Mom Chats - Pushed Back

Y'all.

Sometimes life just trumps blog stuff. Plain and simple.

As it should, in my opinion.

And life is a bit crazy right now. Caroline is still getting over RSV, I'm really busy at work (my real job) and I'm trying to spend as much time with my husband as possible before his crazy travel schedule begins next week.

All that to say, YES, we are still going to do the mom chats, but I'll just need to bump them back a couple weeks while things slow down for us.

I try really hard to keep this blog updated, while still taking care of advertisers here, working part-time and most of all, raising an infant. I feel like lately, I'm going 90-to-nothing. I need a sec to just catch my breath.

Thank y'all for understanding and I promise these chats are going to be so much fun! If you inquired about wanting to join in, I'll be sending out an email or posting here over this upcoming weekend, letting you know of the new schedule.

See y'all tomorrow for Confessional Friday's "Getting to Know You More" link-up!

AddiBug Designs + Giveaway!

Hey, y'all! I wanted to post about one seriously fabulous little girl hair accessory and hat boutiques - AddiBug Designs!

Recently, I was contacted by the very talented (and seriously sweet) Kristin about sending Caroline one of her beautiful handmade turbans. I took one five-second peek at her Etsy shop and was floored by the cuteness. I mean, the flowers, the bows, the woven preciousness...a girl momma's heaven, friends.

Kristin creates all of her bows, flowers and turbans by hand in a variety of seasonal colors and fabrics. I could not get over the amount of detail that went in to each and every single design of hers.

I'd go on, but I think I'll just let you see for yourself.

And no, the adorable child featured here is not included with the purchase of a turban ; )

The little white bow was one we already had, but I wanted to show how versatile these turbans are. If you have bows with alligator clips, you can easily attach them to the front to make them coordinate with multiple outfits. Hello, options!!

These makes amazing baby shower gifts for friends expecting girls, so keep Kristin in mind when you're buying. Also, Easter is right around the corner, so you might want to think about adding an AddiBug creation to your little gal's ensemble!

And, as promised in the post title, a giveaway!

Kristin is giving away this sweet little Valentine-themed headband set to one lucky reader! I'll announce the winner on Friday. To enter, please do the following and let me know that you did by commenting on this post!

1. Go "like" AddiBug Designs on Facebook
2. Follow ABD on Instagram (username is addibug_designs)

Be sure to also check out her blog, which is chock full of advice for momma's, pictures of her adorable daughter and much more!

That's it. How easy, right?

Check out Kristin's Etsy shop for more goodies, just like the ones seen here today!

And On Tuesday...

Today's post has no topic, which coincidentally is my favorite topic. It's sort of how this blog started, after all. No topic, no theme, no motive or direction...and now look at us - five years later and still talking about the same nonsense.

So with that in mind, I present Randomness. (Served fresh daily!)

-It's a snow day in Northwest Arkansas, so no driving in to the office or going to daycare for the little lass or me. We are going a teensy bit bananas, as this is the second day we've been stuck inside, but hopefully this ice starts melting off the roads by tomorrow morning. Also, Caroline has refused to nap today, which should make for a SUPER fun baby come 8 p.m. tonight. (Mommas, y'all know what I'm talking about, yes?)

I caught this pic for Instagram on Sunday. You can follow me at ablondeambition for more riveting photos like this one.

-With that said, I am LOVING my new part-time work schedule. It feels really weird to only go into the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays, especially on weeks when one of those days gets cancelled due to weather. But seriously, I adore getting to spend all this quality time with my baby girl. If you're a soon-to-be momma and a part-time schedule would be an option for you, I highly suggest it!  : )

-Last week was such a smashing success for the Confessional Friday link-up that I thought we'd do something similar this week again. Click HERE to read the "Getting to Know You More" questions for my Q&A style post this Friday. I'd love if everyone who participated last week would do this as a follow-up.

-I've decided that ankle boots with dresses make my legs look about five inches long. Not good for a chick who's only 5'4" anyway. I tried on some with a new dress I bought and it wasn't pretty. Or elongating.

