things are looking bright.

i finally made a real header for my blog!  what do you think?  did you like the old, simple one?  or do you think the new one should stay?  i'd love everyone's honest opinion!

today i actually got to sit down on my plush sofa, enjoy a cup of hot coffee (i drink mine black), and flip through my new better homes and gardens magazine and the latest j.crew catalog.  this moment of bliss only lasted about 20 minutes, but hey - i couldn't have hoped for any more time than that!  it's things like this that keep me from feeling like someone who's only purpose is to cook, clean, change poopy diapers, and deal with tantrums and crying.  writing my blog is also therapeutic like that!

anyway...

how cute are these books?  my mother in-law made them for the kids and even bought the real paper-paged little golden books too!  this way Finn's not trying to grab at the pages and annoying his big sister while i'm reading :)  thanks grandma!

shoe and food things.

shoe things

i was browsing anthropologie's site today, and i stumbled on these beauties: 

athenaeum wedges by coclico - $428

i think they're the most amazing pair of booties ever!  rugged & masculine with a touch of lady-likeness!

food things.

i'm sure you've all been dying to know what aimee's favorite sandwich of all time is, right?  well, even if you weren't, i'm going to tell you anyway because i'm just that nice!

tomato & fresh mozzarella on a french baguette. 

the condiment cup has olive oil with a bit of garlic powder, basil and cracked pepper. (it's better with fresh basil, but i didn't have any on hand, so i settled with dried basil)

all you do is slice the bread, lay the tomatoes and mozz down in there, drizzle with the olive oil, throw it on the george foreman for 30 seconds just to warm the outside of the bread and serve!  it's so yummy - you will not regret making this.  trust me!

random.

this week really flew by and i think it's because Dave has had more days off this week than he's had since he started his job.  we recently went through a 16 day stretch where he only had 2 days off, so this is practically a vacation for us!  saturday morning i'm taking the kids to the local farmer's market and am hoping that Dave and my father in-law will join us.  i like to get out as much as i can because i'm pretty much trapped in my apartment all day long most of the time.  it's tough only having one vehicle and not being able to bring the baby out into this 100+ degree weather.  i'm highly anticipating fall right now!

10 things about me. (sugar doll)

i have been passed the sugar doll award by the lovely and ever fabulously fashionable Cat from anthrosdottir.

(please check out her blog if you haven't already)

so ladies, this means that i get to share with you 10 things about myself that you all don't know.  this will be tough, but i'm going to try and keep you all throughly entertained.  :)

1. after high school i was all set to attend the art institute of philidelphia to major in fashion design (a dream i had since i was 10 years old).  however, my life took me in a different direction and i ended up going to bible college in dubuque, iowa for a couple of years and then went on to do a 2 year long goldsmithing and silversmithing apprenticeship under an incredibly talented master who also became one of my best friends in the process.  and even though my original life plan never came to be, i ended up finding just what i needed -  joy and peace in my spiritual life, and also the gift of a talent that i was unaware that even existed.  pretty awesome stuff!

2. i used to love playing soccer with my sister and brother when we were kids.  it was always them against me.  i always won - which probably why i miss it.  hahaha!

3. i played softball for 13 years of my life.  i'm left handed, so naturally first base was my position.  i loved everything about that sport!  and i'm not really a competitive person normally, but when i was out on the field, you better bet you'd catch me constantly talking smack to the other teams!  hahaha!

4. when i was young i used to be able to climb up doorways like a crazy spider and then i'd prop my feet against one side of the door and my back against the other and sit there for extended periods of time.  i think i might be too big for that now?

5.  i hate scary movies.  like really hate them.  it had been maybe 7 years since i'd seen one up until about 2 months ago when i thought it was a good idea to watch 'paranormal activity'.  holy crap... i couldn't sleep for two days straight!  bad bad bad idea! 

6. i love making up my own ridiculous lyrics to songs.  but the worst is when i'm singing a song seriously (with lots of added emotion for good measure) and then it comes to me... i've been singing the wrong freaking lyrics for the past 10 years.  *faceplam*

7. i'm pretty sure the grossest word ever invented is "panties", and if you say it out loud you'll know what i mean.  i much prefer "underwear".

8. i love dressing my children and buying them clothes.  it's hard for me to allow anyone else to take part in that with me because i'm so extremely picky about what they wear - even more so than i am about my own wardrobe!

9. the only thing i miss about pregnancy is that i can't justify eating fruity pebbles 3 times a day anymore.

10. my teeny bopper crushes included Leonardo DiCaprio, Taylor Hanson (don't make fun - he's hot) & Nick Carter.  i totally used to collect Teen Beat mags and tear through them to find pictures that i could put in my 2" binder with protective plastic pages.  i would flip through and daydream about marrying them on an almost daily basis.

wow.  i feel so exposed.

hope you all have a great night!

creme brûlée.

this week has been nothing short of complete chaos.  Finn has been a complete wreck for 3 days straight.  i've had minimal sleep and have had moments where i just wanted to call it quits with this mommy business.  if it weren't for bare essentuals "warmth", my face would look like a hot mess!  i swear, that stuff really has super powers built into it.  i go from having the appearance of a zombie to looking like i'm ready to take over the world with a few swishes of a make-up brush.  oh, how i wish i could  apply a nice layer of that onto my inner being!

okay - i'm sure you all have heard of my parental woes enough, so let us get to something fun!

what good is a post without food? 

homemade creme brulee.  it was supremely delicious, one of the best i've ever had.  this my first try too! :)

here's the recipe i followed.

oh, and since i didn't have a kitchen torch, i just used my broiler to caramelize the sugar on top (which is why it looks weird).  but trust me, it tastes just as good!

perfect summery thing.

my husband bought this dress for me last month!  it's so perfect for the scorching hot weather we've been having here in south carolina lately.  i've already worn it 3 times and love it more and more each time.  i'm also pretty sure my hips have finally started coming back in since having Finn 5 months ago, so i don't feel nearly as wide as i did the first time i tried it on.  yay!

well, i'm so glad that David has the day off tomorrow.  by the time he gets home tonight, i will have only seen him for 2 hours out of 32.  i've been pretty stressed these past two days and really need a break.  being a stay at home mother is so completely mentally and emotionally draining and some days i wonder how i'm going to make it through.  i've been having an exceedingly difficult time with my daughter who's behavior has been the opposite of wonderful lately.  i don't know what it is, but i'm sure hoping obedience is right around the corner!   i think what makes things so hard is that i'm not sure if her behavior is my fault.  i try so hard with her, but it seems like my efforts do nothing, and it's depressing at times.  but i guess i just have to keep pushing forward, continue to do my best, and hope that things change.

happy thursday!

-aimee

OH!  one more thing...

(my friend had this on his facebook page today and for some reason i couldn't stop laughing for a good 5 minutes straight.  maybe i'm overtired?  but i still think it's hilarious!)