Tree Change Dolls

This girl right here is THE reason that I carry on the way I do in life: pushing myself, making sure I have what she needs and am there when she needs me to be there. I bend over backwards to accommodate inconvenient schedules, awkward situations and any other uncomfortable place I've found myself - and will inevitably find myself in the future - so that she knows that I treasure her.

my girl ♥♥♥

In this day and age, it's next to impossible to repel the advances of the world, as it pertains to stealing the innocence of little ones. I have a daughter, and as a woman, I know the pressures that we as women create, fall prey to and impose onto other women. [Men, you do it, too, but unfortunately, we all know women bear the brute of the judgments..]. We are given the choice to follow or rebuke unrealistic standards for our bodies, our behaviors, our careers and our lifestyles. We are either blessed with strong examples of other women who've paved the way before us as balanced individuals, carrying the weight of career, motherhood [if applicable], single parenting [again, if applicable], social life and maintaining our sense of femininity and individuality throughout all of it. Again, I'm talking to men on the same scale, too; our society's built on a double-edged sword.

I'm an adult now, and thankfully managed to survive my child and adolescent years without the burden of an eating disorder, psychological disability, socially-inflicted emotional scars, etc. I had my ups and downs, don't get me wrong, but I only realized in my adult years that I had the proper support I always needed to feel confident about my body and my worth. Not every girl [or boy] is given that luxury, and are left to compete for their worth in an arena of others who arrived there ages ago. It's a vicious circle.

sonia singh

Ever heard of Bratz? You know, those mutated dolls that make Barbie look almost actually human?

Well, I strongly dislike them. Yeah, I do. I never put a single drop of stock into these things until I had a daughter of my own. I watch her with her own dolls now, dressing them in outfits, making them converse with each other,......... telling me that she thinks so-and-so is perfect.

What does that say? That says that a doll with a waist-size that's actually more proportionate to what her thigh could or should be, is beautiful. That beauty is 8 layers of makeup and hair that smells like cupcakes. That tall, stick thin and dressed like a prostitute is the image to model.

Seriously?

I stumbled across THIS the other day, and fell in love. Her name is Sonia Singh, and she re-creates monsters into gorgeous toys. She is on Facebook, Etsy & Tumblr: Search for her: Tree Change Dolls.

Here's a better intro:

Here she is on Facebook

Anyway, I borrowed some of the stills from her Facebook page, namely some that I particularly enjoyed seeing. I'm all about transformations, especially if that means turning something bizarre into something real.

Boys, don't worry, there are male versions, too! 

I'm more of a hippie than a yuppie as it is anyway, so of course these are going to appeal to me. I know there are plenty of folks out there who will see this and think that I'm shaming people who wear makeup. No. I'm not.

I wear makeup.
Sometimes I wear a lot of makeup.
I also wear fancy - and sometimes very fancy clothes.

But I know that's not how I'm defined. I am not a summation of how much mascara or lipstick I can wear in one outing. My self worth is not determined by the labels on my clothes. Yeah, those things are fun to have, and really I don't see a problem with all of that, as long as we, ladies & gentlemen, don't let it define us.

♥ this. 

♥♥♥♥

If there's one thing in this life I strive to teach my daughter, it's to HAVE FUN. Be careless when it's appropriate, but always remember who you are inside before you step outside to have fun. Always, always, always remember what you stand for, and that - per the old adage - if you stand for nothing, you'll fall for anything. I want my daughter to live life to the fullest, but without the side effects of emptiness, regret and self-loathing for bad choices. I'm all about makeup, fancy clothes, shiny things.. but in moderation and within our means. These dolls, to me, are the perfect representation of children. I love their modesty, their innocence and their imperfections. It's what life is all about. It's where we start for a reason.

Thank you so much for this beautiful project you've created, Sonia!
I hope one day when you, Sydni, look back at this, you'll remember again just how imperfectly perfect you are.. and that's the way I love you.

xo | cmd 

Movie Monday

hello, you ♥

 Yeah, it's already December. Holy smokes. 

