Free cards??!! Yes please...

Okay folks, here's the deal. I know all of you know about Shutterfly. Well, they are giving away 50 free Christmas cards to bloggers who post about how great their website is. How Christmas-spirity is that? Obviously, I love free things. And, I love sending cards to people (especially this year, to show off my super-cute baby girl). And most importantly, I love shutterfly.com (really, I do. I'm not just saying that).
Okay. What's so great about Shutterfly, you ask? Everything! The website is super easy to use. You can upload tons of pictures and create tons of great things, from cards and calendars to mugs and stickers. I have been using Shutterfly for 4 or 5 years now, since my wonderful sister in law, Jill, told me about it. I've ordered calendars, tons and tons of prints, and most recently, a picture book of Paisley (I actually got it free from Similac - and I don't even use formula!). The book was amazing! My wonderful mother in law, Ellen, makes books after each vacation she takes and we always love looking at them. They are so very well made, the quality of the books are awesome.
Now, all I have to do is pick out a card to use. This won't be an easy task for me. After looking through all of their choices, these are my favorites...

SNOW GLOBE
I like this one because the teal/turquoise color is Paisley's unofficial color. You know, don't you have a "color?" But if we used this one, do we use a picture of just P, or do I put a family picture in?

OH HOLY NIGHT
I like the pretty blackness of this one. Its nice and classy and not obnoxious. I would obviously use a black and white picture for this one. 

STARLIGHT SNOWFLAKES
I was drawn to this one because of how simple it is. Nice, huh?

SWEET AND RETRO
I just really like this one. The problem is, most family pictures are taken  horizontally rather than vertically. So, would I just use one picture of P, which could easily be vertical?

BELIEVE
This one is nice and classic. I don't know how a family picture would look in this one - I really like the one picture of the sweet baby (and we all know I have plenty of those!). One bad thing? Square cards require more postage. 

So, I think my biggest challenge is going to be deciding on whether to use a family picture or one of sweet baby girl. No one really wants to see Nathan and me anymore, right? But, we should have a family picture for Paisley's first Christmas, right?
Another challenge : a family picture. I'll need to find someone (hint hint to all my wonderful photographing friends) to take a picture of us.

All this being said, I love shutterfly and you should, too.

Fellow bloggers, go here to find out more about this awesome deal!! A big thanks to Mommy Murray for letting me in on this little secret!

Dinner with the Boyles

My good friend Staci (read about her life as a domestic goddess here) blogs about good recipes and shows off her wifery (yes, thats right, wifery) skills.
Well, you know the old saying "she can't even cook a grilled cheese sandwich!"? Okay, that might not be so popular, but today it rang true in the Boyles house. I know what you're thinking... yes, I did do quite a lot of cooking in college. In fact, I earned a bachelors degree in hotel and restaurant administration. I had a few classes that consisted of just cooking. I worked many events in the kitchen. I studied methods and recipes and techniques ad nauseam. I even earned good grades in these classes! However, my education was no match for my new mommy brain. (side note: as soon as I could, I switched my focus to wine, and I don't mess around there)
This is the first side of the sandwich... My sweet husband said "thats okay, I'll still eat it. I love things that are a little crispy."

So I think, "okay, I'll let the other side cook and I'll start my PB&J." (It was a gourmet night here.)  Here is the other side. I have no words.

Moral of the story? Focus on the thing that requires heat.

Here is my 2nd attempt. While my husby does in fact enjoy things a little burnt, I decided not to make him eat the first one.

Here is my yummy PB&J - you can't mess that up! :)

Those of you who will be enjoying Thanksgiving with me, don't worry! I promise I will do much better.

It's the little things

Welcome back! For my first real post, I'm starting slow. I got this idea from the fabulous April Murray (peek into her crazy life with 2 boys here). Mine isn't as interesting, as these are just things from my everyday life. However, you guys are in for a treat! A post within a post. You'll see.

These are a few of my favorite things...

