Airports Make Me Cry

No one ever tells you that having children will make you all weepy.

Or that something as simple as a Pampers commercial

will suddenly bring you to tears.

And that the thought of any child suffering anywhere in the world will make you sick to your stomach.

No one ever tells you just how much your heart will grow,

once you make that special addition to your family.

And yesterday, when we were waiting in line at the airport

I happened across a family of four saying their goodbyes.

Momma, Dad, Sister, Brother.

From the looks of things,

they were sending their son off.

Probably somewhere far away and important,

like boot camp or college.

{at least that's how I imagined it}

I couldn't help but notice the Momma subtly wipe away tears she was attempting to hide from her son.

And suddenly I was 18 years into the future,

sending my son off,

on some important journey

to make his mark on the world.

...and then, right there

in the middle of the airport

I was wiping away my own tears.

Yeah, I'm pretty much a weepy weepster.

And when I got home, I decided to torture myself some more with my favorite clip from the movie Love Actually--the infamous airport scene.

The Art of Taking an Impromtu Family Portrait {with toddlers}

We tried,

we really did...

And yes, my child is the only one bouncing off the walls in every picture.

And for those of you who watch Modern Family,

you know why these are the best kind of family portraits.

And now, the cousins {two missing}.

These kiddos make me proud.

And on a smiliar note,

have you ever visited AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com?

Ha-Lar-Eee-Us!

WINNER and a Silhouette Update {discount code}

Let's get straight to the details, shall we.

The WINNER of the Purse Bling Giveaway:

is Comment #418

1neProud Mama

And that is the header for her super awesome blog.

Please email me at ashley@littlemissmomma.com

for details about your big WIN.

______________________________________________________

And now,

for the Silhouette update many of you have been asking about.

Remember these fun projects I created with my Silhouette:

My wonky Young Womens theme Subway Art project.

And these heat transfer onesies.

Today, through the February 28th,
Silhouette is offering this fabulous deal:

You get:

•Silhouette SD Machine

•1 Roll of Black Premium Vinyl

•1 Roll of Premium Frosted Vinyl

•1 Roll of Premium Transfer Paper

•Home Decor CD

Valued at $400,
but you get all this for only $225!

That's almost half off!!

And thats not all!
Their premium vinyl is on sale too!
25% OFF

Just use the code: LMM

This vinyl will make you happy, trust me.

I have fabulous projects in store with mine!

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This post brought to you by the boys who melt my heart every day;

Comin at'cha from Chey-Town

Coming at'cha from Chey-town {aka Cheyenne, WY}.

Where the snow is fresh, the family is abundant, the outfits are not snow appropriate, the hubby takes a snow shovel to channel his inner MANliness, the cowl comes out to play, this momma takes a break from the Internet, and the white trash diapers still find their way to the back porch.

It's all good.

{cowel: Peacefully Hooked} 

I will be linking up my "snow outfit" here:

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Totally unrelated, but I am having some major anxiety about all my unanswered emails. I am soooo sorry to those of you who have emailed recently. I hope to be ahead of the curve sooner rather than later. Thanks for bearing with me.

{and yep, I had to google it--its "bear with me", not "bare with me".}

Our Valentines Day {moustache style}

This year I decided I wasn't going to let

Valentines Day get the best of us.

No matter how simple our evening would turn out, 

I was determined that we would do something romantic.

And that something romantic

{making chocolate covered strawberries together},

got a little out of hand.

Apparently the hubs decided

chocolate moustaches were much more romantic.

{still learning how to open his eyes for photos, but his dimples totally make up for it}.

How was your V-Day?

Wild and crazy?

Do tell, I must live vicariously through you...

One Year Ago Today {a blogiversary}

Blogiversary

{one year ago today...}

{taken about a year ago}

 One year ago today,

I logged into blogger and spent a few hours typing in

every clever blog name I could think of in an attempt

to find one that wasn't already taken.

Eventually I settled on Little Miss Momma.

Then I spent way too much time trying to design my own header.

It was ugly.

I even tried to design my own button.

It was even uglier.

But I didn't think so at the time.

I was smitten.

And completely anxious to dive into this whole Momma-blogger thing.

I nestled in to my little corner of the blog universe and I got comfortable.

I even busted out a mind blowing post about my pillows.

Because there's nothing more exciting to read about than pillows...

I took each and every pillow in my house

and I laid them out on my back lawn.

And then I took pictures,

to share with you.

And I wondered why no one was reading my blog.

{except for my fab sister in law, of course}

But I didn't quit.

I started focusing my attention on the finer details

of the blogs I loved so much.

What made them interesting?

Why was I compelled to read them every day?

What set them apart?

And all my bloggy favorites had the same things in common.

They were honest,

they were real,

and I wanted to be friends with them in real life.

That's when I realized

my pillows weren't going to find me any bloggy BFF's.

So I took a risk,

and I shared my secret with you all.

And it felt so good,

that I never looked back.

Now, one year later,

y'all know the intimate details of my mangy toe hair,

my heel skin, my peeing habits, my awkward moments,

my insecurities, and my overall weirdness.

It's been a blast.

Thanks for sticking with me.

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This post brought to you by

the new retro cat eye glasses

found in my etsy shop,

They are super cool,

just like you.

The Value of Hard Work

{my Momma and baby me}

{my Momma and baby me}

One of the things I most appreciate about my Momma,

was how she instilled the value of hard work

within me at an early age.

