It's August Already!?

Hope everyone's week is off to a great start! Time is flying by and the heat index definitely proves August is here! Billy and I had a wonderful weekend, even though he had to work part of it. Friday we went to the doctor and heard our sweet baby's heartbeat again. That n-e-v-e-r gets old! We enjoyed our downtime and even planted a new tree in the yard. I love-love white crape myrtle trees & since they were on sale at Lowe's (even especially at Lowe's I can't pass up a sale) we picked one up to add to our front flower bed.  I cannot wait to see it grow and bloom, they are gorgeous trees.

TrendyInk Stamps are selling well so I wanted to show you the options again since they're not on my website:

Stamps are $34 (plus $5 if you need shipping) and are available in black, blue and red ink. Lots of clients are ordering them for house-warming, birthday and wedding gifts. Email me at Trendyinkdesigns {at} yahoo {dot} com for more details or to place a order.

Happy Monday!

My new excuse...

Hello blog world. I have already admitted to being the worst blogger ever so I cannot use that excuse anymore for my lack of post. I can however use the excuse that I've been extremely tired and the lack of energy after my work day leaves no creative juices for blogging. My new excuse, I'm pregnant! Yep, there is a baby Bird nesting away right now that we cannot wait to meet the first of the year. So, until I'm up to speed again I'll just have to be okay with the random post here and there.

I do hope to have some new items for Christmas this year. I'm thinking ahead since this Christmas I don't think I'll be 100% in the swing of working with a baby around the corner. :) Keep an eye out and I hope to have some fun Trendy Ink products to share in the coming months.

Annnnnd because a post is more fun with pictures. Here's my first baby, Oliver, watching his 'daddy' cut the grass. I love that boy! :)

A quick update {I'm still here}

I know, I am totally the worst blogger. To be completely honest I've been in a rut and just have not wanted to blog or share anything. Billy and I have stayed so busy lately. We had a really nice spring break in March and took a trip to Tampa, St. Pete and Orlando. As always, we had the absolute best time! Lately, Trendy Ink Designs has continued to be busy. I'm producing quite a bit of stamps and embossers. I've also been designing a lot of baby invites. I need to get those added to my website. Eventually...

My sister-in-law sent me this picture of my nephew, Carlo wearing my brothers uniform. I just had to share. He is the cutest 7 year old boy I know. I cannot wait until they make their move back home to the good ole' USA so I can spoil him rotten. 

Happy Mother's Day to all you Momma's out there! Enjoy YOUR weekend.

A New Year {already!?}

I printed out something at work today and noticed on the bottom of the paper "1/4/2011" and that's when it truly hit me, it's 2011! It has taken me four days (I may be a little slow) for this to sink in.  I cannot get over how fast time is moving. I still haven't even blogged about our Christmas and what a wonderful Christmas it was! Tomorrow in celebration of my Birthday, I will have a SALE on one of my hot Trendy Ink Design products. Until then I will leave you with a few pictures from the past couple of weeks...

 Dinner with friends - a few of them are missing from this picture but it sure was nice to catch up! 

Christmas Eve after the Candelight service at our church,

Billy & I enjoyed the Yule Log! I love-love the Yule Log! :)

My favorite guys! Billy and Oliver on Christmas Day at Moms.

Poor Oliver was getting a "talking to" since he wanted so badly to play with the presents (AND chase Sophie). :)

Be sure to check back tomorrow for more details on my Birthday Sale!

It's been a whirlwind!

It's been a whirlwind of a week! Shortly after we enjoyed Thanksgiving and had a 17 hour day of black Friday shopping things went south. My Dad ended up in the hospital AND my brother is in Italy with mono and is in need of surgery but they cannot operate until he gets well.  I'm thankful it is nothing too serious but it sure has been a wild weekend.  The saying, "when it rains, it pours" comes to mind.

In a matter of hours, Billy & I begin our vacation and I have not even packed one thing. This is maddening to the organization/planner in me!  So, with everything going on I have no time to do all the posts I had planned.  I want to leave you with our photo session from a couple weeks ago.  My friend, Kaci, took these for us and we had the best time hanging out together in the park.  Go to her blog to see the rest of our session or visit Kathryn Brown Photography for more information on her photography.

Hope you all are having a great week!

