Halloween Cards at Chic Farm Designs!

I am busy working on some Halloween designs. This is the first one and it is online now, yes, that's right with my 1 other design. I've been busy! I'm sorry!

This is what I believe:

That I am I.
That my soul is a dark forest.
That my known self will never be more than a little clearing in the forest.
That gods, strange gods, come forth from the forest into the clearing of my known self, and then go back.
That I must have the courage to let them come and go.
That I will never let mankind put anything over me, but that I will try always to recognize and submit to the gods in me and the gods in other men and women.
There is my creed.
-D.H Lawrence

LMP

Cole's newest and dearest word. It's not a word that's unfamiliar to me, I've heard it many times before and it made me cringe... even though it wasn't directed at me. Last night, after work, Yaya is all excited to show me Cole's new word. I look at Cole, and Yaya tells him to call me by my new name. He smiles, looks right at me, and then says "Mamasita". I'm rasing a Little Mexican Pimp! I love it!

Family Friday - Nana

I have been wanting to dedicate blogs to special and important people in our lives but the truth is where does one begin? If I start with Mimi, will Nana think she's second fiddle?

But the fact is that there are some wonderful people in our lives that I'd like the world to know about and since I decided to name it Family Friday and since Cole goes to Nana's every Friday for a sleepover, I thought it was just convenient to start with Nana.

Nana is my mom. She's a go-getter, mulit-tasker, charismatic little lady. My mother, unlike myself, is super lovey dovey. I used to teach Kindergarten at the same school my mother worked and I used to tease that it was so embarrasing that I was a big girl in Kindergarten and my mother was still kissing me in front of the kids every morning. Seriously, she went in every morning to my class and would say hello to all my students and then give me a big hug and a kiss. People never believe me when I try to describe my mother's love towards us. She calls and leaves me voicemails saying, "Vannessita, I love you. I was just thinking about you and wanted to call to say hello and tell you how much I love you. I hope you're having a great day." It's not just the words, she says it like she's singing it.

Back to my point, it didn't surpsirse me that she loved the grandkids with such passion, it surpsied me that she wanted to spend so much time with them. My mother is like a wild horse, she doesn't like to be tied down. She was a good mother and was always there, we never held her back. But I just thought that as she got older she would be happy to have her freedom, to go wherever she wanted to go and for as long as she wanted without having to worry about taking care of little ones. I mean, isn't that what grandparents aspire to do?

Well, not this abuelita. She comes over every single day to see Cole. Mind you she lives and works on the other side of town, the boondocks, bfe, the country.... Nonetheless, she'll take her lunch to come spend some time with Cole if she can't make it after work. She is crazy about him it's crazy.

I am so thankful that we have decided to rasie our family here. Where would we be without them? Who would we be without them so near? Who would Cole be?

Everytime the doorbell rings, Cole yells "Nana". Sometimes he's dissaponted, most times he's pleased to see his Nana walk through the door and make his day shine. Her visits are way too short by Cole's standards-mine too. He would stay up until the break of dawn if we let him just to spend his time with her. They are just two crazy fools in awe and in love with one another.

Just the words

I got this email from Will yesterday and all it said was this:

"We'll try again this month, remember you have beautiful follicles..."

Is it just my hormones or was that not just beautiful? They were just the words I needed to hear.

Pissed

Been "lost" for a few days. We'll wait and hope for next month. I'm not sad anymore, just plain pissed.

"Mo Money"

"If your hand is open to give, it is open to receive." -Nanny

Some of the best advice I've ever heard is from Nanny. Nanny is Will's grandmother. She has always been a giver, it's impossible to do her a favor because she always gives us some "green" - as she calls it. Cole and I will stop for a visit and take her her favorite treat, a Buterfinger Blizzard from Dairy Queen. Then she tells me to look in the "book". The book is awesome, it grows money! Makes me feel guilty when all I'm trying to do is treat her, and then she ends up giving me more than I had spent on her. So I always ask myself, who is really giving? So Will and I use to talk about wether or not to take her money. We have come to the conclusion that it is her joy. Perhaps it makes her feel needed, or it makes the world go round. But I think about her and how open she is to giving all the time. I don't think she means money necessarily, but advice, love, kindness, opportunities, faith. It's The Golden Rule, reworded.

Every Sunday, Nanny gives Cole a dollar and she tells him, "Take it to Daddy", so he does. Then he comes back to her, holds his hand out, and says "Mo". She pulls out another dollar and hands it to him and says "Take it to Mommy", and he does. Then he returns to Nanny, holds out his hand, and says, "Mo". This continues until everyone has gotten a dollar. Here's a video of Cole and Nanny doing their thing.

Honey

Things have been a little hectic lately and I hate when I don't get to blog daily. What has been going on, let's see...

The weather has just been beautiful lately. We have been able to take Cole to ride his motorized 4 Wheeler around the neighborhood and to play at the park and at the neighbors. He has been loving it. So have I.


Cole is saying "Honey" to Will because he heard me call him that once. He says it all sing songsy like he's calling out to him because when I said it I was asking him to bring me a soda. Oh, he's also saying "shit". I'll leave it at that....