Rob and I both had today scheduled off from our jobs, as a way to complete our Thanksgiving road tripping without exhausting ourselves. After the weekend we just had, it was an excellent decision to give ourselves a few extra hours of re-charge before heading back to work.

Sydni got the raw end of the deal; she had to be back for school, and I somehow managed to appease her requests by the compromise of iPad time in the car.

Today was a rather unceremonious entrance into December for us; Rob took advantage of the extra hours to sleep in, and I made myself busy catching up on some RedBox flicks I've wanted to see [specifically The Giver, but I threw X-Men into the cart as well, just for good measure]. I won't spoil the fun for any of you out there who've yet to see either of them, but if it matters, I'm glad I just... waited for The Giver to make its way to RB. Jus' sayin'.

Anyway, I'm proud to say that the house is clean, dinner's cookin', and these two are driving the dogs crazy with that stinkin' helicopter that found its way into our family when we were in Illinois. Sydni loves it, and I'm sure within no time, she'll be hovering that thing around this house like a pro.

♥ these two!!!

^^ That's my little world, folks. ♥

Happy December!

xo | cmd

Happy Belly!

New places to visit! Yay!

Elisa told me a week or so back about Happy Belly, a new resident to the 1300 block of Vine in OTR. I took a peek at their website and FB page, and decided I wanted to try it out. Like, really wanted to go. We decided today would as good a day as any to go and check out the new digs, so we closed up shop for an hour and headed south.

green smoothie & spirulina bites!
happy belly | cincinnati, oh

What a cute place! Their menu boasted of some tasty lunch items, but we decided to go light today and snagged a couple of smoothies and bite-sized snacks for the road, instead.

adorable (:

With plenty of time to spare, we stopped by Mica 12/v, just across the street from Taste of Belgium. I think I've figured out some things Sydni might be getting for her birthday [which, btw, is way too quickly approaching].

wall clocks!! specifically, owl wall clocks!

And for the car:

magnets!

^^ There were about five or six different versions of this magnet book: people, faces, animals, nature, robots... all kinds of fun combinations to be made. I'm pretty excited. I went digging and found a lot of the other versions I saw today (& then some!!), on THIS WEBSITE. The website pricing is about the same as I saw instore, once you figure in shipping/handling and all that jazz.

Anywho, we are one step closer to the weekend, and the countdown is in full effect for Tyler, Jason, Miranda & FGL at the Burn It Down Tour on Saturday. CAN'T WAIT!

xo | cmd

Meanwhile, in Equestria....

Sydni's here!

... and that means that I just spent the entire evening re-enacting scenarios that only happen in Equestria. Not sure where or what that is? Well leeeet me tell you then! It's where THESE things live:

my little pony

I have skittle-colored plastic ponies everywhere.
In drawers, in my bed, under my bed, in the couch, on the kitchen counter.. I swear these things are going to soon overrun the house.. haha.

[not mine pictured, but] we have this, too.
my little pony. everywhere.

It was kind of funny, because as I sat tonight with Pinky Pie in one hand and Rainbow Dash in the other, conversing with Applejack and Fluttershy .... [yes, those are their names... and there are about 30 more just like that if you must know..] It dawned on me that I had MLP's when I was a kid. I'm sure I still have them stored in some corner of my old closet at the parents' house; I'll have to ask the next time I'm home.

1995 vs. 2013

^ Found that online and immediately remembered that yes, I did have those, because I very distinctly remember their faces. Looking at the ponies now, it's funny to see how the designs have changed over the past years, too. [We'll have to check out Barbie later, huh.. haha]

So this, my friends.. is what my night has been. It's slowly morphing into Fall outside, so Sydni and I didn't venture far from the house out to one of the stone retaining walls with our ponies before the evening chill really starting to set in. Now we've set up the village of our exquisite little equine all over the couch and coffee table.

