The Next Michael Phelps

My little one loves to play in the water. It's gotten to the point where she deliberately makes "a masse" when she's eating, so she can get "a bat-te." (She makes a mess so she can get a bath) In order to minimize the number of baths she takes a day, she also goes swimming in her pool everyday. She LOVES it. Even when I splash her, she laughs and doesn't even get upset when the water gets in her eyes.

She likes to spray me with the hose, which I normally don't mind, unless I'm snapping away with my camera! ha!

Oh, look at that little butt!

She makes me smile everyday.

It's Her Party!

My little baby is turning two on July 10, 2009. I cry every time I start to think about her growing up so fast, so I'm turning my, and your, attention to her birthday party invitations. Oh, how I love, love, love them!

This is the front

This is the back- I selected one of my favorite poems i carry your heart with me, by ee cummings to go on it.

Fun & Sassy Designs made these beautiful invitations for me and I couldn't be more pleased. They are just a pleasure to work with, have endless creative ideas, and really did everything possible to make sure I was pleased with my order. I have nothing but positive things to say, or write, about how happy I am! So go check them out when you get a chance, I promise you won't be disappointed!

And to all of my bloggy friends, of course you're all invited to Spencer's birthday party. Just email me for directions, I had to blur out my address on the invitations. Trust me, you don't want to miss it!

So Maybe My Thumb is Light Green

When I began on my flower endeavor, I wasn't expecting all that much. But lo and behold, they're doing okay! Everyday I go and "commune" with them, give them water, food, and attention. It's taken a lot, but Spencer now knows not to pick the "fowee."

Show Us Where You Live Friday - Master Bedroom

So while I'm waiting for an update on my dad, I distracted myself by taking photos of my room. The master bedroom is the room of the day, although in my case, master bedroom just means a few extra square feet, no bathroom.

My chest of drawers, notice the pigs! The color of my walls is not coming out right in these pictures.


Up close and personal with my oinkers. I got the one on the right when I was in Peru for 5 cents. She was already chipped, I guess that's why it was so inexpensive, but haven't ever fixed it. I guess I think it's part of her charm!


My bed. You might notice there are no pillows on it, and that's because Spencer peed on them and they're in the wash right now. How could Spencer pee on both of my pillows? Well, it was right before her bath and she was running away, jumped on my bed and laid on the pillows. I picked her up and that's when I saw the lovely yellow pool of liquid that was puddled on my pillows. I was not happy.
I need a picture to go behind my bed, or maybe a few small pictures, any suggestions?

Closeup of the duvet.


Nightstand and hallway. See Spencer on Santa's lap in the hallway?

The tame side of my closest. Huggable Hangers are my friend!
So that's my room. It needs some accents, but for the most part I love it. It's dark at night and bright in the morning, waking up isn't too difficult, and that's what's really important, folks! haha!

Other Rooms:

Bonus Room
Bathrooms
Office
Spencer's Room/Nursery

If One More Bad Thing Happens...

So I just got off the phone with my mom and this is what she said:

Katie, your father's been in a car accident.

Me- Is he okay?

pause. His car is totaled.

Me- Is he okay? My voice rising about two octaves.

pause. I think so, he's says he's bruised but he doesn't want to go to the hospital.

Needless to write, I was (am) very upset. I had just gotten off the phone with him about an hour before that. He's a doctor and was on call tonight, which is why he was out. My mom told me he said that he didn't have time to go to the ER because he needed see his sick patients. That is SO my dad!

Ugh, I just want to go to bed and pretend this day didn't happen. But I can't, I need to stay up and make sure everything is okay or at least until he tells me everything's okay. Prayers would be greatly appreciated!

Sounds of My Evening

Drip. Drip. Drip

I turned off the the faucet in the bathtub with my foot, and settled into the deliciously HOT water. About 25 seconds later,

AROOO! AR AR AR AaaaROOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Vivi starts to howl. She still this separation anxiety issue.

MaMa? Mommy? MmmmmOOOOOOMMMMMMY! Whaaaaaaaaaa.