Tea with Santa

Though I had originally nixed the idea, it turns out The Etiquette and Leadership Academy (I) will be at Dias Festivos this year. This is where it gets confusing. I will have a booth there but it will be for Holiday Greeting Cards and Invitations (Chic Farm Designs) not for the etiquette stuff. But I will be doing etiquette stuff there. Junior League of McAllen has asked me to coordinate their Tea with Santa children's event and I am so excited about that.

What is Dias Festivos, you ask? You can check out their website through the links above, but for easy reference I have pasted some information from their website about it here:

"The Junior League of McAllen will be celebrating Christmas in Candyland! For twenty two years, the Junior League of McAllen has traditionally opened the holiday season with its Dias Festivos Marketplace in order to raise funds for the children of the community. Untold hours of labor organizing this grand shopping extravaganza result in encouragement and education for the youth in Hidalgo County, Texas."

I'll give everyone more information about it as we begin putting it together. I'll also be selling tickets to the event and looking for donations. Anyone interested? It's for a great cause.....oh and some great shopping. You can even order your Christmas cards there.....

Magic Spells

Cole has been needing a haircut for some time now but we just kept procrastinating. I think deep down I kinda liked his hair. He was not so crazy about it though. It was getting a little long and when he would play outside he would sweat and he would move his hair out of his face and say "pica", which means itch. We finally picked up on that and went to cut his hair. We went to Snip Its, the haircut place for children. I buy generic everything, including haircuts! So Snip Its was not a place you were likely to spot me. We always take him to Arci, who cuts Will's hair. We called her to tell her we were on our way and she said she would be at least 30 minutes. So I suggested Snip its because my friend Bea takes her son there and I swear her receipt said $9.95. Not only that, the last time we got Cole's hair cut, he had a minor fit. So maybe Snip Its had some magic spell that would calm Cole down. This is his before picture....I think it looks cute!

This is his during picture. Snip Its does have a magic spell! Not a peep from this little "Egg"!

This is Daddy's during picture. The other magic spell Snip Its has is it also satisfies Daddy! Mommy was happy too, this meant she could relax tonight!

This is Cole's after picture. I am still adjusting to the cut. He was calm the entire time! Snip Its is our new hair stop, for Daddy too! Sorry Arci, we had some good times, but not as good as this!


When we left Cole got to get a prize and we got a sur-prize. The haircut was not $9.95. I repeat, it was not $9.95! I guess Mommy will be paying for that tonight, forget relaxing.

Como Come Yaya?

This is Cole's newest thing. He now makes fun of the way Yaya eats. I know what you're thinking, "that's not very nice". The truth is it's not,...unless Yaya is the one that showed him. Then it's ok, so it's ok.

You're probably wondering a few things, first of all, what does that mean? Secondly, who is Yaya? And lastly, why does he think she eats that way?

Yaya is Cole's Nanny, Gloria. She is originally from El Salvador and she speaks Spanish. So, naturally, Cole has picked up on a lot of that Spanish. Well, Yaya hates to eat in front of people and I always forget why. Now I know I will never forget. She doesn't have a few of her back teeth so she has gotten used to eating with her front teeth. Since they eat together a lot, he sees what Will and I don't get to see very much, exactly how she eats. So one day I got home and Yaya says Cole has been making fun of her. Then she asks Cole (or Thomasito as she calls him), "Como come la Yaya?' Translation: How does Yaya eat? And this is what he busts out with...



What is so funny about it is that that is exactly what she looks like when she eats. Cole has had the whole family laughing in histerics for quite a while now with his Yaya impersonation.

Yaya, despite being made fun of, is in heaven that she is a star and that I am blogging about her. So much to say about Yaya, perhaps another blog...

Home Sick

Cole started with congestion and cough on Sunday and I really thought I would not get sick. Wednesday I woke up with a horrible sore throat. But I wasn't tired so I went to work. Big mistake. I kept sneezing and had to walk around with tissue! Yeah that's right, the faucet was dripping. When I got home I took a nap with Cole and then it was over from there. I couldn't get out of bed because I didn't have the strength to hold up my head. So I am home today, sick, and it sucks! I can't get out of bed so I have been watching tv and surfing the net. But my body just wants to do nothing. I am fighting it though because I have so much to do.

I think though that Cole is feeling much better so I am so thankful for that.

Will though is starting to feel the sore throat and a little achy. I have a sneaky suspicion that he will be occupying the bed tomorrow just as I did today. For today, he is braving the cold and working hard for the money! Thank you baby!~

So does anyone know where Ike is headed now? I think we are safe but is it going towards Corpus or Houston?

