School Daze

Sure, it's October. The kids have been in school for several weeks now. And...it's been a resounding success!

Caleb is in 2nd grade. He loves his teachers and his classmates. This year was his best transition yet from summer to school. I think it may have a little to do with Academy of Rock and the consistency and daily routine that came along with that. We didn't get to do as many fun family outings (no Oklahoma trip--but we're going during fall break) but I think it was worth it for all of us. In fact, most of our family came to visit us! That was a nice treat.

Eva is in Kindergarten and comes home every day with a new adventure to share. She is learning so much. She can write her full name and the names of all of our family members. Just last night she gave us all individualized popsicle sticks when she caught us being good. I'm glad I was well behaved! We just had parent teacher conferences and her teacher told me she is well-liked and friendly. Eva is also improving her letter and number recognition. She loves books and is excited to be learning her letters and how to read.

Now that the kids are in school all day, I have time to get more done around the house. Surprisingly, I am still a master at avoiding housework. The good news: the kids are better at picking up their own messes now (thanks, Wii). The bad news: my messes are getting bigger because I'm at home all day by myself crafting and computing. My social life is improving, though! I go on "outings" at least 3 days a week. Tuesdays are for friends, Wednesdays are for Toolulu, and Thursdays are for Carl.

Speaking of Carl, he's the 2nd Counselor in the Bishopric now. Basically, that means he's really busy at church. It's not much different than when he was Scoutmaster. That was a big time commitment, as well. It's just we don't get to sit by each other at church anymore. People have been coming out of the woodwork asking to help me with my kids during the service. *yes, they are sometimes that bad.

There you have it. You've been updated.

Want more? I update more regularly at the following places:

Christynelson.net

Facebook.com/christynelson1

Twitter.com/christynelson1

School Daze

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/10/school-daze.html

Kindergarten Kamp

Eva is starting school this year and for a week in the summer, they have Kindergarten Kamp. She got to spend a few hours a day learning the ropes. Good thing she's getting her counting down...

Well, we're working on it.

Kindergarten Kamp

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/08/kindergarten-kamp.html

This Little Gem

I'm coming out of retirement to post this sweet little gem from Eva.

This Little Gem

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-little-gem.html

Guilt Ridden

I can't keep up with this blog anymore. It pains me to say it...especially because I blog for a living. But, because of that I need to let go of this one. I will still keep it published. I will probably still post from time to time. I just need to give myself permission to let it go.

Permission granted.

I'm certainly not falling off the face of the Internet.

My personal pictures and day to day goings on can be found on Facebook.

You can find me on Twitter, too.

I will always be posting on ChristyNelson.net. Here is the Facebook Fan Page.

My business website is Toolulu.

I hope you'll follow me over to one of the other sites.

Guilt Ridden

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/04/guilt-ridden.html

Turning 5

Eva's 5 now so I thought I'd share a few things about my favorite girl.

1. She lost her first tooth just days before her 5th birthday.

2. She gets in trouble at school sometimes because she's very protective of her "boyfriend". She told me today that it makes her so sad that other people like him because she liked him first! Is this starting already?

3. Her favorite TV show is The Super Hero Squad Show and she likes Hulk and Iron Man the best.

4. She is very sweet and cuddly. She often just wants to sit in my lap and tell me how much she loves me.

5. Eva is finally getting better about letting me fix her hair and she's starting to take more of an interest in wearing clothes that match and are clean.

6. Her favorite movie right now is This Is It. She asks to watch it daily and her favorites are the monsters (Thriller), Beat It, and are you walking (Smooth Criminal).

7. Eva's favorite color is pink.

8. Eva doesn't like cake or cookies. She blew out her candle in ice cream.

9. She has no fear. This girl is our little daredevil. She also likes to hike and camp--which makes her dad very, very happy.

10. She has some imaginary friends. They all have weird, made up names like Sheemy, and Keyloo. She likes to dress them up, too. Sometimes they are guitars. Sometimes they are the rail posts on the stairway.

Our little Eva is so wonderful and we are truly blessed to have her as a part of our family!

Turning 5

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/03/turning-5.html

Mini Me

It's possible that my daughter has seen me on more than a fair share of Skype calls lately. That's what happens when you have 3 business partners that live far away. She also kept throwing up her hands and shaking her head a lot. I wonder where she got that from?

Mini Me

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/03/mini-me.html

Teeth

Eva lost her first tooth today. We did a mini photo shoot but didn't do it until it was dark and all Eva wanted to do was show off the tooth...not the cute hole in her smile. Caleb wanted in on the action, too. When I showed them this picture I told Caleb that he looked serious. Eva chimed in and said, "And I look AWESOME!".

Teeth

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/03/teeth.html

Promotion and Tenure

I think I need to learn the Nebraska fight song.

Some members of Carl's department at the University asked him to go up for tenure a year early. It doesn't hurt to try. So, for the past several months, he's been going through all the stuff that entails. Paperwork, reviews, more paperwork, waiting, etc....