Baby Garb & Western Wear

What a busy weekend. I really enjoy keeping busy when there is a big event or trip to look forward too. Billy and I have a lot of exciting things around the bend so I welcome this busy month. This past weekend was a lot of fun. Saturday morning I joined a lot of great girls at Lyndsay’s baby shower. It was so fun to see her (one the most adorable pregnant girls ever) and see all the goodies for baby A. I can’t wait to meet him and know he’ll be one cool baby if he’s even half as cool as his parents. :)

Another family friend invited us to their country club fall western wear party. When I first received the invitation I was really excited to attend but became overwhelmingly nervous about the attire. I definitely don’t have a closet full of plaid shirts and cowgirl garb. Luckily, last fall season I had a splurge spend on a pair of cute Justin cowgirl boots – vintage wash of course. So, I ran into Old Navy and purchased a white top and sported my jean jacket and accessorized appropriately. It was so much fun watching (yes, watching as I am definitely the least coordinated line dancer, ever) everyone two-step. My mom impressed me with her moves while Pops and I enjoyed watching and singing along to country’s greatest hits. Unfortunately for me, my most handsome husband had to work that night but it was great quality time with the parents and friends. We laughed, partook in good southern BBQ and had a blast! I hope this becomes an annual event because I’ll be looking for another invitation come next Fall (hint, hint Beasley’s).  :-) 

 Pops & I

 Aren't they so cute?

Billy & I on our way to Sunday lunch.

 

Hope you all are having a great week!

Torture the pup or not...that is the real question

There is a bit of debate on our pups Halloween costume. To dress Oliver up, or not is the question. We cannot agree. I've never dressed up a dog or any animal before so I’m definitely a rookie. We have been to Target, Wal-mart, Petco; you name it looking at costumes. At some point I thought this would be a fun idea (obviously, not for Oliver) to have him dressed up greeting the kiddos when we hand out candy. Wouldn't he be adorable as a pumpkin or bumble bee!? Here are a few I really like. Billy says, there is no way our boy is going to wear a Bee costume...

Meanwhile, the Halloween candy in a big ol' basket by the door is dwindling. I have NO idea who is eating all the kiddos’ candy!? (Uhmm, Mr. Bird)

In other news, the weeks continue to fly by! I cannot believe that next week is November. I realized today that I don't have time to slow down until next year! I appreciate keeping busy though as I enjoy counting down to something fun during the busy times.

In a matter of weeks Billy and I will again be in NYC but this time with friends. I cannot wait! NYC is beautiful at Christmas time and I'm really looking forward to experiencing it with Billy. I have so many wonderful memories with family in the city on holidays and am looking forward to sharing this with my wonderful hubby and making new memories.

Hope you all have a fun Halloween weekend!

Ahhhh, I'm at home again!

That is what I felt like screaming from the roof tops this week. Billy and I decided it was way pass due to car shop. We I wanted/needed to get rid of the Honda I was driving.

Let me rewind…

Before I dated my sweet and amazing husband, I dated a bozo. I’m allowed to be frank on here, right?! Looking back I’m not quite sure where my head was but I was definitely dating a guy that was wrong for me in every way. In that relationship he had convinced me that I should get rid of my beautiful white BMW because he wanted to get married and was thinking ahead about finances. To make a really long and sour story short, I traded in my pretty little BMW for a nice sensible Honda Accord. A week later, that “soon to be proposal” and future with him were gone – he broke up with me. I was stuck driving a Honda. (Insert lesson learned here: Ladies, I don’t care how great that guy is, don’t do anything stupid like I did until after you get married).

I was mad – really mad. Here I was with this “family sedan” and there was no future of a family. However, the Honda was a very good car and gave me four years of safe travels. The best part, I didn’t end up with that guy…just the car. It could’ve been worse! :)

Fast forward to today, four years later (to the week) and I still was a little bitter towards the Honda. It was not the cars fault but the memory every now and then that would remind me of why I was driving that car. I would never have chosen a Honda Accord on my own and that memory taunted me in various moments throughout the past four years. Here I was married to the perfect man God blessed me with and I had this lingering connection to the past I couldn’t seem to cut.

Until…

The day finally came this week and I am back in a BMW. It’s always been my favorite car and anyone who knows me realizes that since I’ve owned 3. I’m journaling my story so I can wipe my hands clean and finally leave that memory in the past. I know this story may sound silly but if you’ve been in a similar situation, you get it. So, here’s to old reminders going away AND to a wonderful husband who gets me…puts up with me…loves me with his whole heart…and takes me to pick out that car I’ve missed. I may love my new BMW but I really love Mr. Bird sooo much more.