I'm thinking to myself, "this is all in your head, everyone's asleep."

MaMa! AROOOOOO! MOOOMMMMY! AROOOOOOOOOO

Sigh

I probably sighed a few times before I slowly climbed out of the bathtub, steam still rising from the bubbly water.

Gurgle. A bunch of other sounds meant to describe water draining.

My babies are now curled up beside me, asleep.

So You Think You Can Dance - The Top 16 Recap

Tonight we have the Top 16 dancers and the guest judge for the evening is Toni Basil. So jumping right in...

Karla & Jonathan - Hip Hop - Dave Scott - Gangsta Love Story is the theme of the dance. By My Side, by Jadakiss.

Well Jonathan didn't look too comfortable tonight in this dance. I thought Karla was pretty good, she hit the routine really hard. None of the judges liked it. They all thought it lacked chemistry and everything else. I still like them! TEMPO01

Asuka & Vitolio - Jazz - Mandy Moore- Heartbreaker by Pat Benatar

They did this routine SO well! I'm not the biggest Asuka fan, but I really like Vitolio, so I guess I'm rooting for them. The routine was jazz meets "thrasher rock." I liked it, and you could still see a lot of their personalities, so that's always a bonus. Nigel LOVED it. Mary thought it was good, but not as good as last weeks waltz. Toni said that they need to make sure their off screen chemistry translates into on screen chemistry. TEMPO02

Melissa & Ade - (my favorite couple!) - International Style Rumba - Tony Meredith - Emotion, by Destiny's Child.

HOT. Melissa has a little bobble, but Ade saved her. It was like LOVE on a stick! Mary is screaming for them as soon as it's over. Everyone loved them, Nigel made some inappropriate comments about Melissa's body, but what else is new? Mary practically screamed her entire critique, and Toni said they were hot because their choreographer, Tony & Meredith, were hot. TEMPO03

Janette & Brandon - Hip Hop - Dave Scott - Brandon is gangasta and Janette is rocker girl. What a World, by Common.

They are surprisingly really, really good. Especially Brandon- if I hadn't known it was him up there dancing, I would never have guessed it. All of the judges love it, Mary screams for them. Toni said she was impressed by their ability to actually dance that way and not just imitate it. TEMPO04

Kayla & Kupono - Viennese Waltz - Jean Marc Genereux - It's a dream sequence - Sweet Dreams for You, by Jewel.

I think it's a really beautiful dance, but I'm not a ball room girl. Nigel said it was a good dance and they make a beautiful couple, but it's not going to make anyone stand up and cheer. Mary said it was a great dream, no nightmare- they had nice lines and good rise and fall. Mary stands up and cheers, and puts them on the hot tamale train (I don't agree). Toni said she likes the routine, but she wished they had shoes on, but they were great partners considering it was their first time dancing together. TEMPO05

Randi & Evan - Contemporary - Mia Michaels - Traditional cat and mouse love story with a "Mia Michaels Spin" - Koop Island Blues, by Kop featuring Ane Brun.

To me it seems ike cracked out dolls, but that's just MHO. They seem to do it well, Evan does a good job focusing on her booty (which was a Mia requirement). Nigel said it was simple choreography, but it was beautifully danced. Nigel makes some more inappropriate comments about Randi's butt, but goes to great lengths to make it seem like a legitimate critique. It looks like Mia doesn't appreciate Nigel's comments, and I think she had tears in her eyes. Mary said it's one of the best numbers of the night and she now seems Evan as a leading dancer. Toni said the danger with MM's choreography is that it can become the star, but they were stars of this performance. TEMPO06

Caitlin & Jason - Paso Doble - Jean Marc Genereux - They hate each other- that's the theme of the dance - O'Fortuna (from Carmina Burana), by Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg & Kurt Prestel.

