Before and After, part 3?

I feel like I am always posting Before and Afters.  If you haven't figured this out about me yet, I like to change things up.  A lot.  And so do my kids with THEIR hair.  So, here we go again.  :)

In case you forgot, here's my before...  (the first one is this morning, and it's kind of blurry... still getting used to my new camera).

I've been letting it grow out for about 2 years now.  And I really like it when I FIX it, but that doesn't happen regularly.  :)  I most often do what I did in the top picture... straighten my bangs and let the rest dry naturally (and frizzy).

So, I decided to chop it off.  Literally.  I am still researching where to donate my hair to, but my braid was 10" long.

See?

So, here's the "after."  I think it's kinda "big" today.  I call it hairstylist hair...  where it's a little bigger than I would normally wear it.  But I LOVE IT!

And there go you...  the BEFORE AND AFTER... again.

Being an Individual

So, the more Don and I got to know each other as we were dating and newly married, we realized that we had something in common... we like(d) to be an individual... stand out in a crowd.  (I just realized how funny that is... that we like to be an individual just like each other.  ha)

While both kids inherited that trait from us in some ways (let's remember the numerous mohawks that Bub has sported... the slicked back mullet that he wore out for his birthday), that trait has really been passed on to Sis.

She doesn't care about name brands on clothes, she doesn't care about name brands on shoes... she just likes what SHE likes.

So, for the last year or so, I've been letting her put semi-permanent color in her hair.  We've tried this look several times, but this latest 'do has "taken" the most.  The whole underneath of her hair has been dyed black.  And as long as it is, and because of her layers, it shows up the bottom third of her hair or so.

And she loved it so much that she actually did a little photo posing for me.  Which, these days, is a big deal!  Here's Sis...

I love her smile here, but you can't see as much of her "underneath" hair.  Note her "Geek" necklace, and her Pokemon hoodie.

You can see the color better in this one.

My gorgeous, individual girl

One last look...

Despicable Deliciousness

So, I've gotten sucked into the Pinterest craze... meaning I'm CRAZY for it!  For those of you not familiar with it, it's like an online bulletin board where you can "pin" things you're interested in on your bulletin boards.

I believe I've made it clear on here before that I am NOT crafty...  I've instituted a Christmas-time baking cookie "tradition" (if doing it twice makes it a tradition), but I am always SO crabby by the end of that "fun."  It's the decorating part of the baking that stresses me out so much, I think.  Because it's crafty.

Anyhoo, I found this photo on Pinterest:

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via Darla on Pinterest

And Bub was ALL OVER IT.  He wanted us to make them RIGHT NOW.  Which was like a Tuesday.  And we had no ingredients.  Nor was I in the mood.  So I convinced him to wait until Thanksgiving break.

Which was today.  Which he reminded me of as soon as the week started.

These little guys on the cupcakes are Minions.  From the movie Despicable Me.  Which my kids LOVED.

So, today was the day.  For craftiness.  *yay*

So, we decided to try it.  Introducing:  our cast of characters.  LOTS AND LOTS OF SUGARY GOODNESS.

Sis wasn't interested in helping us with the cupcakes, but she separated the Smarties for us... we needed the white ones separated from the other colors.

We had to wait for our cupcakes to cool before we could begin.

Bub googled Minions to make sure we remembered what they looked like.

We iced a cupcake, then put a Twinkie half on the top.

We put a line of black icing around the front and added either one or two Smarties.

We traced the Smartie to finish off the goggles, added the dot in the eye and finished off their smiles.  We tried to use the red licorice for their hair, but we couldn't make that work (it should have been black anyway, but the store was out of black tear-apart licorice)... so we skipped the hair.

Here's the whole group of them... just don't look at them too close or you might find...

A rabid Minion.  Doesn't he look like he just ate someone's blood?

Or the unibrow Minion.  No wonder he doesn't smile.

And that poor guy in the back.  We just feel bad for that poor guy.

But you know what?  Overall, I like our cute little Minions.

Bub and I have already decided that these guys will probably look pretty pitiful by the time they make it to Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.  I think the black icing is already absorbing into the Twinkies, the eyes are drooping WELL below where they should be.  But you know what?  I did the whole project with Bub, and didn't get crabby at ALL.  I call that a crafty WIN.

Thankful

I've been taking part in the Thankful in November posts daily on Facebook.  Not to be corny, but to remember why I'm so blessed.

