Introducing the newest addition to the Romeka family... Ashlyn Marie Romeka! She was born November 28th, at 10:22pm... 6lb 11 oz... Thanks to all our family and friends who have helped out, visited, and for all the prayers! (a special thanks to our dear friend ashlyn for sharing her beautiful name with our daughter.) everyone is doing well (including big sister!) and we'll see you back in blogland soon!

Happy Monday

Happy Monday! D.I.Y. Holiday project later tonight if all goes well. and no, this picture is not from halloween. just a regular monday morning at our house!

newest member of the family

I would like to introduce you to the newest member of our little family. She came earlier than expected, and still doesn't have a name... she's a little loud but I couldn't love her more...

Okay, so it's not the new baby yet, but it's something I wanted for a long time. I didn't think we'd get one for awhile due to the $300 price tag, but surprise of all surprises, my mom gave us hers! It's a ROOMBA. A nifty little vacuuming robot that I can turn on when leaving the house and the carpet is all clean and beautiful when I return... every day! no more dragging out the giant vacuum 3x a week (and wishing to every other day), or carrying emma while i vacuum because she's so scared she starts shaking and sobbing uncontrollably at the sound. YAY!

long time, no post

Wow! It's been a long time, with no posting... I miss the blogging world (and hate that last picture of me). We've been busy busy busy with B + R's wedding in Washington, and getting ready for the still-to-be-named baby we're expecting in less than 4 weeks... yikes! i had to catch my breath after writing that last bit! Em was a flower girl again, and the wedding was beautiful. Washington was cold, and our good friends Tom and Kelley were so gracious to let us stay in their newly renovated home... they even turned up the heat for us freezing San Diegans every night - Thanks Guys!
Speaking of the little girl on her way, Ashlyn posted this great site for baby names on her blog... Nameberry. Super creative, and much less boring than the traditional baby name book or website. If you don't see anything new from me soon you'll know which site I'm stuck on! I've got LOTS of sweet new kid stuff to share, as well as a few simple DIY's for the holidays coming up. Stay tuned and I'll see you around!

Happy Birthday Mom!

A very happy birthday to my dear mom... two hours left, but I just wanted to let you know how much you are loved and appreciated!

and yes, I did call her earlier today!

something new

something new from "elephannie" on etsy... i couldn't understand why my mom would get teary when she read that book, now that i'm a mom i get it.

eclectic

Why I wish we could get a kitten...Baby Names: I'm sure the list is actually longer, but off the top of my head we have all these names... and only 6 and a half weeks?! In no particular order:

Ashlyn Noah Cara Drew Dawn Juliette Sophia Addison Reece

Olivia Sophia Hannah Isabella Eisley Hazel Sydney

cute as a button

I was absolutely overwhelmed (in a good way) this weekend with an outpouring of love from friends and family at our baby shower. I was thinking it would be a quiet get-together. After all, I had a baby shower when Em was born, and didn't want to be too much trouble. When I walked in, it was clear that this was not the case... everywhere I looked there was something, some sort of amazing detail. The theme was "cute as a button."


Thank you to all the ladies who put this together, and to everyone who was there, for making it such a special and blessed day!

carrots

after all three of us getting the flu this week, friends visiting from out of town, and a day of watching some of our favorite kids (besides those in the immediate family), i was exhausted. as i threw myself down on the bed this afternoon for a 5 minute (right...) nap, i felt something strange, and cold, and... slimy? i jumped up only to see a half eaten carrot on our newly laundered, crisp, white duvet - yuck! but it made me laugh because at that moment, i realized that's what's great about being a mom. "half eaten carrots are what's great about being a mom?" you ask. well, yea, sort of. all those little things, the handprints all over a just-cleaned mirror, my jewelry box emptied on the bedroom floor, a trail of crumbs through the house... these things won't last forever, and i'm actually pretty sure i'll miss them when they stop happening. so for now, when i'm getting the paper towels out for the 14th time this morning, i'll choose to smile!

you make me happy

We returned from A & T's wedding yesterday in Ventura. It was perfect. The weather, the location, and of course the couple, handpicked by God for each other. Congratulations to them both, and we can't wait to see you when you return from Hawaii! Emma was a great little flower girl, she didn't throw any petals, but she walked out into that crowd of strangers like a professional (sort of).


Today I ran out to the store for the weekly groceries while Dave stayed home with a napping Emma. When I walked in the front door, they were both singing and doing the motions to a "Dora"song. Em was giggling and Dave was smiling. I have to admit that as of late, I've been kind of stressing over the "5 year plan"... just what exactly are our goals & how are we going to get there? As I stored groceries away in the kitchen and then moved onto the everyday tasks like folding laundry, putting it away, and picking up toys it came over me... I am incredibly blessed. I could hear them in the background, my daughter and beloved husband, playing together and carrying on... and I was filled with the joy of knowing that no matter what we have or don't have, what careers we take or where we live, my family is the blessing I hold closest to my heart and the gift from God which is most precious.

freshening up

In other news, I finally sat down to turn out a couple of the projects which have been brewing in my mind for quite some time. Just had to: convince dave to go to home depot (like he needed an excuse),get some time, and, oh yes, i had to find the kitchen table...






Found this FANTASTIC idea for a clothes peg board on "So Tread Softly." it took all of 10 minutes to put together.


some new pillows for the couch (nothing special yet, can't find that perfect fabric)

oh, and here's a photo of the kitchen table now, lest you think i would leave it looking like that for too long!
until next time...