It's definitely fierce. They look like warring gladiators. I think Jason is doing a better job than Caitlin, she seems a little unsure. Nigel think Jason was performing for the audience too much, but he thought they were very good, especially Caitlin's flow of movement. He would have liked to see more chemistry between them. Mary thought it was really strong and congratualtes them. Toni liked the performance even though some of the moves were a little shaky. TEMPO07

Jeanine & Phillip - Broadway - Tyce Diorio - Moses, from Singin' In The Rain (original soundtrack)

They are really cute at this! And Phillip split his pants, it's pretty funny! Nigel thinks Jeanine was great but Phillip needs to up his game a little. Mary loves it and thought it was a fun performance. Toni thought it was adorable, but not quite up to snuff. They did a good job as a couple though. Well I thought it was a lot a fun and I enjoyed it. TEMPO08

Rewind

The rundown:

• Friday was filled with birthday present shopping, taking care of my parents house while they were in LA and cleaning.
• Saturday was Lila's 1st birthday party. This would normally not cause me any stress at all, but my ex-boyfriend (Sara's brother) and his new wife were going to be there. I hadn't seen him since before he got married and since before his wife said we were no longer allowed to communicate with each other. Everything turned out fine and it was very undramatic, but I had been worrying about it for so long that the process just zapped me of all my energy when we left the party. It was like the biggest weight being lifted off my shoulders and now I could breathe again.
• Sunday, Spencer's PGP's came over and planted some trees. Then my aunt took us to the cemetery to visit my Grandpa and Papa for Father's Day and then we went out to eat. (My parents were in Los Angeles for a volleyball tournament with my brother.) Thank goodness my aunt was there, because Spencer was in rare form. She started pitching a fit the second I put her in the booster seat and it got worse when the waiter informed us that they were OUT OF CRAYONS!

None of these things on there own would have been a problem, but everything combined just wore me out. Tomorrow we're going to see Sara and Lila for our weekly get together, which is good, because I'm in some serious need of adult girl time!

Stateside

When I think about all the places I want to travel to, it's usually to places abroad. But recently I've started thinking about all the places in US that I haven't seen. I've started making a list, some are a little random, some mainstream. If you have any suggestions, please tell me so I can add it to my list.

• Macinac Island- Michigan
• Traverse City, Michigan
• Gulf Shores, Alabama
• Destin, Florida
• Tybee Island, Georgia
• Sedona, Arizona
• Jenny Lake, Wyoming
• An Alaskan Cruise
• The Berkshires, Massachusetts
• Branson, Missouri (this one is just for my MeMa!)
• Ellicot City, Maryland
  
• The Ozarks, Arkansas
• Lake Champlain, Vermont
• Riverboat Cruise up the Mississippi
  

I promise a real post tomorrow, this weekend just wore me out. Hopefully the spring in my step will return shortly!

Mental Health Day

It's been a long, long, long day. I'm ready to kick up my feet, finish my book, and go to sleep. I'll post more tomorrow, but for today- go here for a cool giveway!

So You Think You Can Dance - Results Show Recap - Top 18

The results show opens up with a Mia Michaels choreographed routine. The dancers had on suits and very weird tattoo-esque face paint. They then do a montage of Lil' C's intellectual, on another dimension, critiques. Haha, it's pretty funny!

The first three couples come out on the stage:

• Melissa & Ade - Safe! I love them, I'm glad they're safe.
  
• Jason & Caitlin - In the Bottom Three, dancing for their life.
  
• Phillip & Jeanine - Safe. I'm a little surprised by this, based on their performance last night they probably deserved to be in the Bottom Three.
  

The next three couples:

• Brandon & Janette - Safe
• Jonathan & Karla - Safe! I'm really glad they're safe, I loved their routine last night.
  
• Kupono & Ashley - Bottom Three, dancing their solos. I'm not surprised.

And the final three pairs:

• Evan & Randi - Safe. And his brother Ryan just got his Vegas ticket for Season 6!
  
• Vitolio & Asuka - Safe.
  
• Maks & Kayla - Bottom Three. They both look really shocked, especially Kayla.

While we're waiting for the solos, another international dancer performs, to Ganesha Toda Tatkar by Guru Sundarlal Gangani et. al. It's a Bollywood dance, but there's no male, and she has these bells on her ankles that highlight just how fast she's moving her feet.

