the beginning of a new year

I knew this morning when I got up that I would probably be grouchy. I hate that. I knew today was the day that I needed to take our tree down. I think that might be my favorite part of christmas--the tree. I love coming home and seeing the white lights in our family room but it was time to take it down and get ready for the new year! I cleaned the house today which I dread. I don't do it very often at all. when it is done and everything is clean I love being in our home even more. we received lots of new towels and sheets for christmas and we topped it off with new pillows and a new mattress cover. so now our home is ready for the new year. I celebrated my 29th birthday yesterday. I still don't feel 29. I feel still feel 19 and have been told I act 12!
I am so excited for 2008. I think lots of good things are going to happen this year and there is a lot to be excited about!

warm and snuggly

these are the new chairs I received for christmas to go in our family room up north (my husband will be taking the couch down to the basement leaving me with just a loveseat).
I love sheets, towels, glass jars and anything with stripes and I received plenty of those kinds of presents this year. it was a nice day to relax, be with family, eat lots of food and watch christmas movies! hope you had a fun christmas!

merry christmas!

wishing all of you a very relaxing and happy holiday season.

the kennedy house

we received a really cool gift for christmas from my brother. I didn't know it was a christmas gift or I would have waited to open it. it is a subscription to the "indiana preservationist". it is magazine about saving homes in indiana that are "endangered" of being torn down. my brother has the coolest job because he helps save those homes! in this month's issue I found this house: the kennedy house. is was built in 1840. the home retains the original hardwood floors and original windows. can you imagine those floors? I bet they are 1/2 foot wide plank floors. it is a historic farmhouse that features two parlors, plus a large family room with adjoining kitchen and bathroom. two large bedrooms upstairs and a partial basement. I would love to see the inside of it. it obviously needs work (the outside has already been preserved) but I think it would be so neat to own a home that was built in 1840. then when I watched little house it would be like laura and I are living in the same era house!

this makes me laugh

I love looking at old pictures. tonight I ran across these and just laughed.
these are the first pictures I used when I started tiny sprouts. a good PR told me professional photos are worth the investment. she was right. I am hooked on shannon, she is addicting.
new site coming REAL soon.

finally

dyeing clothes really becomes a hassle sometimes. well, mainly just rose and celery. I want/have to continue dyeing clothes because it makes my colors unique AND so no one can copy that aspect of my business. just when I get the formula figured out I run out of dye. then I receive a new batch and the colors are never exact. I have been trying to figure out rose for about 3 months. seriously. my husband always says to get rid of rose. I can't because I love it AND it is really popular. so tonight I had to dye rose again and I was really hoping it would turn because tomorrow is the shipment deadline for christmas delivery. I tried a new formula and it was perfect. and just as I figured it out I have about 2 more dye baths until it is gone! such is life.

2 more curtain climbers

thanks for sharing, I love receiving these pictures!

hey mr postman

wouldn't this picture be so much cuter if they made chocolate tyvek envelopes?

looks like home

I began my morning with some holiday coffee while browsing the indianapolis real estate listings. I found this house this morning and I am crazy about it! feeling so much better than last sunday! thanks everyone for your nice emails to cheer me.

this home was built in 1932. it has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths and a basement.
maybe we really weren't meant to have the other house because this house has a wood burning fireplace! my husband makes the best fires. this room leads off to the sun porch.

this is the kitchen. the description says it has the original cabinets. I can look past the grey and imagine them cream with some really great pulls. one thing that original cabinets means is no dishwasher built-in!

marble countertops would look great in here!

love that little built-in!

the sunporch has 3 sets of french doors that opens to the front of the home.

love this little nook. I can already see our kids coloring here. imagine the gray a cream or even a sage. isn't that original built-in cool?

this is the dining. one of the things I do like about this house is the number of french doors and windows. I love natural light.

this is the master. off the master is a sitting room with 2 cute windows.

this would be perfect for a nursery!

upstairs bath. not sure if it has period tile. I do know those windows are not original but that is an easy fix! crazy for the medicine cabinet in between them!

nice fenced yard for our dogs!

nice emails

I love when people take the time to write me. I received this sweet email today:
"We just got our tiny sprouts dress in the mail the other day and I can't tell you how much I love it! She's already worn it twice and we've gotten so many compliments on it. I can't wait for her to wear it to church, too. I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Thank you so much for having such a great company and making such adorable clothes! We're hooked! Thank you!"

and then another:
"Hi Tracey,
Lori wanted me to pass along that we really appreciate all of the great work you do and that we adore you!"

easiest and cutest holiday project

I am not for crafting unless it takes under 5 minutes and involves no instructions. so if you want to have cute pictures in your frames this is what you do.
1. go to pottery barn and buy something. their bags this year have this print on them. I think I bought something just to get the bag because I have been wanting the sheets.
2. measure the mat openings or frame
3. tape the bag onto the mat or place in the frame.

love these scattered around our house!

our holiday project

we adopted a family this season. we sent out an email to our tiny sprouts customers so they could help us find a family who needs a brighter christmas. below is the story.

