We Love School!!!

Before I was ever even pregnant, I knew that if I had to work, I would keep Blu in an initimate "at home" environment until he was about 3 years old, but at 3, I would want him to start experiencing school. In my dreams, that intimate "at home" environment would have been my very own home. The reality is, he has been with Mrs. Kim since he was 8 weeks old. I am sure that in this economy, I am not the only one who has had to reconcile dreams with harsh reality!  Kim has a licensed in home day care and she is the absolute BEST! We are so lucky that we found her. Blu just adores her and still talks about her and I am sure will always love her! This past summer, Blu turned 3, and I knew the time had come to expose him to a more school like environment with more children his age. That is when I found Primrose.

Blu has always been very outgoing. I knew that he would love school...my hope was that school would love his wild ways too!

There has been some ups and downs adjusting, but it has been mostly ups. He LOVES school. He learns so much it BLOWS my mind. I am so impressed with all that thay do there. Let's face it, I took him there in diapers, and two days later he was potty trained. Jealous?

WORTH EVERY PENNY!

That was just the beginning...he is speaking and counting in spanish, he can spell his name, he is singing songs, learning all of those valuable life lessons such as sharing, being kind, making friends...

...and he has made a couple of very special friends....

I am often sad that he has to spend such long days away from us. We drop him off at about 7:30 and pick him up at about 5:30. Ten hours is a very long day for a 3 year old. In my opinion anyway...

BUT, if I HAVE to leave him for that long, I am glad to have Primrose.

He is so happy!

My Primrose, Kennesaw North, has an awesome website that I can go to view pictures of him that are taken at school. That is where all of these pictures came from...isn't is awesome?

Christmas...and another surprise!

Our Christmas morning was AWESOME!

Blu was so proud that Santa came to see him!

Momma and daddy were a little on the tired side...

Poor Blu was up half of the night coughing and momma in her kerchief lay in fear that he was going to decide to get out of bed and catch Santa in the middle of the night!

But it was worth it for all of the smiles!

He is so grown up. He could open all of the matchbox cars on his own.

Sniff. Sniff.

Well, here's to the end of one of the worst year's in my record books.

Losing mom will forever define who I was for the past few months and who I will be forever going forward. I just hope that I can continue to grow into this loss and arrive at a comfortable place that will allow me to overcome this constant sadness.

On a completely different note...

This new year is sure to bring nothing but goodness!

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Blu's little brother or sister.

The boy or girl part should be determined on Monday the 9th and I am SOOO excited!

Happy New Year!



Wedding Planning

It has been a LOOOOONG time ( 8 years) since I was in the throws of planning my wedding, but even back in the dark ages, I knew to use the knot.com. These days, I am more into the bump.com, but I can still certainly remember the excitement, anxiety and uncertainty that go along with wedding planning!

It is a topic that is near and dear to my heart...I have the scars from the repetitive nightmares to prove it. HA!

I have a friend who does burlap runners and she is a great source for receptions. She caters to brides all of the time! Burlap is so versatile and makes a beautiful table for an indoor or outdoor reception!

You can find her and her beautiful things over at www.raynalaneinc.etsy.com.

Looking for a unique wedding gift? Check out her personalized burlap pillow. I LOVE THIS!

Speaking of wedding gifts and memorable personalized items, check out my talented sisters shop at

www.prettylittlethingskb.etsy.com

What a sweet gift!

Great heirloom piece.

LOVE this for a bridesmaids gift!

Speaking of bridesmaids gifts....

My shop, www.thepickletree.etsy.com is currently on vacation, but I work with brides all of the time for gifts and bachelorette party favors!

The favorite: BEACH TOWELS!

For all of you brides to be...best wishes to you and happy planning!

Kelly over at Kelly's Korner is doing a Show Us Your Life about Wedding Planning. I remember those days like it was yesterday( though it was actually far from it) and I had some cute ideas, so I thought I would link up!

Christmas Traditions

This is the second year that we have done a gingerbread house and it a new tradition that I ABSOLUTELY love!

Blu just loves doing it and the undivided attention and concentration that we share on a common goal is just priceless to me!

We have decided that even though all of our loved ones are in Alabama, Christmas Eve will be spent at our own home in Georgia every year.