 
Disclaimer:
****Please note that I think Honda Accords are wonderful cars and if you drive one this is not to offend you. It just wasn't for me.
Thanks and have a nice day. :) ****

Annoyances: not for the sensitive at heart

I have a few random thoughts from the past week or two that keep coming to mind and I just have to share/vent them on my public space…that’s part of having a blog, right? Here we go...

• My mom put an E on my name for a reason. I am not brook, I am Brooke…it looks finished with an E. I’m starting a new trend by replying and misspelling your name on purpose. It may be wrong but it makes me feel better. :)

• I am a rules follower, always have been. I don’t understand those who think rules do not apply to them…if you sign up for a full time job/event, work full time. Otherwise, you are stealing.

• Some may have been a queen in HS but your crown is long gone, so stop acting like you are Ms. America. News flash: the world doesn’t revolve around you and you're not that cute anymore.

• I am looking into purchasing a few Miss Manners' Books; I’ve realized I need to gift these to a few friends and family.

• I hate cats. I do. They make me sneeze and I have one that lives near me that likes to use my front porch. It’s time to invest in a bb gun… it worked when we were kids! Harsh? Yes. Works? Yes.

• I struggle with sympathy, I get it honestly. If you are a hypochondriac and cry wolf all the time…I stop giving sympathy so don’t look here for it.

• Politics – don’t leave defensive comments for all to see if you don’t know what you are talking about! Get informed, stay informed. It’s imperative for our future.

****Disclaimer: if you see yourself in the blog post, don’t blame me.****

Meet Oliver

Oliver stole my heart from first sight! After my birthday dinner earlier in the month Billy and I walked into a nearby pet store just to "look". I said, "If there is a cocker spaniel in here we are in trouble!" As some of you know, Sophie (who lives with my parents), also a cocker spaniel that made it into our lives because she was sooo cute after a trip to the pet store to “look” about five years ago. Obviously I need to stay out of pet stores!! However, Oliver was sitting there with his brother and looked soooo cute. I couldn't bare the thought of splitting up "brothers" and we walked away because I definitely did not want two dogs in our new home. After two days I couldn't get this little guy off my mind so I called the store to see if he was still there and he was. Unknowingly that same afternoon, Billy had called to see if he was still there. Once we realized we both had called, we were in the car to rescue him from puppy prison and give him a new home. Oliver has done a fabulous job training and he is soo smart. We are enjoying him and glad to have a new member of the Bird household! Oh, and my friend ended up going to the puppy store to "look" and purchased Oliver's brother! Needless to say, I am guilt free and now Oliver can see his brother, Jake, anytime!

It gets better everyday - Our 1st Anniversary!

Wow, I cannot believe it’s been a year since I married the best man I know. A year ago Billy and I married in a beautiful garden wedding surrounded by our family and friends. Dean, Frank and Nat King Cole along with other greats played throughout the air in the background as we swirled around the gorgeous yard celebrating with loved ones on a cool December afternoon. Yes, it was magical. The day was perfect and Billy couldn’t have been more handsome.

In the past year of marriage I have learned that:

- I love him so much more today than yesterday

- It’s okay to forget the dishes for a night and sit on the couch holding his hand

- Compromise

- The beauty of seeing God work in our marriage is priceless

- No one is perfect but I married darn near close! :)

- Being home with Billy is better than any event taking place in the world

- He’s a good man for picking up after me, I tend to leave shoes where I take them off…it’s my downfall (okay, one of many)

- Marriage to your best friend makes life easier and a lot of fun

- If making lemonade every other day and giving him a back scratch makes him the happiest man in the world, who am I to deny him that?

- Communication is key but so is prayer

- He loves UGA and if I need to cheer them on to make a happy house, I will cheer with the best of them…

- Having no pets work for us, ‘borrowing’ Sophie for a few days does the trick.

- Hitting the road and not knowing where you’ll end up makes for the best vacations

- I truly did marry the perfect man God set aside just for me! This past year has more than confirmed that. (good thing, right?) :)

- Billy is the absolute funniest person I know! I don’t think many people get to share in this fact because he seems reserved.

