Good finds at the Goodwill.

I went on a whim to Goodwill today and stuffed my trunk with two items.

The first is a chair for my office.

Good bones. Comfy. Just in need of some white paint and a fun fabric.

And for a whopping 6 bucks. Can't beat that.

I also scored a tall/long ironing board (we had been using a floor/short/college board - terrible).

I got it for $10 (originally $40). Sweet!

Maybe WE will actually iron our clothing now...

Front Yard Progress

Progress in the front yard!

After digging, edging, planting, and mulching...we are now getting somewhere!

We are attempting not to kill a beautiful dogwood surrounded by hostas. 

We also have some soloman seal, painted ferns, and some purple things...so I'm not a gardner..

It's very inviting to come home to. We just have to grow some grass and we'll be set!

In the backyard, we have a start to our future outdoor table. You like?

With some sanding & paint, he'll be really fun, too.

So happy with our progress.

My happy list.

It's the weekend and I for one, am very excited to be here after a very long, long week.

After a trip to the library for children's books (my only work for the weekend), I went and got myself a nice cold drink from Starbucks. What's next?

I'll be spending some of the day with my sisters and mom at a wedding shower which I'm looking forward to because I just adore my ever growing family.

After?

Well, that is the even better part.

I'll be crafting a new wreath for our front door since it still looks like this:

What is my plan, you ask? Let's take some inspiration from you-know-where.

source

source 2

I'm thinking of a light gray background with yellow yarn mixed through and attempting some of those top flowers in bold colors like the blue and green and yellow. 

Nothing like updating your home with the spring fever. Yay for weekending!

Happy Day for Brittanys.

It was a weekend filled with "yay!" & "congratulations!" Myself, Mom, & Dad took the trek to slippery rock to partake in Britt's big graduation day. Yes people, she made it. A big, fat, WOOT is in order.

Can you see her? It's like "Where's Waldo". I'll give you a high five if you can...

We were there on time - and with no place in the world to sit. Instead, we pulled up a bench and squeezed ourselves in on top. It worked perfectly. 

I think the video from Mom's camera would probably give you an inkling of just how much fun the three of us had up there. I'll have to upload that later...

For now, I present you...

The newly crowned adult!

With her awesome sister..

And the "Tim Hoberg Squint!"

And not to mention, the boyfriend who graduated in the ROTC. 

Aren't you proud? The last Hoberg graduating from college - welcome to the real world sister Britt!

Pop-eye. Arg!

My name is Kristin.

And I'm addicted to photos.

Especially old photos. Even better, photos of family where you didn't even exist yet. 

You grow up only knowing your grandparents a certain way. Old (no offense). And then you see pictures of them when they were younger (these photos are showing them at my current age- unreal!), and you see their life in a whole new perspective. 

These photos are of my Pop-Pop McKinney (my mom's daddy) when he was in the navy. He is just handsome & my...so young!

It's neat to catch a glimpse of what they saw, even if it is ever so tiny of a glimpse.

He is such a ham...no wonder...

This one below is my absolute favorite of the bunch. My Pop-Pop with my Grandmom at their wedding. 

Just darling.  

Though my future babes will never be able to meet my two sweet grandparents, I'm hoping that one day I'll be able to share these with stories with them & I know they will have their own stories/memories of their own grandparents.

My happiness.

As shown in a previous post, I have recently purchased the book, The Happiness Project and have been taking my time in reading it. After reading a particular chapter, I take the time to sit and reflect upon it and attempt to relate what was written to my own happiness. 


The more recent chapter that I have read relates to work and aiming higher in your career.  I have been attempting to change my attitude in my current workplace & become more positive & more upbeat & attempt to leave work behind when I come home. At times, I bring home my work & my stress which then leads to a rough & depressing & exhausting evening.


Which brings me to my main point of this particular post. Blogging. I simply blog just for myself. For fun. For creativity. For documentation of my enjoyable moments in life. I may not be a great writer, blogger, creator...but that's not the point. It's what I love doing & it's something I won't stop doing. People may think I'm crazy with what I make & the time it takes me to create something - but again, it's my happiness.


So I look forward to my Sundays which I find are my blogging days. I get to look through my photos from the week, make an iced coffee beverage & have it sit next to me at my computer, and I just sit & write & more importantly, reflect. I get to find inspiration & make a list of things I want to create next. I get to read other blogs and find new ideas & just bask in the utter happiness of life.


I get to be me. Not the stressed out Pre-K teacher who has to worry about lesson plans, prepping, & logging in observations that are due in a week. 


What do you do to be you?

A splendid surprise.

Following a particularly wonderful day, I was called to report to the Spina residence for some sort of secret.

And this is what was waiting for me.

Isn't she beautiful? A very, very, very, thoughtful gift from one very, very, very, thoughtful Audie Spina. A heartfelt thank you wouldn't even be enough to share my appreciation for such a wonderful, wonderful gift - one item that I have been hoping & praying to procure one day. And today was the day.

Yes. I will hem thee some pants.

Look out world, Karen Spina & Kristin Donnelly are sewing "machines"! (That is, after our class and after many, many practice sessions...)

Puppies. Bellies. Babies.

Q: What was needed to make this baby shower successful?

A:

A Bailey. 

A Noah belly.

A peanut gallery.

An upset-future-least-favorite-aunt. :)

A super cute Momma.

An Ava & her Pop.

An adorable family.

A sweet addition to the family.

A cute Momma & soon to be Auntie.

An Uncle Ed (creator of the baked mac & cheese.)

A sneaky camera stealer.

A cheesy smile.

A baby. A very important ingredient to a baby shower.

A guest who can't eat food properly.

A relaxing corner.

A Momma mingling.

A non-pregnant belly designed for consuming yummy treats.

A meeting of the cousins, pre-birth.

Multiple bellies (not a necessity, but recommended for optimum fun points)

A Future Grandmom (twice over), proud of her son.

A Babushka.

A tightly-knit family.

 And a not-so-serious-Kristin picture (a delightful addition to any party).