It's that time again...

Time to make a come back.  It's only been radio silent for a month and a half or so... so, yeah.  Hello.

the mr and I all dressed up to see The Phantom of the Opera which toured to our local PAC from broadway!  So good! 

I'm like Cher.  Or uh... Lindsey Lohan.  Or... someone famous who takes a huge break and then goes back to doing what they were doing as if nothing happened.  Except not famous.

I do not have a good excuse this time (You know, like being pregnant and hurling all the time).  Rather life just got... full of LIFE.  You know?  I've gotta ask.  How do all of the crafty/handy/sewy mama bloggers with kids do it?!  For real?  Like how do you LIVE and blog at the same time?  I don't know if I'll ever figure it out.

So there's some stuff that happened that I didn't show you.  Halloween for instance.  (Which was technically before radio silence but I still haven't shared it yet.  Pip was an adorable octopus and mini was a clown fish with the specifications that she wanted to be a GIRL clown fish, NOT Nemo.  So bug stuck with the theme and requested... an electric eel costume.  What the... how do you make that??  So I made a tail that velcroed around the waist and sewed white Christmas lights up the back of the tail and onto the back of the sweatshirt.  I'm fairly certain no one knew what he was. 

There were a lot of park visits.  Mr. had lots of random trips for work that left the kids and I alone and needing to get out of the house - A LOT.  So. Yes.  Parks.

It was nice.  November was unseasonably warm for a while so we played in the leaves.

Some of us tried to eat them.  Weirdo.
It almost took my mind of the fact that mr was in Italy - the one country that has been on my bucket list of places to visit since BIRTH.  Almost.  No, actually, it totally didn't.  Not at all.  Italy.... sigh.

"Hello, Dad?  Yeah, uh, you better come home now.  Mom's going NUTS over here.  NUTS."  I have to be careful letting him play with my phone now... recently while he was relaxing in his crib and I was in the shower he called my mom and had an entire conversation.  Not one she could understand, mind you...

When mr WAS around we took the kids on a few day trips around the state - trying to take advantage of the nicer fall weather we are definitely NOT used to.  We went to a beautiful hilly, forested area called Quartz Hill where all the rocks are quartz.  I wanted to haul a few boulders back to the van so we could renovate our kitchen counters, but mr said it doesn't work that way...

I did manage to get a few good shots of the kids - which is a feat in and of itself...

I mean, this one smiles but never sits still and

this one never smiles.  But look at that.  Nice photos!

Oh, and more parks.  But much colder.

And THEN - and this is REALLY REALLY CRAZY - we did something completely atypical of us and actually spent money on a real family vacation.

Something we have literally NEVER done.  Because vacations are always about going to visit out of state family (which is super cool, don't get me wrong, I love Justin's family... hi guys!) But this was our first totally all fun and playing and just us kind of vacation. 
The kids saw the ocean for the first time (and yes, it was cold on November 29th, but MUCH warmer than here, so...)

And then we put on our Mickey shirts and fun sunglasses and

walked through the Mickey head entrance onto a real live Disney Cruise!

It was surreal.  Like I said, we don't really vacation, so everything was extra magical - for me too!  We had a fun little verandah outside our stateroom.  The bunk bed disappeared into the ceiling!  We saw musicals and movies and ate awesome food and had impeccable service and swam in the pool and played in the splash zone and ate more food and then we went to the Bahamas and went to an amazing little tropical island with literally the most perfect weather on the planet and we played in the sand and did I mention we ate amazing food?  We ate some more food and looked out big portholes, and dressed up like pirates and watched fireworks and ate more, and played mini gold at 10:00 at night and the kids got to play in a special "kids only" club and Justin and I ate at the fanciest restaurant of our lives and then... THEN...
we met all the princesses!!!  And Minnie and Mickey!  And Tinkerbell!  And Donald!  And Sofia the First and Jake (from "and the neverland pirates" fame) and Doc McStuffins.  Seriously.

And then we came home to this weird polar vortex where is was like 20 below zero WITHOUT windchill.  It was, searching for the right word here... ugh.

And of course there was Christmas.  Which is pretty much the ONLY good part about winter and one of my favorite times of year.  So there were magical lights strung, and

decorated pianos since we have no mantel.  I made that chalkboard.  Remember that?  I also put tied little squares of tulle around LED lights - two per bulb all down the string.  You can see it there behind the music holder thingy.  It's kind of pretty, I like it.

