process. Turns out our walls are essentially made of rubber, which makes it near impossible to nail into. But we enjoy our neighbors and the area, etc.

I got a new job! I'm working with Hans' Aunt Kimmy in an optical office. I'm really enjoying it! Yay for me! Also, Hans was transferred to the Jamba Juice in Bixby Knolls, which he's really loving. Plus, when we're both at work, we're only 7 minutes away from each other.

Hans went to Bali, I went to Washington, and that's about it.

I've attached some pictures to catch you up on the last few months, since they're WAY more fun to look at than to read my dribble.


This is me and my adorable niece, Josephine in Washington. We're in Woods Coffee, which my sister-in-law is the manager of.

I kayaked on this beautiful lake in Washington.

Left to right: Rachel Hammer, Heidi Weston and moi. We like chips apparently.
Me, Julie, Heidi and Mom at Julie's baby shower. Since this picture was taken, baby Henry Oliver was born!!! Hans and I are heading down to San Diego to see the little guy on Saturday. Can't wait to meet him!
Here we are dancing at Hans' cousins wedding; Hans. The pretty lady in pink in the foreground is the mother of the groom and my new boss. She's got serious moves on the dance floor :)

Exclamation Point

Why do I never blog? Because. That's why.

Hans and I are moving! Although that exclamation point is for the hope of it being exciting, but is hiding my dread of actually picking up boxes, taking them down stairs, loading, unloading, taking them upstairs, and then actually unpacking them. It's a loaded exclamation point. Complicated, like me.

I'm a Twit

I am now a Twitter-er. I hate to admit it, but it's actually kind of fun. It's for business purposes of course. Check us out at http://twitter.com/geschenkcookies.

I haven't started tweeting yet, just gathering people to follow. (bonus: we already have 4 followers!)

Curling

Curling is a funny sport. Brooms, ice and sliding on your knees. Ahhh, the Olympics.

Thinking out loud

I've been job searching every day for the past 2 months. I just went on my first interview, and it was a total bust. I did well, but didn't end up feeling like it was a good fit for many reasons. Mostly, the pay was atrocious. So now I'm sitting. I've been doing a LOT of that lately, and frankly, I'm exhausted. Yet, I lack the motivation to do much more. And I know how it goes. I'm bored and feel lazy, and then all the sudden, I'm overcommitted and don't even have time to read a book or watch a movie. Where's the balance?

Does anyone else suffer from this inability to find balance in their life? And why do I lack the ability to fill my schedule with worthy activities? Like volunteering, exercise, or taking a class. Instead, I do basically the same thing every day and dig myself into a deeper rut. I feel this unsettling deep down that is growing and will soon explode. I just need to do something new. Shake things up. Take a risk. Stretch myself in new ways. I'm open to suggestions here folks.

I have tons of great ideas, but that's all they are; ideas. I feel incapable of putting them into action, and even when opportunities are presented to me, I'm frozen in indecision. How do innovators become so innovative? How do they not give up at the first sign of trouble? I want to be one of those people. Someone who can see a goal and achieve it, come what may. I guess I need to decide which goal is most important to me and then stick to it. But how?

Mostly, I'm just curious if anyone else feels the same.

(**sidenote: I think I may have eaten some questionable pork pot stickers and am beginning to feel the repercussions).

Well, off to . . . . do something.

Finally

After 4 weeks and 2 days, we finally have our car back. Yep, it's been in the shop for literally a month. It's been a nightmare, but we have a new transmission with a 2 year warranty, and a bunch of other new-fangled things I can't pronounce. Best part: didn't have to pay a penny AND they paid our first car payment for us.

I'm exhausted. So much so that I'm treating myself to some 30 Rock and popcorn.

Trying to find a job sucks!

Scones

I made orange chocolate chip scones today. I love trying new things in the kitchen! I hope they're good . . .

It's Official!

Right not if you went down to 2nd Street in Long Beach and walked into the store next to the Rubber Tree (don't ask), what would you find? MY CARDS FOR SALE! Can you believe it? I'm such a success. Ok, maybe not yet, but I'm so excited to have made this step! I gave myself a big pat on the back today. I've got so much more motivation to go out and try more stores now!

To celebrate, chili and games on the Wii with Sis-in-law. Whoo hoo!

p.s. also finally got a call back on a job I applied for. It's a successful day. Perfect excuse for something chocolate . . .

Wish I had a camera - but you're glad I didn't

So yesterday, there was a torrential downpour from about noon to 1pm. I know this for a fact. Mostly because Hans and I got to Disneyland around 11am. We got in line on our favorite ride, and when we came out, it was raining. Not a big deal, so we just kept going on the same ride, since there were no lines. However, we then wanted to go from the back of DCA to the back of Disneyland to go on Space Mountain. By the time we got there, we were both wet through 2 layers of clothes.

We waited in vain for the monorail, which broke down. Now if you know Disneyland, you know that at this point we are at the furthest point possible from our car. We decided not to wait in the freezing cold rain and just to walk it. By this point the smallest puddles were 4" deep. We arrived at our car with no dry clothes to speak of. Including underwear.

Here's where I wish I had a camera, but you're glad I didn't. Hans and I stripped down to our skivvies in the back seat of the car (imagine my 6"+ husband taking off wet jeans in the back of a car (or don't, actually). We both got down to our undies and drove home with the heater on full blast. I was still shivering when we pulled into the garage. THEN we had to walk up to our apartment building with no clothes on. Our neighbors are thankful they didn't run into the crazy couple that lives in apartment 5 that day.

After a long shower and blankets on the couch, we finally recovered from our scantily-clad, wet day.

New Car!

Hans and I bought a Volvo xc90 last week! We got a great deal on a used one. Here's a few pictures. Handsome husband, handsome car, eh?

I went along with Hans yesterday when he went surfing, in hopes of getting some good pictures of him on a wave. However, I can't zoom that far, so here's a great shot of him getting ready to get in the waves . . . almost the same effect.

New Cards!

Yes! I've got my newest collection of cards out for all to view! Just got a new camera, so I'm quite pleased with the images. Please take a look at my Etsy site when you get a chance. Also, I'd love any feedback or suggestions!

www.louloucreations.etsy.com

Here's a few to tease you with!

Sorry

Ok, I really am sorry this time for not posting in so long! You know, holidays, excuses, excuses, excuses.

Anyhow, below are a few pictorial highlights from the holidays! Enjoy!

Here's me and the hubby with our favorite (and only) nieces. Josie and Maddie. Could they be any cuter?


Here's the whole Stokke family together during the holidays for the first time in a looooong time! (l to r: Michael, Heidi, Amy, Hans and Anna) I'm wearing the super awesome scarf my sister made me for Christmas.


Ah, I can't even handle how cute all these little one's are. These are most (not all) of the Lindley family great-grandkids. (l to r: Newest addition Abigail, Liana, Sophia, Vienna, Lindley, Caleb, Josephine, Madeleine, and Lincoln)

Merry Christmas to Hans. I got him some Clay Marzo Future Fins. Yep, I didn't know what they were either, but he loved them, and that's what counts.