-My Memaw (pictured above with Caroline and my Papaw) celebrated her birthday yesterday, so y'all be sure to wish her a happy day-late birthday on here, would ya kindly? (And can we talk about how fabulous she is with her spunky haircut and cute glasses?!)

Alright, I'm off to bake a blackberry cobbler because my hips and thighs are craving it.

What We Can Learn from Peyton Manning

Okay, I'll be honest. I really didn't have a dog in the fight in this year's Superbowl. Stephen and I tend to root for players we like versus teams, if that makes sense. (I guess if we had to pick a team, we'd choose the Niners or Patriots. We like the coaches and many of the players.)

But we like Mr. Manning a lot, no matter which team he's taking to the Bowl.

Here's why:

When asked this morning by a reporter if he was embarrassed by his team's performance last night, he said, "It's not embarrassing at all. I'll never use that word. There's a lot of professional football players in that room, that locker room, who put a lot of effort into being here and playing in that game. The word 'embarrassing' is an insulting word to tell you the truth."

It got me to thinking. How easy is would it have been for him to have said, "Yes. I'm ashamed. We played terribly and I knew we were sunk from that first bad snap."

Instead, he stood up for his team, his friends. He wasn't letting anyone pick on his family. I guarantee you that he didn't enjoy the outcome of that game or the numbers on that scoreboard. But instead of cursing and yelling and acting fed up, he put on a brave face and stood up for the guys he calls teammates.

It made me take a closer look at how I react when things don't go my way. Do I place blame on others to save face or, like Peyton, do I let those around me know that, no matter what, I'm proud of them? 

I think I'll choose to be like Peyton. 

Food for thought as we kick this week off...

.........................................

P.S. - Props to the Seahawks for coming out to "Bittersweet Symphony" by The Verve. LOVED IT. Oh, and a Superbowl trophy well-deserved!!

P.P.S. - I was elated to see that Red Hot Chili Peppers's Anthony Kiedis is still alive. After the substances that the man has probably ingested during his lifetime, I'm in awe. Californication blared on my CD player (remember those?) in high school 24/7 and it was just dandy to see those guys on the stage again. Thanks for keep real music alive, boys. 

(And I kind of loved the collab with Bruno Mars. Two very good acts, in my opinion.)

Prints!!

Hey girls! I'm co-hosting and linking up with Little Miss Fashion Queen to talk about prints!

Does the thought of mixing stripes and plaid send your anxiety level through the proverbial roof? Does a mere glance at houndstooth leave you shaking in your Nine West boots?

Then ladies, I’m here to set your mind at ease and give you the rundown on print mixology.

Stripes and houndstooth? Don't mind if I do!

1.     Combine prints with coordinating or complimentary colors. This doesn’t mean the colors have to be an exact match – in fact, that can leave you looking like a broken kaleidoscope. What I mean is pairing a blue plaid shirt with a gold houndstooth print, as blue and yellow (or gold) are compliments on the color wheel. See how that works?

2.     Don’t incorporate more than two prints in one outfit. You could possibly induce migraine headaches and seizures in innocent bystanders. Instead, stick to the Rule of Two. For example, if you’re wearing a leopard print scarf and a taupe striped cardigan, don’t get crazy and throw in a polka dot clutch for good measure. Let the leopard and the stripes do their thing. They are the Beyonce of the ensemble. The rest of the outfit should sing back-up.

3.     Start small if you’re sc-sc-sc-scared. Try sporting a fun polka dot manicure with a winter floral scarf. If that melts your butter, then you can go bigger and bolder next time.

So that’s your homework this month. Go into your closet, (or, if you’re like me, just go shopping), pull out any and all prints, then get to mixing.

Pretty soon, you’ll be the Carrie Bradshaw of the P.T.A. and all the other single-print-wearing moms will be, like, so jealous.

Link up with Little Miss Fashion Queen to share your prints!