Caitlin - performing to Make You Feel My Love, by Adele. She has really beautiful lines and fabulous jumps.

Jason - performing to Superman, by Robin Thicke. He's really good too, and his jumps are lovely.

Ashley - dancing to By Your Side, by Coco Rosie. It's different, but okay.

Kupono - Many Moons, by Janelle Monae - Also different. His outfit it nicely incorporated into routine.

Kayla - Walking on Air, by Kerli - She is very good. She's not my favorite dancer, but I can't deny that she's talented. Her jumps are high and powerful and she's so flexible.

Maks - Footloose, by Kenny Loggins - I LOVE this song! He does a fantastic job, with super fast foot work and spins.

I'm predicting that Ashley and Kupono will be going home tonight. While the judges are deliberating, Kristinia Debarge is performing Goodbye. She's lip synching. That's annoying.

We're starting with the girls. And the judges are not unanimous, uh oh.

• Caitlin - Safe
  
• Ashley - Going Home
  
• Kayla - Safe

And the boys.

• Jason - Safe
  
• Kupono - Safe
  
• Maks - Going Home.

Oh rats, I like him, he did NOT deserve to go home. But that seems to happen a lot with the ballroom men. That means Kayla and Kupono will be dancing together next week. See ya'll then!

Show Us Where You Live Friday - Bonus Room Edition

This week on Show Us Where You Live Friday, we have a choice between Bonus Room, Laundry Room, or Play Room. I will be showing you a few pictures from the laundry room and the bonus room/Spencer's play room. None of them are at all ready for internet photography, so you'll just be getting a few snippets of each. I'm afraid this is going to be pretty boring.

I guess we'll start with the bonus room, which will one day, hopefully soon, be Spencer's playroom. Right now, this is all it has in it:

An old abstract painting of mine, some old lamps, and this hideous sofa- which is waaaay more hideous without that $1 slipcover. This is the biggest room in the house, and I think it has a lot of potential. I just need some inspiration and money, ha!

This is one of my favorite pieces of furniture. It belonged to my Great-Aunt and it's so retro fabulous.

On to the laundry room!

I'm in the middle of of washing my towels! haha! But I really do love my washer and dryer, they're energy efficient, really quiet, and the dryer is super fast.

I have lots of hanging storage areas.

This is directly behind the washer/dryer, TONS of cabinet space. I love them so much, I don't think there are words to articulate it. You can never have too much cabinet space!

And that's it. A little boring, huh?
Other Show Us Where You Live Rooms:
Bathrooms
Office
Spencer's Room/Nursery

Photo Tag

Photo Tag Rules - Go to your first photo folder, pick your tenth (10th) picture, blog about it, and tag some people.

This was taken on my 27th birthday, we went to the Pumpkin Patch. It's not the best photo because I was using my new video camera that I got for my birthday rather then my dslr. You can see me in the corner taking the picture. Look at how little Spencer is! That's back when she used to let me put her hair in pigtails- now she pulls them out the second I put them in. My little girl is growing up!

I tag:

• Michelle at Celebrating Miracles
• Kelly at A Little Messed Up
• Melissa at Enjoy...for these are the Days

So You Think You Can Dance - The Top 18 Recap

Tonight's SYTYCD has the Top 18 dancers, after losing Tony and Paris last week. Cat is wearing a smashing one shouldered red frock. The guest judge tonight is Lil' C! He's one of my favorite, he always give the most intellectual critiques.

Starting the night of is Evan & Randi - Jive - Louis Van Amstel - Shake a Tail Feather, by Ray Charles.