Now, at the time, I was not quite as appreciative.
I remember waking up as a kid on a Saturday morning,
making grand plans for the day.
I would play in the tree house,
catch some frogs,
dig a mud hole for my plastic army men
and then look for lizards.
{yes, I was ever-so-slightly a tom boy}

{goofy 12 year old me}

And I remember being so bummed
to find a list of chores that had to get done
before I could go on with my grand plans.
I mumbled, 
I grumbled,
and I went about mowing the lawn,
picking the weeds,
taking out the trash
and doing my own laundry.

As I got older,
my Momma continued with these same principles.
The day I turned 16,
she drove me around our small town and said,
Where do you see yourself working?
Where do you think you would have fun?
I remember leading her to a Color Me Mine ceramic studio
just a few blocks from our house.
The next day, I had my first job.

{my senior year, Homecoming}

Every day that followed,
through high school
and college,
I had a job,
I did my own laundry,
and I helped around the house.

Sure I griped at times.
I wasn't perfect,
but I was learning.
For my Momma,
it wasn't about the money,
it was about the responsibility.
About the life lessons I would learn.
The character I would build.
About the value of a dollar,
and the importance of managing my earnings.

{right before I left for college}

I can't put a price on this principle she taught me.

I can only hope to be able to instill the same values within my kiddos.

But it's hard.
Things are different from when I was a kid.
There are more distractions today:
video games, iPhones, Internet, facebook, blah blah blah.

And while today I worry about
nap time, feeding schedule, Goodnight Moon and teething,
before I know it,
I'll be focusing my energy
on teaching Baby W
responsibility,
accountability,
and the value of hard work.

But, I'll need help.
Enter my latest magnificent discovery:
My Job Chart

It rocks.
It solves problems.
It makes a parents life easier.
It builds character in our kiddos.
It's FREE.
It's Online.
It's easy to use.
It teaches our kiddos how to save, share and spend.
And the world needs more awesomeness
like My Job Chart--
because us parents could use a hand every now and then!

If you are a parent who worries like me,
or if you want your kids to know the value of hard work,
then watch this 2 minute video and visit My Job Chart.
It will take about a million pounds off your shoulders--I'm serious.



How MyJobChart.com Works! from Gregg Murset on Vimeo.

Basically the BEST idea EVER!
Check it:

The One Where I Show You How I Put My Face On {and a WINNER}

How I Put My Face On:

Little Miss Momma's Make Up

{Some of you asked, so now I'm telling.}

Warning: I don't know what I'm doing. 

I am not an authority on the do's and don'ts of the "art of makeup". 

I do things like lick a q-tip and then wipe off smeared mascara. 

I can't live without lip gloss.

My eyebrows are two different shapes,

likely as a result of some plucking mishap in the past.

There is nothing I despise more

than putting on mascara--it feels like a chore,

but like many girlies, I feel naked without it.

So take whatever you read here with a grain of salt,

and then go find some other blog where the girl actually knows what she's doing.

Here is the makeup I use right now.

1. Bare Escentuals Mineral Foundation. Shade: Light {Sephora}

2. Bare Escentuals Bronzer. Shade: Faux Tan {Spehora}

3.Sonia Kashuk Blush {Sephora}

4. Benefit cream to powder foundation stick Shade: Paper Dolls {Sephora}

5. Stila Eyeshadow Trio. Shade: Gold Glow {Sephora}

6. Stila Smudge Pot. I use this as eye liner. {Sephora}

7. Lancome Hypnose Drama Mascara. Shade: Black {Sephora}

8. Eye lash curler. {anywhere}

9. Lorac Lip Stain. Shade: Sweet Emotion--see below. {Sephora}

First I take my Benefit concealer and I color over all my blemishes.  You'll notice there are A LOT of dots.

Then I take a sponge and blend in all the concealer.

Yes, it's time for me to get a new sponge--ick.

Then I apply the bronzer. This is my MUST have make-up. Without it, I look pale and sick.  I once read in a magazine that you should apply bronzer wherever you would get a sunburn.  It should not be applied ALL over your face--that's what I read anyway.

{right after bronzer}

Now I apply my mineral foundation over the top of the bronzer. This will help blend the bronzer and hide the rest of my pesky zits.

Then I use my blush and apply just on top of my cheekbones.

Now the basics are done, but I still look bleh until I put on my eye makeup.

I LOVE this Gold Glow Eyeshadow Trio by Stila.

First I apply the lightest shade one to my entire eye lid, and just a little teeny bit underneath the bottom of my eye.

Next I use both of the darker colors and apply to the upper crease of my eye lids, like so:

I use an eyeliner brush to apply a quick line of the Stila Smudge Pot under my eyes. I don't use eyeliner on my upper eyelid, simply because I don't know how to put it on.

Then I curl my eyelashes and put on my waterproof, black mascara.

But I still have my secret little somethin somethin left to put on.

My all-powerful, and very sassy Lorac lip stain, followed by a layer of lip gloss.

And that's it.

Nothing special.

{Happy Mommy necklace by Starfish}

What make-up can you not live without???

____________________________

And the WINNER of the

Vintage Wanna Bee giveaway is:

Maren

Comment #132

 CONGRATS!Email me at ashley@littlemissmomma.com for details on your big WIN!