new camera!

she's here! sitting right next to me. i wanted to sleep next to her. my new baby.

hubby was very generous yesterday and agreed to buy me a new camera.

part of my job includes taking pictures of all my product. it just comes with the job. i create it, snap it, then post it online for everyone to see. it's how i get work, mostly.

things are really serious around here. a new camera, an expensive tool, is one of the many investments for paper passion & blossom.

here are some pics, unedited.

ball of shabby chic flowers! much easier for customers to choose from.

hubby took this pic of me. i was watching a DVD on the basics of the camera. 

new blossom hair ties, now with crystal beads

abby

abby wearing her blossom bands on her wrist

bucket full of ties!

display

and in a nano second, my new Canon Rebel T3i kicked my old cameras butts!

I am especially excited to use this bad baby at Sophie's cheer competitions! 

Get all those facials up close. Cannot wait for November (first competition). 

Meanwhile, I will learn how to use it. 

Learn every button. 

I will also use it for snapping pics of our summer fun. 

toodles, 

hello monday

abby's birthday & sophie's cheer banquet! 

we had so much fun over the weekend. hate to say good-bye to fun-filled weekends like that but it's time to say good-bye and hello to a new Monday.

hello to summer countdown has begun! 4 more days of school, the girls are anxious.

hello summer-to-do-list. on the list so far, painting base boards around the house. rest. relax. play. swim.

hello laundry room. i refuse to do laundry over the weekends. on the list today, towels and sheets.

hello to seeing family and great friends this weekend at abby's party. we are definitely excited.

hello to a new camera, crossing fingers. its something I've been looking into purchasing for a long time. I've even registered for a course on how to use the camera i want. pretty crazy. hubby is taking me today.

hello to new colors of blossom bands that are making their way to the shop. bright, bright colors!

Hello MONDAY! It's going to be an incredible week, are you ready?!

xoxo, 

7 years ago today

The Lord blessed us with a beautiful baby girl with lots of hair. We were excited to bring home a new baby so that Big Sister Sophie could have a sibling and someone to play with.

Abby was a chubby, chunky baby. We had lots of nicknames for her.

And today she turns 7 years old.

And I can't help but cry when I see pictures of her as a baby. She was a great baby. Only cried when she was hungry or wet. She loved to sleep. Was never fussy. She was perfection.

And she still is. My beautiful girl. With a heart of gold.

I received a text several days ago from my Comadre V. She told me that her boys are excited to come to Abby's party. And that Abby was such a sweet girl and deserves to be celebrated. She truly does.

Such a great kid.

I'm excited for her future.

I have a feeling Abby will be the daughter that will always hold my hand, stay home to take care of us.
Sophie will be out in the world bossing everyone around. She'll call and visit but only to get mad at us for not taking our meds...

I love my girls!

Happy 7th Birthday to my Abbygirl.

Asleep at her own birthday party

Relaxing in the pool with dad

Sitting by her piñata

Big sister helping little sister hit the piñata

Sitting next to her ducky piñata

Sitting next to her cake, tasting frosting for the first time

5 months, Baptism Lunch relaxing in her crib

Fabulous Friday giveaway!

The first person to post on the paper passion FB wall,

Question: What is Abby's 7th birthday party theme!

Winner will receive a set of this week's Blossom hair ties!

Good Luck!

Thank you for stopping by :)

Have a relaxing and FUN-filled weekend,

wiww on a Thursday!

WIWW yesterday was a crazy, crazy day!

Sophies Awards in the AM

Hobby Lobby

Michaels

Lunch

Meeting with my new cupcake girl :) 

Pickup the girls

Target to get them shoes for cheer banquet

Cheer parent meeting

Home/Work

Movie, wait no, because hubby had to go back to work for a bit. 

Vino, nope! 

Sleep at 12am

No way can I fit blogging into a schedule like that. 

My feet were tired. And I was mentally and physically tired. 

But, guess what?! 

I actually took pictures for this weeks edition so I'm posting today. Hope you don't mind. 

Ready! not that exciting

Top: Ann Taylor Loft (from NYC, had to throw that in there)

Bottom: Gap (poor pants are tearing because I wear them so much)

Shoes: TOMS

Horrible picture!