Every year the jive is always a killer, the kiss of death. They're pretty sassy, and it looks like they're having a blast. I still think Evan is the stronger of the two, but maybe not tonight. Lil' C said "Out of the box with a bang." He thinks Evan needs to unsmooth his moves and Randi was a firecracker. Mary said it was fun and that if any two contestants were built for the jive, it was them. She thought Randi was great but Evan fell short of her expectations, just a little. Nigel congratulates Louis on the choreography and said Evan didn't danced it too jazzy. I think they were a little harsh to Evan! ha! TEMPO01

Ade & Melissa - Jazz- Sonya Tayeh - The performance is about a high maintenance girl who's playing hard to get and guy who hates to lose. 24 Hours (The Ashton Shuffle A-Bomb Remix) by Terry Poison.

It's a pretty hot dance! The lifts are strong and powerful and really looks like foreplay on a stick. Lil' C said it was Buck! He thinks Ade is everybody's competition, he's the one to beat. Yea! I feel the same way about Ade that I do/did about Twitch. Mary said it was tough to find anything about their routine and performance that she didn't like. Nigel said that if he didn't know Melissa was a ballerina, he wouldn't have ever been able to guess it. He compliments Ade's strength and jumping ability and Sonya for creating a routine which showcased all of their talents and abilities. TEMPO02

Jason & Caitlin - Hip Hop - Shane Sparks - Their characters met in a bar and had a brief rendez-vous before going separate ways. They randomly see each other again and all their old feelings come back. Missin You, by Trey Songz.

It's a good routine, but it's obviously not their strength. They weren't in sync a few times, it felt more like they were playing to the audience, rather than immersing themselves in their performance. Lil' C didn't like it. Mary said it was like watching Michael Jackson and Britney Spears- two totally different dancers, with totally different styles. Nigel disagrees and thought they did a fine job. I think he just said that because Shane Sparks is back and he didn't want to get him mad, and he has a thing for Caitlin. It wasn't a bad routine, they just weren't into each other the way they should have been. TEMPO03

Brandon & Janette – Disco - Doriana Sanchez - Loving Is Really My Game, by Brainstorm.

It's a really fun, fast number. Brandon is just killing it! I know last week I said I didn't think they'd partner well - I take it back. They're very good together. The lifts are great, they hit all their moves, it's just great. Janette slips a little, but it wasn't bad, and she recovered quickly. Lil' C said, "The primary focus of all obstacles is to induce labor so progression can be born" and he " just saw the birth and progression of two amazing dancers." Brandon did a phenomenal job and he commends Janette for not breaking character when she had that little bobble. Mary said it was the fastest dance she's ever seen on this show and they NAILED IT! (If she were writing this, there would be like 15 exclamation points!) They embodied everything disco ever was, and she SCREAMS and stands up. Nigel said if he could stand up and scream like Mary, he would. It was one of the best Disco routines he's ever seen. TEMPO04

Vitolio & Asuka - Waltz - Louis Van Amstel - Lyrical Spiritual Waltz, for Vitolio to show his pain and journey to get where he is today. Dreams Are More Precious, by Enya.

I would not want to be them, having to follow that routine, especially since they were in the bottom three last week. But I'm wrong again! It's a beautiful routine and a moving performance. It looks nothing like the fakey fake they did last week. I hope the judges like it, because it really looked like Vitolio had his heart on his sleeve up there tonight.

Mary begins to cry and said last week she was slightly disappointed in them, but that's because she didn't think he gave an honest performance. But this was different, it was painfully beautiful and beautifully painful, and it was the most honest performance that's she seen from him. He had some technique problems, but there were so many things he did that just blew her away. Lil' C said the choppy steps were compensated for by his sincere emotion and unfurled vulnerability and that Asuka showed strength in her submission. Nigel thinks they brought a quality to the routine that they rarely see on this program. He feels as though he's seeing a different couple and he hopes America recognizes it. TEMPO05

Max & Kayla – Pop Jazz - Brian Friedman - About a princess and performer who secretly wants to steal her throne. Hot Like Wow, by Nadia Oh

It's an odd routine, they seem to do it well. IMO they're missing some of the pizazz they had last week. Kayla is ridiculously flexible! Lil' C said Maks did great considering Brian was the choreographer and he had no critique for Kayla, she was perfect. Mary said Maks really exceeded her expectations, although she doesn't think he stole the throne. Nigel thinks Kayla is a front runner and Maks reminds of him of a young Kevin Spacey (is that a compliment?) and really brings something special to the show. Maybe it's just me, but I don't think they're THAT worthy of such over the top praise. I mean they're definitely very good, extremely talented dancers, but I don't think they're the cat's pajamas or anything. TEMPO06.

