Thanks to Beth and Angie, I got to participate in Swapoween! I'm addicted to swaps now (thanks, Mamarazzi). 



I got my package yesterday in the mail. Or rather, my mom picked it up off the porch for me while I was feeding Ian and left it on my coffee table so I didn't even have to go outside to get it. I got to open it up all cozy and happy in front of the TV while watching John Carpenter's The Thing (the original -- I'm not so sure the new one is going to be any good since it looks like a rehash, not the prequel it was billed as).

My swap partner, Miss Angie from My So-Called Chaos (one of the hosts for this swap!), sent the most wonderful goodies to keep me in scary-movie-watching, bump-in-the-night, Halloween heaven for the rest of the month and on into the Day of All Souls (November 1).

Look at all the orange Halloween-y goodness!

 

 Let's begin, shall we? Here is everything unwrapped:

Miss Angie made these cute cards and pumpkin hair clip!

 She also made the cool bracelet I'm wearing in this photo:

 I've got my eye on you!

I love the little charms on it.

 She sent just the right amount and right kinds of candies -- chocolate peanut butter eyeballs, candy corn and REESES PEICES!!! (I love anything Reeses).

How about popcorn, cookies and coffee (or tea, in my case) for the monster movie marathons?

I learned this trick from my 20-month-old nephew:

Bowls make wonderful hats once they're empty.

I just love this nail polish. It's bright green and it GLOWS IN THE DARK! I <3 glowy things -- I've still got glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to my ceiling; I'll be staring at my fingertips every night after I go to bed now.

Cute stickers, plates and napkins to add to that movie marathon, a wall plaque to welcome my real life friends (all two of them) to the party, and some heavenly scented body lotion (Wicked Spiced Pumpkin by Bath & Body Works). I <3 anything spiced or pumpkin scented -- this is both!



I love it all! Thank you so much, Miss Angie! I hope you enjoy your package as much as I enjoyed mine.

Today is the day!

Random.org picked a winner for me this morning and it's Mom KQ! Congratulations!


For all my other readers, you can still get $10 off the My Memories Suite 2 digital scrapbooking software, PLUS a $10 coupon for anything in the MyMemories.com store! Just enter coupon code STMMMS79066 (my affiliate code) when you check out. It's that simple!

And be sure to check back here often because I'm starting a monthly giveaway. In November, I'm giving away a big ol' craft pack with rubber stamps, scrapbook papers, and much more!

Don't forget, everyone. Today is the LAST DAY to enter my giveaway!

You can win a copy of the MyMemories Suite v2 Digital Scrapbooking software. Look at the super cuteness you can create all on your computer, without having embellishments and papers cluttering up the house.



If you already have this wonderful scrapbooking program, you can get $10 off the My Memories Suite 2 digital scrapbooking software, PLUS a $10 coupon for anything in the MyMemories.com store! Just enter coupon code STMMMS79066 (my affiliate code) when you check out. It's that simple!

This week's ZIA challenge from the Diva is to use a sunflower theme to honor the Sunflower Fund.

My biggest happy thing right now is this:



I got it at an estate auction last weekend for $35! A huge camphor wood chest with dragons carved in it. Dragons! Look at all that dragon-y awesomeness.

And it matches a set of smaller wooden boxes I've had for 16 years (that oddly enough, I also got at an auction). It's holding about 1/4 of my fabric collection at the moment and lives under a dining table turned craft/gaming table, but I hope one day to bring it out into the living room as a coffee table because it's freakin' awesome.

I'm also really happy about MyMemories digital scrapbooking software. I've been making more little quick pages for baby Ian:

I can print these out and hand-letter them, then slide them into protectors and bind them all together (when I get a chance!). You can win a copy of this same software by clicking that link on my right sidebar (that one that talks about entering my giveaway, eh?). 

I'm thankful for zentangles. 
Right now I'm really thankful for the Diva's weekly challenge and the Yahoo groups ZIA swaps I'm in. They're the only way I can make any art these days. I stack pillows in my lap and let Ian nurse while I draw on these 3.5 x 3.5 inch cards. It takes me a few days just to do one entire tile, but they do help relax me and keep my artistic motor skills honed.

  Hosted by Mamarazzi and Alicia aka Queso!

This week's questions come from Queso:
{1} If you had an extra hour to do ANYTHING for yourself each day what would you do?
{2} Are you a morning person or a night owl?
{3} How much sleep do you get on an average night?
{4} When do you find the time to blog/surf the ol' interweb?
{5} What is the ONE thing you're never too busy for?