I would love to have the extra time in Alabama...but they are only little once and somehow the magic of Santa is diminished if he can't come to your own house...so, we will soldier own at our own place in the name of magical traditions.

Even though we were a small group on Christmas Eve, I decided to make it a special dinner by setting the dining room table. Maybe when the kids get older we can actually start pulling out the china!!!

We allowed Jack to open the presents that were from mommy and daddy on Christmas Eve. I think that is a great way to make room for Santa on Christmas morning!

My little plan almost backfired, though. When we started putting the presents under the tree; to Blu, from us, he said, "that is so nice of you. Now Santa does not need to come". 

Uh-oh.

It all worked out in the end. We straightened it out!



Jack received one very special present that he just adores. It was a hot wheels race track that was his daddy's when he was little! Whoah...it must be SUPER OLD!

This little guy was SOOOO tired! He did not nap like he usually does. At this point of the evening, he was running on pure adrenaline!

He was such a big boy this year. Not only could he open all of his presents by himself, he could even get the hotwheels and monster trucks out of the packages.

Ahhhhhh...little boys all grow up.

I think we did good! 

I love Harry Potter

and I just LOVED watching this!!

Seems I have gotten myself into quite a PICKLE!!!

 I know...I know...the Pickle Tree is closed, right?

Well, it is trying to be anyway:)

I certainly have not taken any new orders.

But I am not joking, since closing on November 30th for the holidays....

Yesterday afternoon was the first day that I did not "work" a full day probably since July.

and people, I do not mean like M-F kinda days...

I mean like 7 days a week!

Sure...I have had SOME time off.

Some days I have somewhere to be on the weekends. On those days I am literally starting the next embroidery thread stop in between towel drying and blow drying my hair going in between the bathroom and the shop fighting a battle of wills....

with myself....

finish this ONE thing...no get ready to go so you won't be late.....

But Saturday...

oh sweet Saturday....

I FINALLY finished the LAST official order and tied it up with a bow ( literally cause that is how I roll) packed it and had it ready fro shipping on Monday.

Ahhhhh...

What to do then? Well get busy on my own personal Christmas gifts that needed personalization of course. So over the course of Saturday afternoon and into Sunday I wrapped up most all of that. Well, at least enough that I felt FREEEEEEE!!!!!!

I cannot tell you what good having that one little afternoon to myself, (well not so much to myself but I definitely got to relax with my husband and son), did for my soul.

I felt like a new woman by the end of the day.

So much so, that the wrapping gifts till WAAAAAY past my bedtime last night did not feel so bad!

I am feeling so good that I am realizing that opening the shop up at the beginning of the year is NOT going to allow myself to soak up enough of the goodness that I am craving.

I must admit that I will miss it a bit, but I will be back.

I am just thinking that it will be closer to February than January.

I think yesterday spoiled me!

So...from the Pickle Tree...

Have  yourself a merry little christmas...the pickle is signing out till February!!! ( at least)

anyone still out there??? The Grinch

I have been on a bit of an unintentional "break".

Busy at work, busy at home, and yes...even though I have been closed since November 30th, still super busy at the Pickle Tree.

I usually have no time to figure out and execute all the wonderful ways to take advantage of living near a large city like Atlanta. Lucklily for me, I have a few girlfriends with kids Blu's age who are experts at it! Last weekend, we took the kids to see the Grinch at the Fabulous Fox Theater in Atlanta.

I discovered that plays, to my dismay, are not really Jack's bag. We had a great time, but sitting still in the dark watching a not so up close and personal live production proved to be a bit too much for his attention span! He was pretty much over it as soon as the "sparkly" man playing the organ was through and the lights went down.

He sure loved getting to hang out with one of his best good buddies, though. I got hang out with some of mine, too! How can you lose on a day like that!

This is me figuring out that you cannot photograph children in the dark without a flash.

Still learning...

I finally asked them to be really really still.



All in all, it was a great day. I have practically recovered fully from all of the backwards headbutts I received from little Blu sitting in my lap for most of the performance.

I have even forgotten most of the painfullness of  trying to keep him quiet for an hour and a half, that I might even try it again someday!