- I’ve learned a new (and the “correct”) way to fold t-shirts! :)

- Don’t give a man instructions, let the GPS tell them they are wrong, ha

- I’ve married a sensitive soul and he’s really incredible with me on my worst days

- The most fun I have had to date is with Billy

- I think he likes Target more than I do, if that’s possible

- Each day I have been complimented and each night I haven’t hit the pillow without hearing the sweet words, “I love you, babe” ...what a sweet gift!

- I couldn’t be more grateful for the fact that I get to grow old with my best friend!!

It’s been the best year. We were talking the other night and agreed it’s been the best year of our lives. We are still so amazed and grateful at how the Lord brought us together. We had a beautiful wedding, purchased our first home, traveled to New York and back, been on several weekend road trips, made many wonderful memories along the way and I look forward to many many more years to come!!!

December 6, 2008

 I love you, Mr. Bird

A Special Thank You

Hello, friends! I’ve kind of been out of the loop lately; it has been a busy Fall! I’ve been working on some great projects for Trendy Ink and for my home so stay tuned...

Also, a special THANK YOU to veterans for your service! As a daughter of veterans and sister of a solider currently serving overseas I know how much of a sacrifice it truly is, praying a special blessing for each of you! I’m so proud to be an American because of people like you.

Here's a picture of my favorite man and I from a recent Christmas card photo shoot (with my Dad as the photographer!) - so fun. 

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Melt my heart...

This is what I came home to last night...

You all know I love a hard working man! He’s wonderful to me. Billy made sure the house was spotless, vacuumed, kitchen cleaned and not a stitch of dirty laundry (except what we were wearing). We both are a bit OCD and do not like leaving a mess behind so he took care of everything. Now we are taking the week off to enjoy each other and actually do something besides work…and housework! I'm looking forward to 10 days of bliss! :) Have a happy weekend/week everyone.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

I love St. Patty's Day! Growing up Irish we were sure to celebrate big on Patty's Day. I have fond memories of waking up to Irish music blasting through the house (also known as our year round “cleaning music”). Mom would serve us green pancakes for breakfast and corn beef and cabbage for dinner. Pop even gave us GREEN MILK one year for breakfast when I was home from college for Spring Break with all my girls. Everything was green. Ha! Last year my family and I were in NY celebrating in the city with New York family at the parade along with all the other good Irishmen. Here's a couple of my favs from our fun last year.

Irish sisters having fun!I so wish I could’ve escaped the office for the day and celebrated in NY again…only the next time experiencing the fun world of green madness and love with Billy.

I have a feeling he’d be in for a shock. :-)
My Uncle Jack is as Irish as they come and is a St. Patty's Day baby -

here he is sporting the green beard last year!

Happy Birthday Uncle Jack and Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!

The Bird House

It’s official. Billy and I are home owners! Setting out to find the perfect home for us was not an easy task. I thought it would be simple, and it turned out to be a bit tough…what side of town do we look on, do we stay in Jacksonville, do we purchase brand-new or look into foreclosures!? Finally, after much prayer and searching, good things come to those who wait! We found a brand-new home. I truly believe after finding this home that it was built just for us and that the Lord knew it would be our future home. It has everything we had on our “must-have” list and more! We’re extremely thankful for the Lord’s guidance and are excited about what else He may have in store for our future. God has truly blessed us with a wonderful new home. We’re not quite sure what to do with all this space…okay that’s a lie! We’ve claimed all the extra rooms and we have big plans for decorating. I love to decorate therefore there’s a ton of projects in our future. I even think I’m going to keep my Pop busy with a few ideas I have in mind!

Here are a few pictures I snapped with my iPhone right after closing this past weekend. I hope to post more once we get settled in.

Miss Sophie

I've been contemplating a new pet, a sweet-loving puppy. Billy quickly reminds me that I have one and it's time to visit my parents for the 'fix'. Sunday, it hit - I MISSED SOPHIE! As silly as it sounds, I just absolutely had to see her! Sophie knows that when her 'mommy' shows up there's always a new toy in tow...I couldn't disappoint. Sunday afternoon I made a pit stop to PetSmart for a cute new play toy and hit the road. I began thinking about all those early-early mornings while potty training her, the expense at the vet & most importantly those expensive haircuts at the beauty parlor every 6 weeks...I snap out of my "I want a new puppy" mode and just enjoy my visit with my other true love, Miss Sophie Mae. On my surprise visit Sophie was super excited and extra grateful for her new toy. We played a lot, enjoyed momma's home cooking and watched movies together - it was a relaxing afternoon in Folkston!