{1} If you had an extra hour to do ANYTHING for yourself each day what would you do?
Exercise. Or unpack a few boxes in my studio. It's hard to do anything these days with a baby plugged in almost constantly.

{2} Are you a morning person or a night owl?
Oh, I used to be such a night owl. But these days, I have to get up before dawn to plug in the baby, so I've gradually become a morning person. I hate it (the morning part, not the reason behind it). Morning is just so unnatural and weird after 35 years of being a night owl.

{3} How much sleep do you get on an average night?
Ian sleeps a good long stretch at night, so if he's in a good mood, we'll get 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep. If he's fussy or just really hungry, maybe 4 if we're lucky.

{4} When do you find the time to blog/surf the ol' interweb?
In the mornings while nursing. I stack pillows up in my lap to cuddle the little one and I can type like a T-Rex, with just my hands sticking out to the keyboard. But I do most of my blog reading through my iPod's RSS reader, so I can't comment very often and I feel bad about that. :( I'm still reading, I just have a hard time leaving comments.

{5} What is the ONE thing you're never too busy for?
Going to the bathroom. I'm too busy to eat many days, but the one exception I'll make is putting Ian in his crib while I go pee. I feel bad when he cries the entire time (a whole minute or two), but hey, it's that or we'd have had to replace the couch long before now.

I'd rather be happy than rich. Being happy means I'm grateful for things, even if they appear small or unusual to others. Doing the Happy List like this makes me sit and think about the good things I have in life, even if some days all I can think of is television, or that Ian didn't spit up straight down the middle of my shirt that morning. So here it is, this week's Happy List!

The wonderful Mamarazzi is giving away a prize for people who post their happy lists and link up. So go and post already!

I'm happy it's finally Autumn.
I was seriously tired of 100+ temperatures. I know the dogs were tired of it too. Bishop is so happy it's cooled off outside, we can't even get him to come inside most nights unless it's raining, and even then he whines and screams (if you've ever seen this dog, you know what I mean) to be let outside. I'm happy I can sit on my front porch without melting now.

I'm happy my baby is cooing and smiling at me now.
That little smile was just a reflex until last week. Now he does it whenever he gets worked up, during diaper changes (he can't stand a dirty diaper), clothing changes, and when I sing to him. He almost had a full out-loud giggle today too, not just his happy "Aaaaahhhh!" that he's been doing this last week. Also it makes me feel good, like he doesn't see me as simply an all-he-can-eat dairy bar.

I'm happy Doctor Who is over for the season.
I'm getting tired of Eleven's habit of wallowing in self-pity and self-loathing, but I liked Amy, Rory and River's story arc. I'm happy that I figured it all out in "Let's Kill Hitler" because hey... a time-traveling, shape-changing robot. Everyone saw that coming, they just didn't think it would be that simple. And the question that must never be answered? Who out there didn't immediately remember Jackie Tyler's irritating voice asking "Doctor who?" Everyone thought that, and again no one wanted to think it could be that simple. I'm glad I'm that simple. I'm happy it's all over until next year. And I'm happy that maybe they've hinted at Eleven's end soon because he's not my favorite Doctor. He's right behind Colin Baker as one of my least-favorite Doctors, but at least Pertwee is ahead of both of them. Sorry, fellow Whovians, but Nine and Ten will always jostle for postion as the best of the new series, while Four reigns supreme for the original series.

I'm happy Dexter is back on.
Really I'm just happy to see Edward James Olmos getting a paycheck again. But it's weird seeing him as anything other than Admiral Adama now.

I'm happy I can write blogs while feeding Ian.
I've stacked up pillows in my lap and can hold him here in the crook of my elbows while I type. Now if I can just get him to settle down in a sling or wrap long enough for me to paint or sew something cool...

I'm happy we have such a happy baby (for the most part)
I'm also happy he hasn't been very sick or fussy. I'm know I'm probably jinxing it, but Ian's such a perfect angel 95% of the time. Yes, he demands to be constantly plugged in most of the day (I checked the little log on my iPod and was shocked to see that I spend between 5 and 9 hours nursing throughout the day, depending on if he's going through a growth spurt, tanking up for the night, or just feeling lonely or insecure). But other than the constant feeding, he's pretty much a mellow baby.