Jonathan & Karla - Contemporary - Stacey Tookey - Strangers who are in love - Falling Slowly, by The Frames. (That's what the TV said, but I thought that Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova sang it. They won the Academy Award for Best Song.

So far I'm impressed, I believe they're in love. I think they're beautiful together, I'm getting chills. Mary said Jonathan did this style better than his own and loved the routine, it was wonderful. Nigel agreed and said it was amazing considering they were on the brink of going home last week. Lil' C though the "fulcrum was even," between emotion, technique, posture, and athleticism, it was all even. It was Buck! TEMPO07

Philip & Jeanine – Tango - Tony Meredith - Violento (Up Mix), by Bailango!

I think they're pretty good, especially since Phillip is a Popper, he even has the correct facial expressions! But it is very obvious that he doesn't feel comfortable up there. Mary gives them both an A+ in attitude, but in technique it was more like a C-. She gives a bunch of ballroom dancing lingo to support that grade, but she thinks Jeanine was one "hot mama." Lil' C tells Phillip that a lack of confidence is "the heaviest anchor on your art" and Phillip didn't have any confidence in his performance. Nigel said it wasn't good technically but it was great entertainment. TEMPO08

Kupono & Ashley – Hip Hop - Shane Sparks - She's the shadow following Kupono, she has to do everything he does. Imma Be, by the Black Eyed Peas.

She really surprised me, and was hitting everything. Kupono is having some trouble with this routine. Mary doesn't hate it, but she doesn't love it- it wasn't very memorable to her. Lil' C tells Kupono that he needs to find the serenity inside the chaos, which he hasn't yet, but he has no complaints with Ashley. Nigel tells them he's underwhelmed by their performance and they didn't bring Shane's routine to life like they should have. It just wasn't their night. TEMPO09.

In my opinion, these are the Top 3 couples from tonight:

• Ade & Melissa
• Brandon & Janette
• Karla & Jonathan

Honorable Mention to Vitolio & Asuka, or at least Most Improved.

The Lion King Revisted

Last night, about 10pm, I took Vivi out in the front yard to go to the bathroom. I noticed some odd things, like every motion sensor light was on- which never happens, and Vivi would not focus- she kept searching and smelling the ground. It was definitely weird, but I didn't pay much attention to it or try and put two and two together- oh that 20/20 hindsight. I kept walking her around the yard, trying to get her to pee so we could go back inside.

There we are standing by the driveway and I hear a noise, the hair on Vivi's back stands straight up. I looked in that direction, and a dog appears coming around one side of the car. We start to back up and the dog starts snarling and running towards us. I stopped moving and so did the dog. Very carefully I start inching us towards the porch, and that's when I see it... another dog slowly walking towards us from the other side of my car.

I would like to preface this, before I continue on, that I have nothing against pit bulls, I like them. Every one that I have ever met has been sweet, loyal, and submissive. It didn't matter to me that these dogs were both pit bulls, the problem was that they had trapped us, chased us, and were snarling and growling. Remember that scene in The Lion King, where the hyenas come out and trap Simba and Nala? That's what it reminded me of, as I quickly tried to calculate whether or not we could make it onto the porch before the dogs caught us.

I attempted to calm the dogs down, speaking to them in a calm friendly tone, but that didn't work. I told the dogs to "Go Home!" in my most authoritarian voice, but that didn't work. And every time I moved they came at us with alarming speed. It was was of the scariest moments of my life- definitely in the Top 5.

This standoff had been going on for about a minute when I decided that we would make a run for the porch, which was about 20 feet away (the dogs were about 3-4 feet from us). I had a treat in my pocket, for when Vivi went to the bathroom, I showed it to the dogs and then threw it as far as I could. When they both started going after it, I ran - dragging Vivi- to the screened in porch. Of course they realized it was a trick, forgot about the treat, and came darting us barking, teeth baring, and growling. I was able to shut the door, just as the first dog started climbing the steps.

