just a little something to brighten your day

my favorite Christmas present

I know, I know, Christmas was a while ago. But I really love this gift.

My Carrie-sister made it. She's a graphic designer. 

It's the Oklahoma City Temple, where Brandon and I were married. Pretty awesome huh?

 Here's a closeup:

Coolest Sister Ever Award winner, right here. (It's a real thing. Red carpet rollout, fancy parties, huge deal.)

For more info on LDS Temples: http://www.lds.org/church/temples?lang=eng

To visit Carrie's blog: http://carrieannodell.blogspot.com/

Hello Monday

Hello sweet pajama girlies

Hello busy day full of errands and running around.

Hello my precious.

Yes, that's a 2 lb bag.

Hello giant bun!

Hello sunshine!! Can we say 70 degrees?

Hello great day!

Linking up with Hello Hue and And Here's to You, Mrs. Robinson.

I can't get the taste of earthworm out of my mouth.

Today I got the most amazing package in the mail. 

My friends, the Sharipov family, recently went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, and they were kind enough to get me some souvenirs! 

Chocolate Frog and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans!

 I was so excited about this!! The boxes are really cool, and I'll probably keep them forever (don't judge me).

Check out how huge that frog is! Solid chocolate! 

 I got Helga Hufflepuff's card. She actually moves a little bit!

Every Flavor Beans,

 "You want to be careful with those," Ron warned Harry. "When they say every flavor, they mean every flavor - you know, you get all the ordinary ones like chocolate and peppermint and marmalade, but then you can get spinach and liver and tripe. George reckons he had a booger-flavored one once." 

Ron picked up a green bean, looked at it carefully, and bit into a corner. 

"Bleaaargh - see? Sprouts."

This one is Earthworm. Ew.

 Brandon got a vomit, but he had to spit it out. He said it was as real as the real thing. 

And last, but not least, Pygmy Puffs!

The girls are going to LOVE them!!

Thank you so much Sharipov family! You guys are awesome!!

Reasons Why I am an Awesome Parent

or, My Nerdiness Knows no Bounds.

1. Portia loves Harry Potter. Mostly, she loves the Pottermore website, but she likes the first movie a lot as well. She has a framed Gryffindor Lion above her bed. I'm raising muggleborns over here!

2. My girls LOVE Star Wars. They have seen the whole trilogy (4,5,and 6. They are too young to be subjected to the horror that is Hayden Christianson's acting just yet). Portia sat and watched them all back to back, and when one would end, she would say "Again! Again!" She has since requested to watch them on several occasions. Her favorites are the Chewie and the "little bears."

3. I recently introduced my girls to the movie, Labrynth. Portia was equally frightened and enthralled. She told me today that it was her favorite, and has taken a strong liking to David Bowie.

4. Portia likes Star Trek, she calls it the "Captain Lights Show." Ah, Jean Luke Picard.

I bet you thought I was only a Harry Potter nerd huh?

Isn't Oklahoma beautiful?

I'm going to die.

Guys, I started a new workout yesterday. And it's already killing me. That means it's working, right?
Ok. So it's a 7-day challenge, which I loved because I hate commitment. J/K. But seriously, I never know how much time I will have to spend on a daily workout, and this one is about 15-20 minutes, for 7 days straight. Not bad right?
Wrong. It's bad. So so bad.
I just finished day 2, and I literally sweat more than I do during childbirth. At one point I thought I was going to barf. No joke, it's so hard.

It's a workout for your butt.

I'm embarrassed.

But I better look like stinkin J-Lo by the end of this week or I'm going to be real mad.

Here's the link:
http://skinnyms.com/summer-butt-challenge/

Sweet mother.

things i'm lovin today

1. Full episodes of Duck Dynasty online. Guys, that show kills me.

2. I get to go get a haircut tonight! It's waaaaaay overdue. So excited to see Kindle at Salon Zen! She rocks!!

3. I'm making Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana soup for dinner tonight! Yummmmmm!

4. The fact that Portia still takes naps most days! It's awesome! 

Check out her sweet self.