Top: Target

Jeans: Gap

Flops: Gap

Top: Forever 21

Shorts: NYandCO

Flops: Tory Burch

Kinda boring. My outfits need more excitement. I need to go shopping. 

I hope the hubby reads todays post. 

I would never think of wearing aqua shoes with a fuchsia top but clearly it can be done and it looks good. 

Love the necklace and handbag. 

I love how jean jackets can make an outfit look so relaxing and stylish except its so hot to wear a jean jacket with an outfit here in Laredo.

WANT NEED those shoes! Love the fluorescent yellow. Neon is so popular right now. 

Well thanks for stopping by!

Making a list of new topics to talk about here on the blog. 

The invention of paper is on the list...

  Back to my lovely job! 

Peace & blessin's

right now

i am 

watching: tv is off. instead this AM i'll work and jam out to some soft 80's.  

eating: not a fan of breakfast.  

drinking: COFFEE!  and i'm down to my last k-cup which means i must go get some or i will not be a happy camper in the mornings. 

wearing: orange lounge dress. 

avoiding: nothing. well maybe hitting a local jewelry boutique for some Pandora clips. 

feeling: just grateful for everything. some sadness. nothing a few prayers can't make better. 

missing: my college girlfriends. and missing what i had been doing at this time for the past 7 years, and that is getting ready to close another school year.  

thankful: for true friends. friends that are right there to pick you up when you're feeling down. friends that will shoosh a toad away because i am terrified of them. friends that won't leave your side because they suspect sel needs companionship at that time. and friends that, even thru text messages, know what to say and make you cry because of their kind words. you all know who you are. they are my biggest supporters. but mostly, they are the FUN-est girls around. thank you Lord for such a beautiful blessing. 

weather: beautiful. especially at night. 

praying: morning and night, just like my facial cleansing routine.  

needing: not much. i've got everything i want and need. 

thinking: i'd be at the National Stationery Show in NYC if Laredo was a bit more receptive to stationery stores. 

loving: the music playlist on the blog. i haven't changed it because it can just play and play and play all day and i never get tired of it. 

wishing: that other's would find their creativity within themselves and not necessarily use my creativity and hard work for their own use/profit. flattering, though. 

now, i have work up the wahzoo! i tell myself and even post that i am no longer accepting orders for may and people ask me to create some stuff that i cannot say NO to. i've been taking pics and cannot wait to share! 

i'll be doing another Fabulous Friday giveaway so lookout for that! 

thank you for stopping by!

I've got a jam-packed day. 

oh! id like to share some news. 

little lady got co-head cheerleader. so proud of my girl. she truly deserves it. she cheers her heart out at every performance and when at home you can find her cheering, doing jumps, practicing routines...It's why i work so hard. To be able to give her and Abby what they want if it will take them places. i pray she never loses this motivation, momentum and enthusiasm for her passion. 

WIWW

Time again for What I Wore Wednesday! My attempt to take daily pics of myself and what i wore for the day solely for the purpose of getting me out of my PJ's and into some fresh clothes. It's an attempt, please remember that. Working from home and in your PJ's can be so comfy and easy to do. And so in an effort to get me out of my PJ's I do WIWW, a weekly series.

Top: Old Navy

Shorts: Ann Taylor Loft

Sandals: Kenneth Cole

That necklace! GORG! It's over $1000, yikes. 

Cute!

Love the wrap shirt. And of course, anything Tory Burch is my absolute favorite. 

Love the blouse, but not with those shorts. 

Cute handbag. 

Hubby and I on his birthday! 

This probably has nothing to do with WIWW because I wasn't working that day but...

Top: New York and Co.

Jeans: Wrangler, can't see

Boots: Ariat, can't see

Necklace: Forever 21

Thank you stopping by!

Lots on the agenda for today. 

No work but instead shopping for Abigail's birthday party :)

Have a great day! 

