Hello!! I'm Back Online WOOT WOOT

I have not written a blog in over a year. Yes, it has been that long. Reasons for this is 1. I did not have the internet for the last year and a half (OMG, I know right?!) and 2. God was busy answering our prayers.  We moved into a house out in the country and we remodeled it and it's just been a very exciting time, although very stressful too and I unfortunately never took any Before pictures of the house :(  However! The story I wish to share today is not about that- it's about...

PRINCESS ESTELL

This is my step-daughter, Estell (6), who is our princess :)   (the boys are monsters!!)  Estell asked me if I would paint a mural in her bedroom and I was all too happy to comply.  What I didn't expect was all the stories! Estell loves to tell stories and she can be quite witty for her age. She, of course, loves to be the main star.

[Day One: Princess Estell Must Live in a Tower]

"The best princesses have their own towers, Mommy DaMo" Estell says matter of factly, as she brushes her Barbies hair out.  "I want to be a princess like Rapunzel with looooong hair."  She nods her head and her short hair bobs wildly.  "And I would wear a purple gown!" She grins. 

11: I joined Weight Watchers...

I had Diesel 6 weeks from today so it's definitely time to start getting my body back! I joined Weight Watchers 2 days ago and I've already lost 4lbs (took the picture of myself today). I gotta say I do look pretty good for being 5'2" and having an almost 9lb baby- dang! lol Seriously though I've got a good 30lbs to lose...

10: My Work Space (i.e. the kitchen)

We have a small apartment so I've taken over a corner of the kitchen for all my crafts stuff. That's not everything though- I'm sure I drive my husband crazy. Our closet floor is taken over by 4 bins of fabric, finished items are in a bin in the hallway (I use a white sheet to cover the bin and take photos of the items cuz I get good light there), and felt and beads are hidden under the end table in the living room. lol

Silly Semi-formal BabyWear

I'm really excited about these new onsies I've been making!
So far I only have the Orange Polka Dot Tie listed on Etsy but I will get more up soon!

Way back at my baby shower for Diesel I had everyone decorate onsies for him. It was so much fun! So anyway, been cleaning house like crazy lately (post-partum nesting lol) and I found some plain onsies so voila!

Tomorrow I am going to the thrift store and hopefully I will find some more. Also want to find some more high heels to paint!

I am having a great time on maternity leave. I've made so many new items for my online shop and it's just nice to be able to slow down and really just enjoy the small things~ like waking up anytime, well Diesel sorta dictates that, but still! I don't have a set schedule, I get to decide what I want to do each and every day.

I could get used to this...

8: Treasury

I made an awesome treasury on Etsy! Check it out here!
I think my treasury does a fitting job showing the bleak silver skies of winter and the hopeful blues of spring to come...

Love Bugs and Love Monsters

It was a silly fun Valentine's Day..
Chocolates, candies, love animals, and How to Train Your Dragon.

6: My Life

Estell, Diesel, and Maximus

5: Change of Plans

So all I can say right now is that it is not going to work out for us to build apartments in the school. We came up with a different plan and while I'm just as excited if not more so, I am not quite sure how to explain it just yet. With that, I'll leave you hanging from the edge of your seat...

4: A Star is Born

On Saturday 1.15.11 at 11:55pm we welcomed Diesel Christian Rudolph into the world.
Weighing in at 8lbs 11oz. and 19" long. He's a chubby little cutie :)

The labor was difficult and we ended up having to go C-section. Not fun.
Thank God we all are ok. Stefan and I already decided we are done now. Our family is complete.

Here he is at a week old today.

He's got the cutest foofie toes ever! I can't believe how much I love him...

3: We Bought a School

Yup. That's right. A school.
And let me tell you, it needs a lot of TLC. ALOT.
But that's ok cuz we have a plan- in fact, we have a 10 year plan.
Presently, we are waiting on a part for our snowblower. Here in lovely WI we have about 3 feet of snow and we can't get in lol Once we do snow blow our way in we're going to empty out our storage unit (what's the point of that when we have a school right?!) Then we want to start building apartments, first of which would be for ourselves.

Before we can start building though we have to get the building re-zoned for Special Use. That's going to cost us $375 and we are hoping like crazy that we can do that by next month. The Village Hall only meets once a month, so we have til about the second week of February to turn in our application- pray for us that it happens!

In the meantime we are looking into getting a loan to pay off the in-laws (that's who we bought the school from via Contract for Deed) and hopefully will have some left over to start remodeling. Still have a lot of research to do in that department. We are also working on our Business Plan- this could help us with the re-zoning application and the loan. Again, need to do a lot more research!

