Pixel Paper Hearts: Our 1st Feature! - Weddingbells Magazine

It's no secret that I'm fond of all things crafty and creative. If I could spend all of my days crafting and creating, I would be a happy camper. I dream of it from time to time and almost get to a point where I truly believe that it can be my reality ... but for some reason, I always manage to hold myself back.
& then I think of this ...

I'm sure I came across the quote / image via Pinterest or maybe even via Tumblr (not 100% sure of the source, if you know - please let me know!) So very slowly, I started networking ... started creating for "clients" and started getting referred by clients (bonus!). Pixel Paper Hearts was (and is still) making its' modest debut.

I can't explain the kind of joy that comes from creating "art" for people's big moments. What may not be known is that my right hand man is actually my younger brother, Wayne - he's usually the graphic genius behind our designs. We work well together (most of the time), compliment each other's design eye & of course, I love being able to share the fruits of our labour. Plus, I can always tattle tale on him to Ma if he ain't carrying his load of the work, hahaha.

A few months back - I was contacted by a friend who I met during my teenage years, Roseanne.
She's is the Associate Editor at Weddingbells (what a wicked job). We were asked to design some stationary stuff for their Special Edition issue that would hit stands across Canada post Valentine's Day 2013. What an experience! & of course, I would do it again in a heartbeat!



As per their request, the full-page spread layout is to be kept under wraps for the next little while.
So pick up your copy for inspiration, trendy tips and of course, to see our work!

Annnnd, feel free to like us on Facebook too! :)

you is ... (& a freebie!)

Ok, so I'm totally late jumping on "The Help" badwagon. As in I skipped reading the book and just watched the movie a few days ago. I live under a rock, yes.

But what a wonderful story! I'm a sucker for anything that makes you feel such emotion. Can you just imagine what it was like living in that era? And I'm all for believing that one person can truly make a difference. Because it only take one to stand out from the crowd. And of course, just like everyone else, I fell for Aibileen's humbling efforts to make a child feel proud about herself ... despite what anyone else says.

Aiden didn't watch the movie with me, but I recited the famous "you is ..." lingo to him before bed one night and his just face lit up! Amazing how such simple words can evoke such confidence. I've always been a fan of lovely words.

& I love reminders of such, so I whipped up a simple printable for A and Sadie's bedrooms. Originally I planned for them to be in a small square frame, but had no such luck finding such a frame. So I opted to use some pewter rectangular frames that I already had on hand. I may just switch to the square once I actually find a frame.

Annnnd, I'm sharing them with who ever wants em!
Just click the images below to download for free :)
The square prints are formatted for 5x5 and the rectangle prints are formatted for 5x3.5

 

 

*These freebies / printables are for personal use only! 

Please do not sell, distribute or recreate, all rights reserved - thank you!

My kind, smart & important babies! I can't stress just how much these two mean to me, they truly are the biggest part of my heart!

Happy Saturday everyone, enjoy!

bedtime stories

We're definitely a family that gets excited about books and we're a family that reads.
For as long as A has been around, reading before bedtime has been part of our nightly routines. & now we're able to share our love for reading with Sadie-Q. I love love that Aiden is able to "read" the books we read to him, to his sister ... it simply warms my heart.

Our current bedtime favs include, but are not limited to ...

What are some of your favs? We'd love to add more to our growing collection :)

list series: short random snippets

1. I should sleep, like right now.

2. This ear infection that I have (first time getting one, ever) has got to go away. I'm feeling so imbalanced. & I'd really like to be able to hear again, thanks.

3. Ryan took this Sunday off, I think I'm happier than he is.

4. Can't our laundry just do itself?

5. What? That was the season finale? Now I have to wait until summer to watch more Suits, bummer.

6. I've been highly obssessed with home organization and storage bins as of late.

7. I need a good read.

8. My kiddies rock my socks. I love being able to spend so much time with them. I have anxiety just thinking about the day when I won't have all this time with them anymore ...