"The family in need that I am writing about has a heartbreaking story which sadly will not have an happy ending. Samantha Spencer*, who is in her early 40's, was diagnosed a few years ago with uterine cancer. She underwent a hysterectomy and chemotherapy. The doctors thought that they had gotten everything and that Samantha would make a full recovery. Regrettably, that was not the case. The cancer has come back and Samantha, in August, was given about 5 months to live. The true tragedy is that she will be leaving behind her five year old son, Jake*.

Samantha grew up in the Philippines in an orphanage. Her birth father found her when she was 19 and brought her to the United States where she has lived ever since. She then found her birth mother who died from cancer only a few months after Samantha was reunited with her. Samantha is a single mother and Jake's father is no longer in the picture and actually has never met Jake. He is ready and willing to sign his rights away. Samantha does not have any family who can take Jake into their homes so there are several of us that know Samantha and Jake well who are interviewing families in the area who would like to adopt Jake. We all want to make sure that Jake does not end up in Foster Care.

The response in our community to Samantha and Jake's plight has been astounding, but it does not make it any less gut-wrenching. Soon Samantha and Jake will have to say good-bye to one another forever. Jake will have to go through a great deal of grief before he can move on and find happiness with his new family. Any donations to Samantha and Jake will help make their last holiday together a little better and would go toward helping Jake move forward."

*their names have been changed

MAY YOU ALL HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND CHERISH THE ONES YOU LOVE

homemade goodness

a while ago my best friend sent me some homemade soap. I loved it and every since I have been hooked. I found this great little place on etsy (you should have known). I loved their packaging. they live on a farm, too. how cool!

more etsy finds

I love to look on etsy. especially to find special pieces of art to have in our home. this morning I came across this piece. it seems like that classic christmas piece to hang every year.
I love this little piece for a nursery one day.
I have thought this piece would go great in our new home. I think your home says so much about you. at least our home does. very simple and not a lot of clutter.
and this last piece, lean on me is one of my favorites. so simple and it reminds me of my husband.
one of my favorite christmas movies that I watch every year on christmas eve or christmas day is "the christmas they never forgot". I cry harder every time I watch. I heart little house!

so sad

yesterday was to be a good day. we were to receive the contract for the house we were going to buy. first rent, then buy. it was a secret until it was all finalized. this would mean no more flying to indy to visit. that made me happy. mid-afternoon I had not heard from the realtor so I wrote him a brief email. shortly after he wrote back saying to couple had received another offer all while this realtor was on vacation. my heart sunk. I cried so hard. and even though this is my tiny sprouts blog I don't mind sharing it because I am sad. shortly after receiving the news the phone rang. I was crying too hard to answer and a while later I listened to the message. it was my niece. "hi tia. love you tia." how can someone so little be so sweet? I was crying too hard to really hear her so I hung up the phone and will listen to the message on a better day. I know moving will happen when it should but knowing we were so close. so close to being able to go pick up my niece and take her for ice cream. or going with my sister to a doctor's appointment. or going with my brother to see the houses he helps restore. or going with my dad to hobby lobby (his favorite place). or being able to drive to ohio to see bry's family or taking him to where I grew up and visiting my mom. the list could go on and on. I know moving will happen, it will just be one day and I thought that one day was near.

a few more cuties

thanks to all of you who send me pictures of your little ones!

new love

today I received an email with pictures of embroidery. way back when I used to carry a birth announcement embroidery. I have been wanting to add them back to the site for quite some time but these past 4 months have gone by so fast. so the picture that was in the email was of an embroidered birth announcement. only THIS was so much better than I used to carry. I love the chunky letters! so stay tuned, if all the details can be worked out, I may be carrying these soon. I think they are so beautiful and it is one of those items you will always cherish.

good friends

I found this picture tonight while looking through photos. I love this photo because I love the 2 people in it so much. the left is my sister and the right is my friend dyan. and in my sister's belly is elsa! time flies!

and these are a few of my favorite things

I love this set. I am going to wait until after christmas and will hopefully snatch it up for a great deal.
I think this rug would be perfect for my new tiny sprouts office one day.

I love pottery barn!

will they make it in the cold?

 

it is supposed to get down to 40 tonight. the dogs like to snuggle when it is chilly. can you tell?