XOXO, 

hello monday

hello to a new week!

hello to new landscaping in the yard. pretty, pretty plants. 

there are a couple more in the front yard. ill get pics of those soon. 

hello to landscape lighting.

hello to an automatic sprinkler system. hello convenience. 

hello to my mothers day gift, another pandora bracelet to add to the collection. the 5 clip bracelet. such a lovely gift. my girls surely do know how to choose gifts. 

hello to a handmade vase with pom pom flowers and a card with a beautiful fabric rose, handmade gifts from my little ladies. I proudly put them on display in the living room. 

hello to our puppies, who were excited to model for some pictures. 

cookie!

cupcake and cookie!

they keep me company while i work. 

love these puppies. 

hello to cheer tryout week! 

my poor sophie is nervous.

friday, tryout day, can't come soon enough. 

hello to party planning and crafting for abby's birthday.

my baby is turning another year. unbelievable. 

thank you for stopping by!

what are you saying hello to on this Monday AM?

instafriday & fabulous friday giveaway

instafriday, i've missed you. its been so long. 

Simply Flowers Bridal Soiree! 

It was fun. Beautiful flowers for brides. 

Makes me want to get married again! To the same man, of course :) 

immediately that event was over i had to treat myself to some vino, poolside. 

sophie! i had to take a picture of my girl as soon as i picked her up from school. her teacher called that day telling me she got accepted into the GT program. honestly, i don't know where she gets this intrinsic motivation to be the best. if you knew me when i was little i was the complete opposite of sophie. and from what i hear her dad was too. so who knows where she gets the intelligence. however, i will brag and say she gets her creativity & enthusiasm from her mom. and from her dad she gets her love of adventure and risk taking. this little girl will get on those big coasters and scary rides at theme parks. she's not afraid. the fact that she's not afraid of anything, except the dark, scares me a bit, but because of that quality i know she won't be afraid to take big steps and make good choices. 

now my abby. she's a struggler. and that's alright. but remember her heart of gold? this AM i woke up not feeling too well. she asked what was wrong and i told her. can you believe she offered to stay home from school and take care of me? yup, a heart of gold but very smart when it comes to getting out of going to school. totally her MOTHER! 

now! i'm going to start a weekly series, along with instafriday, Fabulous Friday Giveaway. I love Friday's, don't you! 

Rules: Every Friday, in the blog post, I will ask you to do something. 

For example, TODAY the first person to post on the Blossom wall what their favorite Blossom product is will win a 5 piece set of Blossom Bands (winner chooses colors)! 

Winner must claim (meaning pickup) their product ASAP. 

How easy is that? Easy peezy! 

The giveaways will be different every week. 

Now, what are you waiting for? Go! Post! Hurry :) 

Have a fabulous weekend!

WIWWW

notice the extra W in WIWWW. What I WOULD Wear Wednesday. That's what it has come down to. BOO!

i love to get on Polyvore and just put stuff together or browse the other users and see how they match outfits together. and then you save it under your profile. i just wish my polyvore closet really existed.

if i was super rich i would have worn these outfits this past week. what? a girl can dream. especially about clothes.

love at first sight with that scarf. $95, YIKES. Im thinking somewhere downtown they'll have something similar. And that bag, yea its like $2000. But the tank is like $20. 

anything Tory Burch, SeL loves! remember that friends, when trying to choose a birthday present for me ;)

blue and coral! nice combo. i shall try soon. Love the blouse. 

now, i know you can't wear the new 31 catalog but wouldn't you like to live in this craft room. i would. so organized. which is clearly a sign that no crafting gets down in there. craft rooms should be messy, kinda stating like too much creativity goes on in there. and creativity can be messy. if you need a new catalog let me know! you can also browse my website, just click here!

wanted to talk a bit about a necklace that i wear close to heart and don't go a day without. even if it doesn't match my other jewelry i'll wear it. 

i get compliments on it and most want to know where i got it. 

i got this over at Lisa Leonard Designs. 

I follow her blog religiously.

She was one of the first blog i ever started reading. 

She has created this mega- business empire with her handcrafted, sterling silver designs.

I think items like this are perfect presents so i've gifted my mom and close friends with items from her line. 

This particular necklace is called the sterling-brave-love-necklace. 

Because I've had it for almost 2 years you can see the wear & tear. 

David, Selina, Sophia, Abigail. 

The 3 of them, I love the most. 

Browse around her shop & sign up for her newsletters, emails. 

You automatically get 15% off your first purchase if you do. 

It may seem a bit pricey but can you really put a price on an item that means so much and will last forever.

I take care of this item like if it were irreplaceable. 

i wish i could stick around and yap away but i must get to work. 

thank you for stopping by!

XOXO,