5. I have recently discovered a totally sweet clothing company: Boden. They are incredible! Gorgeous modest clothes galore! Here's some of my faves:

Wedge Desert Boots

Blenheim Blazer

Amelie Dress

Bistro Crop Trousers

Dreamy huh?

obsessed

I love Ellie Goulding.






This video is a bit weird, but the song is cool.

swoon

I have a pact with my Carrie-sister. 

If I am alive and near when she dies, I will arrange her in her coffin, so that she looks like she's swooning. 

You know, one hand thrown up by her forehead. 

Like this:

Maybe we're weird and morbid. 

Or maybe we're awesome. 

I win again!

A few weeks ago, I won a contest. Well, guess what! It started a pattern! Since then, I have won two more giveaways!!

I won a $50 giftcard to hearts.com

The bracelets are handmade. Awesome!

And I won a free print from Livy Love Designs!

Cute huh? I think I'm going to hang it in my bathroom.

I'm on a roll folks!

Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam

Today was Portia's first Sunday as a Sunbeam. For those of you who don't know, Sunbeams are the class of kids at our church who have just graduated from the Nursery program.
I was a little worried about her; she loved Nursery. I was concerned that she would look around, see no toys, and lose it. But she seemed to do just fine!
Just now, as I was making dinner in the kitchen, Portia came in holding a family picture. She looked at it for a moment and declared, "Heavenly Father knows me and my family." I asked her if that's what she learned in Sunbeams today, and she told me it was.
I am very impressed. She listened to what her teachers said, and took it with her! I am so grateful for this program!

Redheads have more fun

I think every girl should be a redhead at least once in her life.

So I have gone ginger again!

our holidays

It's been awhile since I've been able to post; the holidays were busy for us! What's that? You wanna hear all about it? Why, I thought you'd never ask!

Rewind about a month, to about the second week of December. Can you see it? The stores were still blasting Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole, camera-armed Santa Stations dotted every mall in the country, and the Rawlinsons were gearing up for our holiday travels!

First, we drove to Tulsa, to visit our parents. We stopped at my parents' house first, for the Annual O'Dell Grandkids Christmas Party. For those of you who aren't aware, there are 11 grandkids on my side of the family. As you can imagine, all of us getting together for Christmas is a little difficult. So, my mom and little sister came up with a plan. Every year, everyone joins together for one evening for some awesome kid-centered holiday fun! We decorate cookies, open gifts, look at Christmas lights, we go all out.
This year, we went bowling! The kids loved it! We then drove to Rhema to see the lights.

Carrie and I at the bowling alley. Something exciting must have been happening. Probably a strike.

 Me, Carrie, and Daisy, and the back of Margot's chubby little head.

My cute parents. 

There aren't many pictures of my kids, as they were too excited to stand still. Fun times!

Next, we headed to Brandon's parents house for a week. We celebrated Christmas early, and the girls made out like kings! They got Little People, Barbies, new jammies and outfits, and tons more. They were in heaven! This was the first Christmas that Margot was old enough to really know what was going on, so she was really excited.

Next, we drove 15 hours to LaGrange, IN to visit my extended family. It was a surprise, only my Aunt Peg knew we were coming, and she kept a really good secret! It was so much fun to visit everyone, especially since I haven't seen most of my cousins in years! Plus, my girls got to meet a whole new group of kids their age to play with! Woohoo! 

Portia, decorating cookies.

Tuckered out. Brandon and my dad.

My grandpa. I like him.

My beautiful grandmother.

Next, we drove back to my Daisy-sister's house. She and her husband have been married for 15 years, and to celebrate, flew to Paris and London for 9 days. We watched their kids and house-sat while they were away. They had a blast, and got to do this:

which was very important.

After that, we drove back to Tulsa, where we relaxed for a few days, then drove to my Jeannine-sister's house for a night, where we relaxed some more!

At this point, we had been away from home for a month, so away we went! 

It was so fun and exciting to travel all over, but boy is it good to be home!