Three Designing Women

I have been busy lately and though I have been dying to blog I just can't seem to get away long enough to do that. Been working fervently on my website, you have checked it out, right? It's www.ChicFarm.com and I had been configuring the cart setup and everything else. It is sooo neat how it all works. I cannot beleive I did it! Anyway, the hard part is inputting the products. I have managed between work and retreats and motherhood and being the awesome wife I am to put in maybe 4 products. Whew! The excting thing is that what I have decided to start imputing is the newest thing I have decided to sell. They are custom stamps and embossers by Three Designing Women! As you all are well aware, I am an etiquette consultant and I love all the things that go with RSVP, thank you notes, stationary, etc. So for a while I had been wanting to get myself some embossers and since it goes hand in hand with my invitations and announcements I decided to sell them. So be looking out for their stuff on our website as well, as Chic Farm Designs is now carrying their entire product line!

I have a few invitations that I have designed for some "clinets" but I need to upload them so I can share with you. It really doesn't take very long, I just need to stop uploading products and get them on this blog right? Anyway, I have a super funny story I am dying to share but that will have to wait. I laugh too hard when I tell it I just don't want to wake up Cole. So until next time....

Here's a picture of our cool cat, Cole. He loves wearing sunglasses so much he can even sleep in them. He is so serious when he has them on. He doesn't smile, just leaves them on until they fall off or he falls asleep. What a cutie pie!

Golden Child

Just as I had suspected, Will is a Gold with Orange tendencies.

Golds:
You are conventional. You are the pillar of strength and have high respect for authority. You like to establish and maintain policies, procedures, and schedules. You have a strong sense of right and wrong. You are naturally parental and dutiful.

You are good at things that require organization, dependability, management, and detail. You need to be useful and to belong. You are the sensible, stable backbone of any group. You believe that work comes before play.

True Blue

I took this colors test for Leadership McAllen and no surprise I was a blue. What does this mean:

Blues:
Your heart-felt communication style creates peace and harmony in the workplace. You know how to bring out the best in others. As a Blue personality you are gifted with tremendous people skills.

You're a heart felt communicator who has a strong need to make a difference in the lives of other people. This strength is immediately noticeable in the way you make connections and bring out the best in those you encounter. People usually feel relaxed and comfortable in your presence.

You love to build self-esteem and make others feel good about who they are. You can easily motivate and inspire people to make changes in their lives and reach their potential. This natural talent makes you excel a counselor, teacher, social worker and journalist,

basically it sounds all nice and fluffy but we are known as "emo". If you are like me, you are asking yourself exactly what this means, right? Well, it means emotional. Me, emotional,...

So I am betting that Will is a Gold (who are aggravated by Blues a lot :) I am waiting for him to take the test and I will let you all know. But Blues and Golds make very good mates.

If you're interested in finding out what color of the rainbow you fall under, you can take Kalil's Personality Test for free.

Chic Farm Blinkies

Chic Farm Designs Website

My website is up and now I have the tedious task of uploading the products and making categories. But I have the shell now ready to go. Check it out when you have a chance and of course as soon as I get it up and running officially I will let you know!

Chic Farm Designs

Hello Tantrums and Time Outs

I got home from work yesterday and I was just exhausted so Will, sweet as he is, offered to go grocery shopping and to take the little one along so I can nap. It was about an hour later that I heard Cole crying hysterically. So after about 5 minutes of the yelling/crying/screaming I decide to get up and go see what was the matter.

We can't take Cole into HEB without him seeing and wanting those damn balloons. Fine, whatever, I buy him one, get one for free, it puts a smile on his face which puts a smile on mine too. He had a green one I bought 2 weeks ago that he still walks around the house with (I know-hard to believe it still floats). Will gets him a free one and for a split second Cole is content. Then he went ballistic on him. He cried at HEB, in the car, and at home.

Even I couldn't console him. It was like colic-can 19 month olds be "colicky"? Temper tantrum it is then. Well, I put him in time out and he stayed there and it worked! It was his first time-out!

We still don't know what "set him off", perhaps it was that the balloon was blue and not green. Anyway, we got rid of that balloon as soon as it was out of his sight.

Oh dear, how long does this stage last????

Chic Farm Designs

I have been talking about wanting to design custom announcements, invitations, and greeting cards. Well, the time has finally come. I have designed a few already and I have been very busy trying to get a website up and running. I am hoping that the shell of the site will be up and going by Wednesday and I can slowly start trying to figure out the shopping cart, gift registry, catalog, etc by the middle of the month.

With the help of some family and friends, I have decided on a name: Chic Farm Designs. Weird name I know but as you all know I have a "thing" for my name (Eggleston) and trying to make it cutesy. So I play on the whole "Egg" thing: notice the title of our blog.... Well, really wanted Chick Farm Designs but that's taken as far as website is concerned and in the midst of the being bummed feeling, I decided to try dropping the "k". It gave it a whole new meaning but in the end I think it worked really well because my designs are oh so chic! That doesn't mean little chickies can't be my mascot! Really, I still have hope I can incorporate the "chick" thing in there as well. I just noticed I used "thing" quite a few times. It's late, Cole cried himself to sleep tonight and I am just spent. Oh yeah, worst, the whole time Cole is in his room reapeating (yes, through the sobs), "Mama". Absolutely heartbreaking!

I'll keep you all posted as to the progress on Chic Farm Designs, website and all!!!!!!