We decided on a "peacock tree" again this year - aptly named because it is navy, purple, green and turquoise and makes use of feathers inside glass ball ornaments.  Those globe lights?  Not globe lights.  I decided those were too expensive so I made my own.  Know what they are?  Bulk ping pong balls.  Yep.  Normal lights, cut a slit in the ping pong ball and slide it over every other light.  Bam.  Want to know a secret?  If you order the super cheap generic balls on Amazon not only are the waaaaaay less expensive, but they have no logo or company name printed in black, they're just plain white.  They're also easier to slice through with a craft knife.  So now you know.

We had my whole family over for Christmas, which was loud and busy, but fun.  In the morning it was just us.  The kids got lots of new books to read!

And appropriate shirts to wear.

And isn't it funny what the favorite presents end up being when you pick and choose so carefully and in your head you've gotten the very best, most awesomest gift (like SKYLANDERS for the wii, FINALLY!!) and then they end up loving the fake shaving cream and razor that you got for like 5 bucks and stuffed in their stocking instead?  So weird.

I did NOT finish this rocking horse.  Turns out he's too short anyway, so I think it's ok if I take my time with it.

Also on the list of things I haven't shown you yet... this baby had a birthday!  Way back in September I'm ashamed to admit, but we DID have a party of sorts which I WILL be sharing at some point... oh, and there were other birthdays too...

Like this "Excellent Elephant" party for bug which we had in January although his birthday is right after Christmas - poor kid -

because elephants are his favorite animal.

Now wait, you're thinking.  That's only two parties.  Doesn't she have three kids?  And you'd be right.  I do.  But we were actually in the Bahamas for mini's birthday so she celebrated on the cruise.  Not exactly the DIY kind of party you share details about, but she obviously had a fun time.

Oh, and in that same vein, I threw ANOTHER party for my sister in law and my new niece Gemma!  This was actually a while ago, too, because she's like 4 months old, but still.

And yes, in case you're wondering, I HAVE been making stuff.  I just haven't been blogging about it...

The kids and I even decided to make some more recycled crayons... which is a story in itself, but you'll have to wait for it.  Short version?  Don't use molds from the target dollar section and definitely don't forget they're in the oven... just sayin'.

Also.  I made a wreath.

So welcome back.  Yea!

*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

a revival

Ahem.  This is very important so go ahead and pause Breaking Bad or Parks and Rec or American Idol (if you still watch that) or whatever.  It's THAT big a deal.

Ready?

I'm doing a series.  Not just any series.  A series we all know and love.  Yes!  You're not dreaming!  It's true!

It's coming back this year!  Do you remember the first year of Yarn it all! in all it's glory?  

And the first comeback Yarn it all! made?

And then, sadly, it went on hiatus along with me when pip decided to kick my behind to the curb for months on end.

But all of that's in the past!  We're focusing on the here and now.  And the here and now is Yarn it all! 2014!  (cheering, applause, ovations, general adoration and some giddy and understandable mayhem)

Now try to control yourself.  This year will be slightly different than times past.  I generally have a cohost to take care of the crochet/knit side of things for me.  You know, since I'd only tie myself up in knots if I attempted that.  Alas, my partner in crime is otherwise engaged (did you hear??  Shannon, aka googiemomma, is in this season of PR&P!) so I let her off the hook.  For now (mwahahahahaha!!)

That means I've enlisted the help of several guest posters... er, guest crafters/bloggers to share their insane talents with you.  Oh, I'll be popping in too, don't you worry.  

Ah, yes!  There are also several similarities to years past.  Like, I cover lots of stuff in yarn.  Yea!  Also, there will be a link party (starting tomorrow!) and I will be featuring your yarn projects!  Also, there will be a giveaway!  Yes, for reals.  And it's awesome.  Also, there will be delicious cupcakes.  Ok, not really.  I'm just trying to entice you.  Like you need more enticement.  There's YARN!  And it's AWESOME!

Now you know what's in store.  Want to be a dear and help me get the word out?  Wonderful.  Thanks.

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*Be sure to check the right sidebar for all the fun parties I link to!

Happy New Year!

I know you're used to me disappearing for days, weeks... sometimes even MONTHS (cough, cough) and thus my absence needs no explanation, BUT the past few weeks have been a hullabaloo - first mini's birthday, then Christmas prep (and you know I go totally MIA for that), then Christmas itself, bug's birthday, and our trip to visit the fam in Utah!  It was pip's first plane ride, and tons of other fun stuff that will be discussed later on...

So now that THAT'S out of the way... hello!  Hope your holidays have been fabulous.  It's always so hard for me to just jump back into blogging after a break.  Awkward.  As if I'm not sure how to talk to you anymore.  So let's all just shake it off... aaaaaand, there we go.

It's a new year!  You've probably been on top of that for, oh, say, a little over 3 weeks now, but since this is my first post of 2014:
Happy New Year!