I am thankful for everything I put on there, but here's a synopsis of what I'm thankful for (both lofty and small):

• I'm thankful that I'm a child of God.  That He sent his Son to die for me so I could be His.

• I'm thankful for my extended family... from my parents, grandparents, aunts/uncles, cousins, siblings, in-laws, nieces/nephews, etc.  There is seriously NO ONE I'd rather be with than family.

• I'm thankful for those friends who I consider family.  You know the ones... the ones I can have over even when my house is trashed, the ones I'd let come clean my house when I'm sick and can only watch them, the ones I can spill all my angst to... yeah, those are the ones.

• I'm thankful for all my other friends... the ones that entertain me, challenge me, make me laugh, make me cry (in a good way)
• I'm thankful for Don...  for lots of reasons.  He's a great daddy, he's ambitious (but not to the detriment of our family), he's funny, he's SO cute, he's disciplined, he has a heart for God's will in his/our life, he's a leader, and he loves me.

• I'm thankful for Sis...  she's so silly, HILARIOUS, sarcastic (in a good way... see HILARIOUS), she's part-child/part-woman, she's beautiful (inside & out), she's smart, she keeps me on my toes.

• I'm thankful for Bub...  he is never still, he's so smart, he never gives up, he's a great cuddler, he's so funny/silly, he has a heart of gold, he's smart

• I'm thankful for coffee... 'nuff said
• I'm thankful that Bub sings every time he's in the shower... it makes me smile every single day
• I'm thankful that Sis has such a gift for art...  she shines in that area!

• I'm thankful that my kids inherited Don's genes for memorizing lyrics...  they crack me up with a concert on a regular basis!

• I'm thankful that I am able to spend more time with my family now.
• I'm thankful that I'm able to cook more often now
• I'm thankful for the internet/Netflix/Facebook/Twitter

• I'm thankful for my health
• I'm thankful for this time of year when I get to see my family more often
• I'm thankful for my car... I love my "mom car!"

• I'm thankful for our cute apartment.  I seriously think we have the cutest apartment in our whole town!

• I'm thankful for traditions... tomorrow Don, the kids & I are volunteering to help put meals together for people who aren't able to get out...  Friday, I'm going shopping in the insane crowds with my sister... all because of traditions.

• I'm thankful for our church and our church family...  what an integral part of our lives!
• I'm thankful that I am able to sing on our Praise Team at church...  I'm glad to be able to use my voice.

• I'm thankful for our military men and women, both past and present...  from the bottom of my heart.  <3

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families/friends/loved ones.  Remember your blessings.

*The pictures are just pictures I like... a portion of what I'm thankful for!

Reliving the Summer

I've been working on a photo book all evening from our summer trip to Colorado.  We chose Colorado because Don was going to do a 50-mile mountain bike race in Leadville, CO there, anyway... so we decided to make it our vacation!  So, of course, being us, we bought a pop-up camper and made it part of our adventure.  *ahem*

I thought I'd throw up some of the photos from the trip to relive it with you.

We loaded the car UP, and the camper, and the Thule cargo box on top...

Don registering for the race.  We just got in the night before, Bub had thrown up all night (altitude sickness, most likely), and we were ALL a little tired.  What a way to start a race!  Didn't seem to bother Don, though!

Don crossing the finish line...  he did AWESOME!

Right after Don finished his race.  The kids and I were so proud of him!

The kids and I doing what we do... self-portraits

My best friend from college, J, now lives in Denver, so she and her family met us in Leadville for lunch.  :)

J chasing her two youngest, twins... 

We found the cutest, most quaint theater in Breckenridge to go watch the final Harry Potter movie

Leadville has the most gorgeous views from every single angle!

Bub rock-climbing at the Y resort we stayed at in Colorado

Roller Derby Princess

Heading up the mountain for some alpine slide action!

Flipping

Gorgeous sunsets!!!! (I made Don stop at the side of a highway, so I could take some pictures of the sky!)

Archery

We were only a LITTLE competitive!  ha.

Ziplining Bub

Ziplining Sis

This was the biggest deal of all to me.  I'm PETRIFIED of water, so I had to confront some major fears to get out on the water.  ALL DAY.  In Class 4 and 5 rapids!!!!  We had such a great time, though... I'm so glad I didn't let my fear stop me!

It was a wonderful vacation.  Thanks for letting me re-live it with you!