We have collected quite a few items for our apartment though! All of which have been FREE! Like this lovely burnt orange carpet (I love it!) It's just big enough for one of the three bedrooms. And totally retro hehe We also have gottan a brand new sink for the bathroom, complete with a cabinet to drop it in. And a stainless steel double sided kitchen sink with a working garbage disposal. Yeah it's not much but it's a start and I am so excited!

WHOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

2: xoxo Johnny

just watched Benny and Joon last night and oh my god hilarious!

i swear, the more i see Johnny Depp, the more i am conviced that he is a genious. and i like to think that if my husband where an actor he would totally be like Johnny.

the man can do anything! he's unstoppable. the versatility with which he can play one character from the next~ the pure and utter dedication to the role.. he brings the characters to life.
i just don't know what to say except that i love you Johnny. my heart secretly belongs to you.

hahahahaha

other favorites of mine are: edward scissorhands, sweeney todd, pirates of the caribbean, blow, sleepy hollow... and i was just on google and saw that there are sooo many other movies that he's been in... OMG... and what kind of fan would i be if i didn't see them all?! lol

ps. i am so ready to have this baby!!!

1: Ready to Pop

Literally.

The hubby is enjoying calling me the little semi that he put a diesel in front of :) lol

Diesel Christian Rudolph is almost ready for his grand debut.

So is mom...

New Years Resolution

Start blogging again :)

10 weeks

I'M PREGNANT!!!

My due date is January 30th! We are so excited! SO I apoligize but I won't be posting much and I am probably going to close my etsy account for the time being. There are too many things going on and it's hard to keep up. I have to take especially good care of myself right now because I'm at high risk for a premature labor- and I do NOT want to go through that again!

If you want to stay updated on me and the baby you can check me out at www.thecradle.com and my username is damonique.

Big and Little Happenings...

My cousin, Whitney, got married yesterday!

I am so happy for her, things are really working out for them- it's a blessing.
She is now Mrs. Brady Raphael :)

I took Goomer out for Chinese awhile back. :)

On the way we saw a rainbow...

And I think I already did a post on Sabine's prom or at least put pics up on my facebook...

The peacock dress she wore inspired me and I made some Peacock shoes you can find on my Etsy shop!

My Craft Show!

Here I am! At my first craft show ever!
I shared a booth with Andrea (Sacred Suds). She was awesome and her soaps smelled delicious!

We also had Round Bottom Baby at the show- she had the cutest kids ties! (ps. all the artists at this show can be found on Etsy)

Chickadeesigns had the coolest resin pendants and by the end of the day I couldn't resist! I had to buy one! I got one of Betty Boop on the couch with a guy (does anyone remeber his name? the blond guy?) lol and he's all like, Hey baby! and Betty's all like Oh come on! It's hilarious!

There were so many great artists at the show- 48 total- I didn't even get a chance to see them all!

I took notes through out the show to make improvements for the next show and decided I need to get at least 75 items up in my online shop! Ambitious I know but totally doable!

Jenny Bunny was so fun! I really enjoyed meeting all of you!

And here is the lady that made my first sale! Wearing one of my original headbands!

I wish I had gottan a picture of my second sale- it was the blue top with white flowers- this girl was so perfect for it, petit with long curly brown hair- so adorable! lol and that was all I got for sales!

My Fashion Line

My craft show is this Saturday and I am rushing to get everything done!
The other night I started playing around putting together outfits on my manequin- seeing what works and what doesn't, deciding what to put on display, etc etc

And I have to say I ended up very impressed with myself!

My pieces go so well with each other! It was invigorating! I felt that satisfaction of a job well done (I did it! I did it! yeah yeah yeah!)

I think I have put together a great collection and I have high hopes for my first show! :)

My line is made from all recycled material and yet it's fashionable, fun, and girly romantic.

I started sewing last June and the last ten months have been an incredible! I found my passion and this is just the beginning!

I am so excited to start making new items and find a couple more shows to participate in this year!

I know that this year is going to be Fantastic! I have been waiting to do craft shows since I was a little girl and now my dreams are coming true...

It's almost like a fairy tale :)

Course in this tale, it's filled with heaping piles of discarded garments and fabrics that are lovingly transformed into beautiful and fashionable clothing and accessories! lol

It's a good thing I already got Prince Charming hooked...

Course, he is complaining that I need to start branching out to men's fashions...

I will, in good time...

You all just wait and see, I'll be famous someday...

Or at least be self-employed and run my own shop! That's what I really want...

I've dreamed about trying out for Project Runway (god that would be so fun!) But I don't think that lifestyle that would come with it would be suitable for me!

I'm just a very fashionable country girl! lol

xoxo

DaMonique