Embracing the Camera...sweaty style

This week my sweet and handy father-in-law came over to hang my porch swing. While he was working hard we all stood around and sweated with him for moral support.

It was good fun for everyone except poor Steve. I owe that guy big time.

Embracing the Camera with the Andersons

Be happy! 

-Katie

My new wheels

So I think I have mentioned before that I have the greatest boss on earth...well, a couple of weekends ago when I was home cleaning my booty off she shows up at my back door...with a NEW BIKE! We had been talking about bikes because we saw a cute bicycle basket that I wanted. I commented that I had never had a brand new bike because I always rode my sister's old bikes [do not worry, I was not scarred from this]. So she goes and gets me this cute new bike just for a little extra help I did around the shop. How cool is she?! 

Nicholas and I have been going on bike rides whenever possible.

 I am definitely ready to be able to go a little farther, but my legs are just not there yet. At least my bike is cute! 

[note: I HATE photos of myself, but I am trying to get better at documenting everyday life...so I endure]

Be happy! 

-Katie

Simple things: hydrangea love

I just cannot get enough of these gorgeous blooms on my hydrangea. I love seeing them when I pull into/out of the driveway and when I am sitting on the porch enjoying my new-old porch swing [I will be posting about that later]. I am trying to enjoy every minute they are in bloom so I have snapped several photos. They are simply beautiful. 

I am off to have a great week working up to my anniversary weekend with the mr. I am more than just a little excited. Can't wait! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Project Purple

 I have several projects in the works right now, and I am hoping to have a few of them finished up this weekend. One that is drying right this very minute is going to be fun and colorful...just like I like things. Here are a few "during" photos. 

This project is part of a MUCH bigger plan, but it will slowly come together piece by piece. I can't wait to be rocking on my front porch in this fun piece of the plan!

Be happy...and fun! 

-Katie

My kind of Saturday...the simple things

Saturday I finally got to spend a full day with my mr. It is crazy how long it had been since we were both free for a whole day just to do whatever we pleased. We chose garage sales, home depot, groceries, and yard work. To most people that would sound crazy, but those are all simple things we haven't been able to do together on a regular basis in a long time. Garage sales would have been a bust since I was kind of looking for some small tables to refinish, but I found a Wacom tablet [works perfectly] for $1.00! That alone made it worth it...especially since I went with low expectations. I have never found tons of stuff at a garage sale...I am kind of weird about that stuff. Anyway...it was a fun and productive day. We worked in the yard until we were starving, and then we tried out the grill. It was only the second time we have used it so we are still learning, but it turned out pretty well. We will be grilling again tonight! 

We trimmed hedges, planted zinnias, got the flower beds partially edged, bought mulch, mowed the lawn...It couldn't have been a better Saturday if you ask me.

I am linking up with Rebecca at Simple as That!

Be happy! 

-Katie

My new camera...pencil sharpener!

So my thoughtful mom had told me she had something she was excited about giving me [we are big gift-givers in my family] when I got to visit again. When I got there she had found this adorable guy! 

At first I thought of how difficult it would be to hold the sharpener, hold the pencil, and turn the crank. However, the thing has a genius design, and the top part pops out to grip your pencil for you. I love it a lot more than the stupid one I bought that suctioned to my desk [handmade by my dad] and left a big, horrible, black mark that won't come off. Plus, I am just pretty excited about it's cute factor. 

What are some other things I am excited about, you ask? 

• spending ALL day Saturday with my mr
• my porch swing project that I can't wait to share
• getting a lot of things marked off my to-do list
• the tiny little plants sprouting in our garden
• our anniversary trip [I think already mentioned that in a previous post, but I am THAT excited about getting away]
• homemade ice cream tonight
• doing some much needed spring cleaning, rearranging, and redecorating
• planning my buddy Megan's baby shower

As always I can't not be busy. I am not good at sitting and doing nothing. However, the current list of things is not nearly as overwhelming as it has been, and I am eager to get some things knocked out so I can get to work on my "fun to-do" list [yes, I really have one of those]. In the mean time...

Be happy! 

-Katie 

Meet Avery

A year ago I took Miss Avery's newborn photos. Yesterday I got to take her one year photos! It is crazy how time flies! She was so funny, and I can't wait for her Mommy to see all the cute shots we got. Here are just a few:

Enjoying my last day in AR by having lunch with my buddy Brittney, time with my dad, and an evening with family.

Be happy! 

-Katie

Getting happy

So I have been sort of stressed lately...Okay, that is a lie. There was one day that I was so stressed that I nearly cried over dropping a plastic bowl. I am normally not so stressed. I get frustrated, but this past week I felt so tired and anxious and overwhelmed...just plain stressed. I had to work normal [sometimes more] hours, but it was an especially busy week there. Wednesday night I planned to pack for my AR trip, but we ended up planting the garden [much later than we wanted] and trying out our grill for the first time [not as relaxing as it sounds since I seriously threw together the fastest dinner ever and left a ridiculously dirty kitchen to go get more plants]. Thursday night was a fun night out with the mr to see one of his favorite comedians, but even that felt rushed [drive thru dinner in the car] since I was feeling the need to finish getting ready for the craft show and my trip afterwards. Friday I was at work before 7:00 and got home shortly after 5:00 just to grab another quick dinner and head to Warrensburg to set up my booth. I had been so worried about me being out of my league with my booth, but luckily my sweet mother-in-law went with me to help set up. After we left that night I felt so much better about my booth. I wasn't completely done, but I was excited with how it looked so far. I did some rushing around when I got home to pack for my trip to AR as well as gathering up some final things for my booth. On top of all this my house was a disaster, and that always causes me to stress.

It is definitely a week I am glad to see behind me. I am looking forward to spending more time with Nicholas [since he is done with school for the summer] and catching up on several things. I do have a baby shower to plan as well as a few photography projects coming up, but I plan to let myself relax a bit in the near future. I want to take a break from so many projects so that I don't get myself in too deep again. I have allowed my creative endeavors to become a stress point, and I don't want that at all. I have had no time for blogging, gardening, personal projects or time with Nicholas...and it is time for some of those things to take priority. Summer here I come...

• gardening
• Anniversary trip with my mr [can't wait!!!!!]
• kicking back and painting my nails
• refinishing my old family porch swing
• picnics
• dinners on the deck
• weekend trips and sundresses
• family visits
• softball

   

Hopefully I will have more fun, interesting, and upbeat things to post about soon. Until then, here is a sample of the items that were available at my booth on Saturday.

greeting cards [blank inside]

Be happy! 

-Katie Beth

The Mixing Bowl Booth

So things are as busy as ever, and I hate that I am not getting to work on things around the house much. I am basically just keeping it so we can function without going crazy. I am itching to get to work in the yard, we still haven't planted our garden [due to rain], and I have so many inside projects I would like to work on. However, I have made progress on the products for the craft show that is less than 2 weeks away! I was kind of freaking out until yesterday. I worked on several things over the weekend, and I made a list of everything I have right now. I plan to do more work on things, but even if I could only take when I have right now I think I would be okay. I will be busy this week prepping more products and figuring out how I will set up my table at the booth. Hopefully it looks as good as the booth Mary and I did for a show this past weekend. We handed out samples and displayed some of our cakes and goodies. Here is how it turned out! [Ignore the ugly, green water cooler that we had to work around].

Wish me luck as I continue to prepare and get more and more nervous!

Be happy! 

-Katie