I honestly thought they were going to break through the screen, as they stood there trying their best to get on the porch. We went inside the house and breathed a LONG sigh of relief and a quick prayer of thanks. I looked out the window and they were still there, ferociously snarling. After about 10 minutes they gave up and went about peeing on every inch of my yard and then finally left. I don't know who they belong to, obviously a neighbor, but I've never seen them before.

What scared me the most about the entire situation was the what ifs. What if it had been in the afternoon and Spencer was playing in the backyard? What if I hadn't had a treat in my pocket? What if we had been further from the porch?

Today I am just grateful that nothing bad happened and no one was hurt. Tomorrow I'm going to hunt down my irresponsible neighbor!

And The Winner Is...

To everyone who entered, thank you so much! I wish I could give all of you a gift. To put an end to this suspense, haha, the winner is..... Micha at Dandelion Daydreams! Micha, email Jennisa when you get a chance, everything is set up.

Ready to Meet the Twinsies

My VERY good bloggy friend, Hayley, is having twins tomorrow! She is nervous and little afraid and I know she could use your kind words, thoughts, and prayers right now. So head on over to her blog if you get a chance a drop her a quick line- it always makes you feel better to hear words of encouragement- and I know she needs it right now!

Even in this state she manages to keep her sense of humor!

Protect and Defend

Recently, there have been several stories circling the blogosphere about the need to protect your blog and yourself. Read this post on Lilly's Life and you'll see why it's important. I've been doing a little research on the topic and I've found some really simple, and free, ways to protect and defend your blog.

Watermark your images. You can do this on Photoshop by adding a digimarc or you can do it on Picmarkr for free if you don't have Photoshop.

Digimarc in Photoshop - invisible

Little symbol in top left hand corner, done with Picmarkr

Watch for Plagiarism - You can do this by by using Copyscape, just type in your URL and it will let you know if there's any content out there that matches yours. You can also add a banner to your website that will "protect" in legal terms. Another site that does this is CopyrightSpot

Just Say No - Let your readers know that they don't have permission to use your content. Many people tend to assume that unless otherwise stated, online content is up for grabs. You can write your own little blurb, or put up a button, badge or header. Check out this site for some cute buttons!

It never hurts to take a few extra precautions and it can safe you time and peace of mind. In other news, I will be announcing the winner of the Giveaway tomorrow!

A Cute Spencer Story

My family went to Maggiano's for dinner tonight to celebrate my mom's birthday. Spencer was very good, but towards the end she started to get a little antsy. I got her out of her booster seat and she walked very slowly around the table, saying "Hi [insert family' member's name]!"

About the time she had almost completed her circle, her little eyes spied something interesting. The next thing I hear come out of her mouth is "Hi Baby!" I look to see who she's talking to, and I see a little boy, about five years old, who was the obvious object of Spencer's affection."

The little boy did not seem too pleased to be called a baby, but everyone else thought she meant it like "Hi Baybee" (meaning honey bunny or hot stuff). Which of course led to the "you're going to have to watch this one like a hawk when she gets older" comments.

Of course Spencer just ate up the attention and kept saying "Hi Baby" over and over again, laughing until she got the hiccups. The little boy turned about eight shades of red.

My Little Charmer, I Love You.

Why Can't You Be Blue Over Me?

If you look closely at Vivi's nose, you might notice that it's blue. Why is her nose blue?

This is why her nose is blue.

She didn't even care when I put her in time out, she was as happy as could be with all of her "boo" everywhere.

See what I mean?

Of course there was the attempted escape, but that didn't go quite like she planned.

Oops, now it's bath time!

Today was just one of those days that never seemed to end, probably because the mess never seemed to end. But after this marker fiasco, I put Spencer to bed. She may not be tired, but I'm exhausted and it some serious need of Katie Time!