Amazon Kindle

Since I had Paisley, I hadn't been able to read at all. What a bummer! I just couldn't hold a book with only one hand - I tried with many different books. Either it was too stiff, too thick, too big or just too heavy. And, how are you supposed to turn pages when you are already using your one hand?! Enter Kindle. Mom got me this for my birthday, and I love love love it! Since they came out, I have been against them. What will happen to books? Will libraries still exist? Will the next generation even know what a book is? I just love the feel of books, the smell of an old book and a trip to the library is always nice. I must say, and you would agree if you used one, this thing is pretty freakin cool. Its light. It has a light! (The light is super cool. It pops out of the top right corner of the cover and is powered by the Kindle battery) I can lay it flat and not worry about it closing. Holding it and turning pages with one hand is a breeze. It comes with the cutest pink cover, which protects it and makes it stylish! Anywho, I've read 3 books in the past month on it. Its great. So, all you haters - don't judge a book by its cover. :) 

M & Ms

I don't think there is much to explain here. Besides the beautiful mix of colors, these guys are delicious. I've been buying them from Sams in 3 pound bags. I'm going through those bags faster than I'd like to admit. I keep the candy dish on the coffee table, and while I'm feeding or holding a sleeping Paisley I pop these in my mouth like they're going out of style. Also, no piece of Papa Johns pizza and no bowl of popcorn is complete without m & ms.

Keurig Coffee Maker

I know how to enjoy a nice cup of bold, rich, dark fancy coffee, but convenience wins out on this one. Pop a k-cup in, hit go and you have a hot cup of joe in about 45 seconds. Easy breezy. No mess to clean up! No pot to scrub! No beans to grind! Thank you, Mr. K, for making 6:00 am a little more bearable.   

Also included in the picture is my mug cabinet. I have lots of mugs I enjoy. I have nice mugs that match our dishes. I don't like to use those - they're no fun! No character to them. My very favorite is the one that is on the Keurig. Yes, you are correct. That is an Ellen mug. The same one she and her daily guests drink from everyday. I got it when Nate and I went to LA 2 years ago. We went to a taping of the show and it was the best day ever. I never thought I'd pay 20 bucks for a mug, but I couldn't not buy it, right?

Caffeine-free Diet Coke

I love diet coke. However, I am getting my fill on caffeine from my cup of (easily made!) coffee each morning. Now, while I could definitely use all the glorious caffeine that DC has to offer, I don't think little Paisley needs it. So, for us who can't enjoy the original, hopped up version of DC, the beautiful people at Coke make a caffeine free version! Now I can have as many as I want. Don't worry though, I'm still drinking mostly water everyday. This is just a treat. Bonus points if its in a Saturn Grill cup with a straw.

Carmex Click Stick (cherry)

My husband has informed me that I am addicted to chapstick. I probably put it on 7 or 8 times a day. When I can't find it, I get really stressed out. Like, seriously stressed. I think I've been "using" for 6 or 7 years now, only 3 or 4 on the Carmex Click Stick. Before the CS, all I used was good old fashioned Vaseline. I still use Vaseline, but only at night - every night. Nathan recently went to Las Vegas and I had to buy him chapstick, since the dry Vegas air cracked his little lips. I had to buy him one because he hadn't used chapstick since the last time he was in Vegas. That was a year ago. 1 whole year without chapstick? No thanks. I'm in good company though, Derek and Zach Schnorrenberg are also addicted. So what? We're okay with our addiction.

Fiestaware

These are my dishes. Wouldn't this make you smile every time you opened your cabinet? I love my skittle-plates. I like eating on a different color every night. I like using a green bowl with a purple plate. I'd like to have more of a variety, but its not that  high on my priority list right now. I also have some serving dishes and bigger bowls, and a yellow pitcher. How cute is that teal butter dish? It is actually a retired color, as is the dusty rose plate. They both came from a great store in Stillwater. 

Now for your post within a post... My last (but not least) favorite thing is pineapples. I love them. If you really know me, you know just how much I love them. So, here are some pineapples I have around my house... (I'm not going to talk about each thing, although I'd like to. I feel like you guys (those of you who are still with me) have had enough to read)

Pineapples are the symbol of hospitality (in case you didn't know)

One more little note - if you look to your right (and scroll way up), I have added the rest of the family to my list. Forgive me for leaving them out the first time.

It was only a matter of time...

Well, it happened. I've been sucked into the magical world of blogging. Now, I must warn anyone reading this (all 4 of you), I'm not very interesting. Really. The only thing exciting happening in my life right now is sweet little Paisley. While I think she is precious and perfect and cute and funny and adorable, I will not subject you guys to every little detail. Okay, I'll probably subject you to most little details, but not all. I definitely don't want to be one of "those" moms, who only talk about their babies (she laughed! she cried! she pooped!) and forget that they are still a person (there are a few friends people from high school who only post about their kids on facebook. it gets old. seriously, I don't want to see pictures of you child on the potty). So, while this will probably end up being mostly about Paisley, I will try to add in tidbits from our lives every now and then.
I'm not quite sure what a first post is supposed to entail... So, I'm ending it here and I'll start a new post that isn't as awkward as this one.