I'd like to start the New Year out all nice and orderly (completely contrary to my normal state) so I thought I'd reintroduce myself, this here blog, my (kinda sorta) schedule, and give you some announcements.  And updates.  And basically the 411.

I'm Kimberly.  

This is my blog.  Yep, I'm the "me". 
It began quietly enough as a way to hold myself accountable for my creative pursuits - since I knew full well I wouldn't finish anything I started unless SOMETHING held me accountable.  
I also decided - upon becoming a blog-reading addict thanks to my sister - that it was important to show the world that anyone (ANYONE.  This means YOU) is/can be creative.  You don't have to be a professional.  You don't have to have the latest and greatest gadgets.  You don't have to be wonder woman.  So I vowed to share my triumphs and failures in crafting, sewing, cooking, photo-ing, and just basically life.  The humble beginnings of my blog are just that.  HUMBLE.  (Please don't go looking.  Just.  Don't.  Really.  It's ugly.)  I've been tempted to "update" the old blog here to make sure every single post looks internet worthy and "pin ready".  But I just can't do it.  Why?  Because every single post on this blog comprises a moment in my life I wanted to share for some reason or another.  Deleting it or changing it feels like rewriting history - and we all know that's impossible!  Besides, I think that however embarrassing some of those old posts are (mostly because of the reeeeeheeelly bad photos) it's fun to look back and see how far I've come.  Most of my projects then were failures, near failures, almost triumphs or a combination of all of the above.  Most of my projects now are almost triumphs, pretty nearly as close to a triumph as possible or triumphs - which is a testament to how working at something, practicing and honing your craft really does pay off.
If you want to know more about me, you can read the "mommy madness" posts in the categories over there, the "me, myself and i" page at the top, or by clicking my photo to read my google bio.

Phew.  Now that we have that covered.  Welcome to my little corner of the web (for any newbies).  I've been at this for... hm... well, holy buckets.  It'll be four years in February!  Anyway, in that time I've managed to eek out a generally manageable "schedule" (in the loosest sense of the word) for my blogging and in the past year or so I've also establish a workable blogging "philosophy".  That is basically this:  I'm a mom first.  I'm also a wife.  That means that the chauffeur, cook, baker, booboo kisser, photo-er, hugger goodbyer, welcome homer, snack maker, lunch packer, bedtime song singer, avid church goer, (not to mention church choir director and sunday school teacher) and of course portable baby breakfast, lunch and dinner provider that goes along with those roles obviously takes precedence in my life. Sewing, crafting, artsy photo-ing, blogging, thinking, showering and doing my hair all come next.  And while I'd love for this blog here to become something more than a hobby for me, at this point in my life it just isn't.  And that's ok.  We've all got busy lives.  Which is why I decided that you'd cut me some slack if I missed a day or two or 90 here and there.  (To be fair, that 90 day thing only happened ONCE and I was sooooo sick...  that's all the excusing I'm going to do.  I swear.)

With that said, here is the rundown on my fairly loose "schedule":
Sundays: *NEW* "This week on bugaboo blog..." - a preview of coming attractions hopefully with fun photos, some from instragram.  Do you follow bugabooblog on instagram?  You should!

Mondays: Yummy Mondays - a continued tradition here at bugaboo blog.  You can get the lowdown here.  It's changed a little over time; to be honest, it should be called Yummy Tuesdays now since that's when the rents come to dinner, but as we know I hate change, so it's staying on Mondays.  When it first started, I tried three new recipes each week.  Now I post one new recipe a week because let's face it, I've become much more realistic in my goals, motivation and energy levels.  Could be the more children thing.  I also always provide a printable recipe card now, too.  You can see a whole lot of yummy and some not so yummy recipes by clicking the "cook" category over there in the sidebar.  Oh, yes.  That's the thing.  The recipes are not always awesome.  In my quest for total transparency on this here blog, I share my failed recipes too.  And my crazy mistakes. And there are some doozies.  Some really, really big doozies.

Tuesdays, Wednesdays and sometimes on occasional Thursdays: Tutorials or just me showing off - well, there's really no explanation needed there.  These are the days I show you craft stuff, sewing stuff, or other projects - some with tutorials and some without.  I may miss days here and there.  Especially Thursdays because that is my one night off of Momdom.  SQUEAL!!  (shoutout to the mr.  Woot!)  
SOME Fridays: Tales from the Crib - Ok.  Here's the deal.  I like to write.  You've probably noticed that.  So I started this little ditty I called "Things My Two Year Old Taught Me" because at the time my oldest child was two and I found I was continually being astounded by his wisdom (no, that's not me being cheeky for once) and I wanted to document it.  You can read one of my favorites here.  And another one here.  He was pretty cute.  But he got older, as did my next child and so I changed the name to the more fitting "tales from the crib" to encompass all young'uns in these parts and the stuff I find noteworthy.  Not to mention the messes and chaos of life with kids.  Last year I was not so great at writing these.  (Though I do like this one) But i'd like to develop this idea more, so I'm going to try again!  This will not be a weekly thing.  Cause I just can't do that much learning.