It's been a little stressful.

Carl told me this morning that it's a done deal. He got it (effective August 16th). I can't help but feel super blessed at a time when so many others struggle with job security. He found out on the same day that UNL announced $3.6 million in cuts. I asked Carl if this could ever happen to him. He said the only way he could lose his job is if he royally screws up or they get rid of his whole department (which, for Mechanical Engineering is very unlikely).

Good thing I love it here.

Promotion and Tenure

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/03/promotion-and-tenure.html

My Kid is Awesome

Yes, those are guitars playing dress up. Rock on, Eva. Rock on.

My Kid is Awesome

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/02/my-kid-is-awesome.html

Better U Big Reveal

Last night was our big Go Red for Women event where they paraded us on stage and showed a video of all of us that made us cry. Let me tell you...this group of women? Amazing. We all had our own personal struggles and many had stories that would just melt your heart. But you know what? We stuck with something for 12 weeks. We ALL got healthier. We made friends. And you know what? We all got 3 more months of membership at Lifepointe! We can't wait to see how much more we can improve.

I had a heck of a time finding a red dress to wear to the event. So, after an afternoon of shopping with Kelly...we bought some fabric. We made the dress the morning of the event. As in, yesterday. Kelly rocked it big time. THANKS!

My stats after 12 weeks:

Blood pressure went from high (148/96) to perfectly normal (118/78).

I lowered my cholesterol 15 points.

I lost over 9 inches.

I lost 7 lbs.

My pants are on the ground.

I gained over 4 inches of flexibility.

I went from 12 pushups to 30.

I have no gallbladder (who needs it, anyway?).

Better U Big Reveal

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/02/better-u-big-reveal.html

Caleb Turns SEVEN!

I can't believe Caleb is already seven years old. His birthday weekend was a lot of fun. We spread it out over the course of a few days because Carl had to be gone on Caleb's actual birthday for a scout trip. Anyway, Caleb didn't mind.

We had a little "surprise" party for him on the actual day. I got him off the bus at Mary's (our babysitter) house and all the kids were there to celebrate!

She even got him a present. He got his very own gumball machine.

I can't tell you how excited he was about that.

Here are seven interesting things about Caleb:

1. He loves to "Google". He especially like searching for Mario Kart.

2. Caleb is really growing. He wears size 10/12 clothes and a men's size 5 shoe.

3. His favorite song at the moment is Primrose Lane (thanks to Lawrence Welk).

4. He is an expert speller and reader. We're still working on his comprehension but he can read just about anything you put in front of him.

5. Caleb will eat pizza, ice cream and granola bars (sunbelt chocolate chip) all day and all night if we let him. I'm contemplating a refrigerator with a padlock.

6. He loves to draw pictures of people. Some of his favorite subjects are The Fresh Beat Band and his family.

7. He's got a smile that will make you melt.

We love you, Caleb!

Caleb Turns SEVEN!

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/02/caleb-turns-seven.html

MIA

This may have been the longest I've ever gone without posting on this blog. I just feel like I've never been so busy in all my life. I don't have time to keep up with this site as much anymore. It's a shame, really. It will never completely go away. I'll still update it now and again. I wouldn't want to leave Gayla* without anything to do all day besides chew tobacco and sit on her porch with her gun. So, I'll leave it at that.

If you want to know what I've been up to...I'll need you to check out ChristyNelson.net. It involves cake, lost of crafts, and Mark Montano.

MIA

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/01/mia.html

One of a Kind

I'm pretty sure my son is the only little kid in the whole world that has ever uttered this phrase:

Mom, I just want to look like Ava Barber!*

They sure like their Lawrence Welk. Here you can catch a glimpse of the kids watching an episode when we were getting our new TV ready to put on the wall.

*He wanted his yarn "hair" to look like her.

One of a Kind

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/01/one-of-kind.html

Going Back to 2002

I consider myself pretty geeky. I love the internet, blogging and all of my social media stuff. One thing I don't do is text. Not my thing. It's only in the past year or two that I've actually started using my cellphone more than my home phone. Texting just seemed silly when I hardly used my phone and I was always near a computer for email. But now I'm not at home as much. I'm too cheap to pay for a data plan on my cell so I can't check my email on the go. I do have an iPod Touch so I can check it if I have wi-fi. HOWEVER....I'm heading to a trade show at the end of the month with 3 of my business partners. I have a feeling that texting is going to be the best way for me to keep in contact with them during the show as we work. We won't be together most of the time so I think it is time to bite the bullet and get a messaging plan.

Here's my question: will 200 texts a month be enough or do I "splurge" and pay $20 for unlimited?

Going Back to 2002

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/01/going-back-to-2002.html

Snowed In

We spent most of the holiday at home. Like most everyone else living in the middle of the country, we got a fair amount of snow. The kids loved it! By the 26th of December, we had just over 24 inches of snow. I couldn't believe it when it started to cover the bottoms of the swings.

Eva and one of our neighbor girls tried it out. They could sit on them but not swing because the snow was so packed underneath. Fun times.