9. Winter, we're breaking up.

10. I will not devalue what I do - this is my craft, my passion.

11. When was the last time you did something for the first time?

Sadie Quinn: 7 months!

Wow. Seven. Already.
& yes, yes I'm running late with again ...
But get ready, this post is photo heavy .. I figured it would be nice to include some of your day-to-day shots plus a few of my fave during month seven. Photo bomb Sadie-Q begins now ... :)

Sadie Bean, Sadie Bear, Sadie Dades, Sades, Sadie-Q, Sades McBabes, Sadie Daydee ...
the list truly goes on & on, lol.

It's been 7 months & I'm still in a bit of shock that we've been blessed with a beautiful / healthy baby girl. You have brought such joy in our lives.

Waking up to you every morning (with that sweet smile of yours) reminds me how much I love being a Mama - your Mama. Your sweet smile also always makes me forget the lack of sleep I got at night, whomp whomp lol. I'm calling them "newborn nights" ... but now that I think about it, you slept waaaay more as a newborn. Hoping this is just a phase, it's just a phase right?

Right now you love playing with Sophie, your taggie blankie, your picnic basket and pretty much anything that you can either chew on or bang on. Oh and of course, you love your jumpy jumpy. You're still trying to figure out how to use this that was Aiden's & why Daddy was so excited to give it to you.

You're also very fascinated by my hair & when I'm not looking ... you eat it. Hm.

We listen to a lot of music. Blackbird being one of your favourite songs. I'm convinced that you're singing along with the lyrics. You love to sing. I start with a tune (usually la-la-la, lol) and you try your best to follow suit. You're super talkative when it's just you and me & start to get all shy when others are around. You're still our little show baby and very well-behaved when we're out in public. In your car seat though, that's a different story. You're starting to get used to it a bit more, but usually cry bloody murder (while arching your back) while we attempt to strap you in the damn thing.

You continue to be determined. You've started to pull yourself up pretty much anywhere you can - in your play pen, crib, on chairs. Getting down, well you haven't quite mastered that part yet. You usually just call out, "Mmmmmmmm" - which of course means "Mama, help me!" I love how you throw your arms up in the air when you want me to pick you up & how when I say "You ready Sadie?" or "Come Sades" ... you turn my way and simply come (I hope you listen to me that way always, hehe). You are also very determined to never let me cut your nails ...

You love food. Maybe as much as you love bmilk.
We started right around the 6 month mark. The beginning was a little rocky but you were eating like a champ in no time. 3 "meals" a day - typically cereal in the morning and then veggies for both lunch and dinner. Then one day, you didn't number two. & you always number 2, you number 2 almost 3-4 times a day! So the lack of poop alarmed me ... you were constipated! Ek! Naturally I searched google for answers. Lots of people suggested prunes or prune juice or diluted apple juice. Then I came across a post that said something along the lines of "baby was never constipated when her diet consisted of only bmilk ..." true say! & since bmilk is a natural laxative, win win win. So for two days, we skipped the solids and your mustard poops starting coming back and with a vengeance, yay! We're slowing easy back into solids again & really letting you take the lead on this one. We're in no rush. There will be plenty of food for you lifetime :)
We're still nursing every 3-4 hours during the day and 1-2 times at night depending on the night. Your sleeping habits are rough sometimes - We've started some "sleep training", for you know, sanity's sake (I kid, well, kinda). It's night number three and we've had some serious progress (yay). All about small victories, right?



You also love your big brother. You love when he reads you bedtime stories like this one and he's the best at making you laugh. I love watching you both interact & play with each other. I can't wait to see what kind of relationship the both of you will have.

You're also so curious about your surroundings. Eyeing everything and everyone around you. Maybe this means that you'll have a good judge of one's character. You're happy to be carried by just about anyone and happy to play around by yourself too. But when you've had enough, you sure know how to let us know!

You are growing up way fast baby girl, slow down a little won't cha?

I can't believe how much you've changed already!