SOME Fridays: Other Write-y type posts -  When I feel like writing, but don't have much to say about the kiddos, sometimes I'll write advice columns like this one.  Or some kind of a rally cry like this.  And if you ever want to feel better about yourself, there's this.  Like I said, I like to write.
SOME Fridays: Round Ups - I know you know what that is.  So, on some of the days I don't do a write-y type post I'll throw up a round up of pertinent stuff - think nearest holiday-related crafty things.  I like doing round-ups.  Don't know why, but I do.  So there.
Saturdays: Give a girl a break - jeez.

I reserve the right to switch this schedule around just to confuse you.  Kidding.  Sometimes I'm just not that great at the schedule thing.


So that's the weekly dealio.  Then there are some "series" I'll be holding on to.  The following are ongoing "series" that will pop up here and there, usually on but not limited to Tuesdays-Thursdays:
Gifts Kids Can Make - Get the details about that here.  (And the recap here).

A Chemist in the Kitchen - HAHA!  Once again, only did ONE of these all year!  BUT I'm hanging onto it regardless!  Get the details here.  (our first one was this one, by the way.)

Hmmm... Very Pinteresting - I try to do this monthly.  Basically I pick a pin from my boards and focus on that as inspiration for doing something that month, then report back about it the next month.  I did this for like TWO WHOLE MONTHS last year (even though I am constantly using my pinterest inspirations...).  We'll see how long I report back this year.  I usually do a pinteresting link party associated with this as well.  And feature links.

There are several week-long series I've done almost every year that I'm going to bring back again.  And again.  And again - bwahahahaha!
Yarn it all!  Get the details on year 1 here.  See the yarn it all year 1 wrap up here.  Get the details on year 2 here.  And yarn it all year 2 wrap up here. (Missed it last year due to extended illness aka pregnancy.)  Expect to see it again this year.  It'll be epic.
Gift it.  Gift it Good.  Get the details here.  See the gift it year one wrap up here (350 gift ideas!) and the gift it year 2 wrap up here (310 gift ideas!).  (They're like the mother lode of round ups peeps.)  I always do it in August and I always need guest posters.  Interested?  Let me know!

I have a new header!  It needed an update after the new arrival a few months ago.  Be sure to come over and check it out.

Oh my golly.  This post is getting looooong.  I promise not all my posts are this wordy.  Don't run away screaming.  Don't be overwhelmed.  I'm really very nice once you get to know me.

So.  Lastly, a few things.  I picked up a gig or two!  Ok, no or.  There are two.  Definitely.  A while ago, I got this gig writing a book.  I loved it, it was awesome and holy man a lot of work.  But remember how I love writing?  (Wait, did I mention I love writing?)  SO!  This is exciting peeps. 
I am happy to announce that I'm writing for a new blog called Tipsaholic.  (It's a paid gig people, the real deal!) You probably know the lovely Cassity from Remodelaholic?  Well, this is basically a sister site to her blog.  There are a few contributors writing for her regularly and I'm one of the tipsters!  It's been pretty fun thus far.  It just recently launched, so go check it out.  And you can let Cassity know what you think too.  (Read her announcement here).
I am also super happy to announce that I'm a contributor for another blog now as well!  It's called Hi! It's Jilly.  Cute blog about mom stuff, multiples stuff (she's got triplets!!), diy stuff, crafty stuff, cooking stuff, life stuff.  I get to be the new photography contributor!  Now, I'm not an expert on the subject, but I am a quick study and I research my bum off when needed.  I promise I won't just be all "uh, here's some awesome photos.  Yeah."  I get to post about dslr photography, tricks, and photography type crafts!  I've got lots of ideas already.  So that's monthly, you'll have to check it out.

Oh.  Wait.  HERE'S lastly.

Lastly, I really do love to hear from you!  Questions?  Concerns?  Want to yell at me for how I misspelled stationery?  email me!  Comment!  I promise I email back!  
bugabooblog @ yahoo . com  (just take out all the spaces)

You can follow me on Facebook.  Or pinterest.  Or instagram.  Or bloglovin.  Or you can subscribe via email.  Or get my rss feed!  (whatever that is).

Thanks for making it to the end of this gargantuan post.  You rock.

Happy 2014!

*Be sure to check the right sidebar for all the fun parties I link to!