So if you'll excuse me, I've got a castle to save from an "evil pony with an evil magic wand, Mommy!" [??]
... Or something. (:

xo | cmd

Ninjas. Tyra Banks. SYDNI!

[three unrelated things, btw]

So.... As most of you know, my day hinges on people.
Among the many firsts that I have encountered in the past few years of my job [usually in the form of the most bizarre answers to ordinary questions], today presented a new one:

#icallbluff. #ohreally #inthatcaseyou'rehired #youwin

^ Yes. The applicant put NINJA as a job title. This is real life, on a real application, at a real place. We didn't know what to think on this one, other than, "wow" and that this is just one of those amazing firsts that seem to be so rare anymore.

What's the weirdest thing you've seen on or put on a job application?

.... Moving on... here's something else to wrap the eyes around today.. I saw this on a friend's page and wanted to share. I'm not a prolific follower of Tyra Banks, the fashion industry, or really anything pop-culture in general; call me mildly savvy and informed, but certainly not a daily subscriber. This peaked my interest and I thought I'd share. I'm no makeup artist or stylist, but I know a few and give them all the credit in the world when their work is as exact and skilled as this.

Tyra Transformations!

l: cara delivingne | r: tyra... as cara

l: kate moss | r: tyra... as kate

l: cindy crawford | r: tyra... as cindy

Take note: I'm not promoting or supporting any certain lifestyle or image here [I have a self-obligated need to say that; I spent a lot of time in college counseling younger girls on the importance of inner-based self-worth, which so absolutely trumps physical and material worth.. but I digress]... I do see this as an incredible art form: the ability to transform into another person essentially, all via hair and makeup, is beyond my skillset and kind of cool to marvel over.

But.. FYI:

♥ this

^ I have nothing against models, but I do find it fascinating. The ladies on the bottom, to me, are gorgeous, and if we're being honest.... realistic. Again.. I digress. - Just sayin.

Last to mention but first on my priorities: Sydni's here this week and that means.... it's going to be a GOOD WEEK. (: (: (: We're stickering [yes, that's a verb when you have a 4-year-old] and having a party. Attending will be Mike Wazowski, Rapunzel, Curious George, a couple sorority girls [aka, Barbies {no disrespect intended}], a kangaroo, Frank the Ladybug Pillow Pet... and of course, Mickey Mouse.

Betcha wish you were here, huh.. haha.

Party time.

xo | cmd

#TBT | New Toys | Party Prep Pt. II

Throwback Thursday!

Here's an old gem.... I realize this looks like a campaign ad for an adoption agency, but I thought it would be nice to see myself years ago in a sunny mud pit.... Not a lot has changed as far as my hobbies are concerned, and for what it's worth, I'm a little jealous of my kite shirt. I dig... I dig.


hello, kid cori..... glad to see not much has changed ;) | #tbt

Today was about as good as it could be for a Thursday. It's starting to get warm outside [hopefully for the season!], so we were all a little antsy to keep the doors and windows open and spend as much time breathing in air that wasn't so chilled.  

Tomorrow is Linda's birthday; like I said before, she doesn't read this blog so I have little doubt that this will be an issue. I'm pretty sure she had an inkling by the end of the day that there would be some sort of birthday malarky occurring after she left; well............. ok, you're right, Linda.


party planners.... watch. out.

We got the decorating out of the way in about 15 minutes flat [yeah, teamwork!], and were out the door with plenty of daylight left to burn. I'm so excited for tomorrow!

Rob had mentioned yesterday possibly buying a four wheeler off someone from his work. I came home to this little addition sitting in the garage :)


400 ex ... new toy!

It's gonna be a work in progress, but he likes projects, so I don't think that'll be an issue... haha. He's pretty pumped about it, so I'm happy for him.

We're getting hungry... so looks like we're off to a few errands in Granite and dinner likely at Bindy's. Pretty standard night for us.

Oh! And before I forget..... it looks like there's going to be a trip to Scottsdale planted on the agenda here in the very near future. Kalyn & Keifer, here we come....... I.... can't..... wait!!!