It was nice spending the holiday at home with nowhere that we really needed to go.

The other thing that happened over the holiday? I got my gallbladder out. I spent New Year's Eve in the hospital. I thought I would be a bit further along in my recovery by now but I'm still pretty much stuck in my room most of the day. I'm in a lot of pain but I'm catching up on a lot of tv. Did you know that All My Children is celebrating its 40th anniversary this week? Noah Wylie also suggests that we spend $16 a month to save the polar bears. I'm not buying it. I thought I might have to get the InStyler and SkinID but then I saw Hoarders and realized...I'm good.

Snowed In

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2010/01/snowed-in.html

I Resolve...

to not have a gallbladder in 2010.

Farewell, non vital organ.

I Resolve...

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2009/12/i-resolve.html

Christmas 2009

Here is the only "Christmas morning" experience we had this year. It happened at 2am. I'm glad I have this video or I may not have survived Christmas this year at all. When the kids got us up at 7am, we went downstairs to utter destruction. Every present that was under the tree was unwrapped (including ones for me and Carl). Most of the boxes containing those items had been ripped to shreds. Caleb is the only one strong enough to do that. Eva said she didn't do it...she was "just watching". Either way, they both got sent to bed as soon as we got up.

I considered re-wrapping the presents and having them open them again the next day. I also considered taking away all the presents for good. Instead we cleaned up the mess, opened our own stockings (the only things left unharmed), and went upstairs to play a game and chill out. By the time Caleb woke up from his nap, I was a little more calm and I just let them play with their stuff.

Santa's going to have to rethink his strategy for next year, that's for sure.

Christmas 2009

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-2009.html

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2009/12/merry-christmas.html

Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Crafters

I seriously underestimated what my energy level might be after working for Provo Craft the week before Christmas. My five days of gift ideas have turned into three. Of all of them, I think this one is the most crucial! The stocking is a great place to put all sorts of little goodies that crafters will go crazy for! Husband (s), take note!

1. Gelly Roll Glitter Pens

What crafter wouldn't want to write (or embellish) with glitter?

2. Wintery Glitter from Martha Stewart

This might be a little big for a stocking stuffer, but any Martha Stewart glitter will do. I'm starting to sense a theme here. I better get off the glitter train for a moment because I know that it is not every crafter's cup of tea.

3. Fat Quarters

"Fat quarter" is a term that refers to a yard of fabric that has been cut into 1/4 sections across the crosswise grain. So, instead of a 9" x 44" piece of fabric you get an 18" X 22" piece. Most craft and fabric stores have fat quarters for sale for around $1. They come rolled up or in little squares and make the perfect stocking stuffer!

4. Ribbon

A spool or two of fun ribbon appeals to a lot of different types of crafters. Can you ever really have enough?

5. Adhesives

Most crafters have their favorites. If you are stuffing a stocking for a specific crafter, go snoop and see which kind she prefers. Having extra adhesive (or any consumable, really) is always a good thing.

BONUS:

Massage gift certificate--just saying. I'm sure I any crafter would love one of these in their stocking.

*cross posted at ChristyNelson.net

Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Crafters

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2009/12/stocking-stuffer-ideas-for-crafters.html

Gift Guide: Gifts for Techies

Day 2 of gift guides include stuff for the techies in your life. I most certainly consider myself a member of this crowd. I'm a computer nerd that loves crafts.

photo copyright Craftsquatch

1. Twitter Pillow from Craftsquatch.etsy.com

This first item is perfect for any crafty geek in your life. You can purchase one of these on Etsy for $20 but I'm sure most of my readers (at least at ChristyNelson.net) could make their own version for less.

2. Wi-Fi Detector Shirt from ThinkGeek

Words can not describe how badly I want this shirt. Actually, I want the technology on this shirt to put on one of my own. It totally detects the wi-fi and lights up accordingly! It's only $20. What a bargain!

3. A Netbook

Any little netbook would probably do! I've linked to this one pictured that I might purchase if I was shopping for myself. My laptop is my primary computer but can sometimes be a bit cumbersome to lug around for meetings and conferences. A netbook is a good bridge between my iPod Touch and laptop. I think it would make a terrific gift for me any techie.

4. Flip Video Camera

This has been one of my favorite tech purchases ever. It is so easy to use and so versatile. This is not only a great gift for a techie (although, they probably already have one!) but it is a great overall gift for anyone...a new parent, a teenager, a blogger, a grandparent. You don't have to be very computer savvy to use it, either. It's got a flip out usb and built in software. Easy peasy.

5. Notebook Cooling Pad

Sometimes you just need to use your laptop on the couch or in your bed. Instead of burning up your legs and your computer, a cooling pad is the way to go. This isn't the one I have, but it looks pretty darn good and got some great reviews on Amazon. The one I have is a bit bulky. This one is lighter and slimmer. That's important.

Gift Guide: Gifts for Techies

https://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2009/12/gift-guide-gifts-for-techies.html