A mouse in the house

Last night I came home from work to Billy greeting me with a big hug at the door. This always makes my day better knowing the work day is over with and I have him home with me. Last night turned out a little different than our usual Monday night. After hanging out and catching up on our day, I went into the kitchen to find ...

(are you ready for this!?)

... A MOUSE! This evil little guy...

(pix taken with my iPhone so it's not great quality - he was very scary!!!)

I have never screamed so loud! I do not like insects much less rodents! I screamed and jumped on top of a chair and asked Billy to get it. Then I slowly realized with him remaining calm and not seeing a tail or creepy whiskers wag - it was fake! I was going to kill Billy - end of story. He laughed like I'd never seen him laugh before. Game on! It's pay backs in the Bird house. :) Any suggestions, ladies? After I calmed down and realized it was all a joke, not a real rodent in my house, I was okay. I'm still thinking paybacks are due. ha! Is this what life is living with a boy? Atleaset they make it interesting! :)

Potato Flakes

Being a newlywed has been very exciting. Billy and I have so much fun together. He’s such a help around the house and I’m very blessed to have a “hands-on” husband who can take charge with chores. One duty that we do not share is the kitchen, I am the top chef in the Bird house (and that is not saying very much). Here’s a funny conversation that happened the other night as I was cooking:

Brooke: (in kitchen cooking pork chops, mashed potatoes and broccoli)

Billy: What is THAT?

Brooke: What is what?

Billy: The cereal box by the stove?

Brooke: You mean the potato flakes?

Billy: Huh?

Brooke: You’ve never seen potato flakes, have you?

Billy: No

Brooke: This is a working woman’s mashed potato

2008 Rewind

As I look at the year past and look ahead at what’s to come I realize how blessed I am – we all are. The Lord has blessed me beyond measure this year and stretched me in ways I never thought possible. I’m excited to bring in the New Year with my new husband in a matter of hours! 2009 is going to be an exciting new ride. I wanted to share a few of my favorite highlights from the past year.

A year ago today Pop was teaching me to drive the family boat, so fun! Sad to say, the family boat went to a happier family & that cold cash helped pay for my dream wedding!

March - Jordan came home for his mid-tour from serving in Afghanistan. We were so excited to have him home and be able to hug on him. Mom, Pop & I traveled to NY to pick him up from JFK. We spent about a week in NY with our NY family and had a blast with St. Patty's Day Parades, a Welcome Home Party for Jordan and of course some NY Shopping!

April - My sweet baby girl, Sophie Mae, turned 4!
May - A group of friends went out in style to celebrate Jon's Birthday. It was such a fun night and many memories made by all! Also in May something very special happend, I met my Love!

July - Celebrating the fourth with Family & Friends. Pop and I even met a few pirates! We spent the day on our boat and then fireworks in the evening in Fernandina, it was a fun way to celebrate July 4th!

August - Jordan is FINALLY HOME from a 15 month tour in Afghanistan. Such a sweet time with friends and family, so many showed up at JIA to show Jordan their love & support. Pop got first hug, glad I could capture it. It is one of my favorite treasured pictures. Also in August Jordan bought Pop some water skis and we hit the river - it was so fun to see Pop get up and slalom like he did before us kids!

September - Jon, Gail & I headed on I-95 for a quick weekend road trip. We ended up staying the night at the Casa Monica Hotel in St. Augustine. It was definitely a highlighted weekend because we had so much fun! I adore friends + randomness = perfect weekend.

October - Billy proposed! I've already blogged about this special event so I will spare the mushy details, ha, but October was a very special month for me!

November - Special friends of mine threw my Bachelorette Party and it was so much fun! I enjoyed having a sweet time with all my girls.

December - has been the most wonderful month of all. December 6th I married my love - we had a short engagement because we didn't want to wait, we were so excited. Mom and I planned a gorgeous garden wedding in 8 weeks! I cannot wait to blog about my big day early next year.

Christmas 2008! Billy & I had a fabulous first married Christmas together and are looking forward to the New Year!

Happy New Year to all of you! God Bless!!