TGI[almost]F!!!

xo | cmd

Surprised Speechless. Blessed!

Sometimes, in the midst of all that is day-by-day fuss and frill, I need a reminder of how much my family is loved. No, not [just] by me, my husband, our immediate family, or even some of our local friends... but by some truly unexpected but dear friends of ours.

Joe forwarded me this email today:
[** SPOILER ALERT.. but I figure it's okay since Syd's not reading my blogs yet... or really anything for that matter. Hah..]

speechless. how truly amazing. 

[Hah, Well I guess that answers the powerwheels question I had the other day..]
I don't even have words for that, other than the deepest and sincerest thank you.
Today, especially, to Gerald, Leslie, and the girls - you are truly amazing, and your generosity means the world and then some to us. So insanely sweet and thoughtful of you. Speechless.
We are loved, and we love our friends and family.
We are blessed.

xo | cmd

Toddler-sitting!

Today was an exciting day for Sydni. It's not unusual for her to hang out with other kiddies on the weekends, especially Sundays due to church and post-church play dates. Today was special because Amy & Kyle asked us to watch Tessa for the afternoon while they got some Christmas shopping under control. I told Sydni about it Thursday after I'd originally confirmed with Amy, and she's been babbling about it since.



little buddies :)

 I was quickly educated on what it would be like if I had been graced with twins. It was funny watching two little girls being two little girls and all the wonder that comes along with that. They were more than content to play Barbies in the doll house, push baby dolls around in the stroller, and marvel over newly-painted fingernails [I lended some aid in that one]. After hours of squealing, chasing, playing, and the inevitable increments of innate toddler territorial disagreements, they settled into the big bean bag chair and peacefully remained there for nearly the entire duration of Finding Nemo.

All in all, a pretty fun day here at the Dills residence. Joe slept through the majority of the day since he'd worked last night, but he was awake when Kyle & Amy showed up later in the evening. He works again this evening, so I'll leave it at that and get back to the rest of our evening here.

Ciao!

xo | cmd

A Birthday + Toddlers & Laser Pointers

I thought I should share this. Excuse the dim lighting and less-than-suitable film quality.... oh, and the fact that you have to watch this sideways. It was actually pretty funny watching her obsess over this little laser pointer we had originally bought for my cat, and Joe got a huge kick out of teasing her with it.

These are things we love doing on Saturdays ;)




mvhs graduation, circa 2003 | sheff 2010
'then & now'



Additionally, I love birthdays of all sizes and digits; today is no exception. Happy 27th to one of my closest friends from high school who continues to stay exactly 10 days older than I, of which I again remind him for no other reason than just to give him a hard time. I couldn't tell you how much random, unlikely calamity this guy attracted while we were trying to survive high school. I'll just say, Blue Jeep and Corn Rows to jog some memories there. Ha :). I miss this guy, but hopefully will see him soon if we're ever back in Ohio at the same time.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Clark!!

xo | cmd

Bible Study @ The Woods'

Calm Friday here at the newly established Dills residence: laundry, vacuuming, dishes, and errands. Pretty standard stuff. I managed to get everything finished in spite of Sydni’s incessant urge to help me accomplish all the tasks of the day. When it’s all said and done, even though I’m backtracking and backtracking and backtracking some more, it’s just another Mom-ism that I wouldn’t trade for the world.

t - o - y - s.

pastor ron woods & his wife debbie

Tonight we headed to our pastor’s house for the our 2^nd session of Bible Study. We’re working on a track right now entitled, “How to Raise Kids Without Raising Your Blood Pressure.” Kyle & Amy joined us this week, and brought Tessa to go play downstairs with Sydni and the other kids from couples attending. We’ve only been coming to this study group for two weeks now, but I’m developing a sincere appreciation for it, for this new church we’ve found, and for the people who have welcomed us so openly.

Kalyn & Sam are coming in tomorrow night, and on Sunday I’ll head out with them on the road to Arizona!

xo | cmd