Spring 2013 Updates

Let me summarize the last few months in a handful of pictures with an explanation of everything below...

We've been enjoying the warm weather: Naja found a nice place to perch herself

I've been hanging out with friends & socializing more - I needed it: A little face beat before a night out with my girls

Have gone back to Philly once over the past few months: Dosa from the Philadelphia Chutney Company

Still doing a lot of stuff with my sorority: At one of my sorority chapter's community events

Still trying to eat healthy: Spiced chickpeas, mashed avocado, vegan pesto & grilled asparagus for breakfast - why not?

Loving this girl: All smiles

Watching her socialize and grow up: Hanging out with some "big girls" at a Jack & Jill picnic 

No reason for this pic other than I love it: My little model

Summer weather finally broke: Hanging outside on a weekday after work - Naja loves to sit on the ground like this

Hair: My most recent cut & hair style

(All pics taken with my iPhone & most posted to my Instagram page @mowitafro)

So first I will address hair for Naja and me because that's the heart of where this blog started.  As for my cut, I was inspired by Zuriworks, a wonderful organization who help cancer patients and encourage women not to be afraid to cut it all off! I am not my hair! As for Naja - this girl has A TON of hair, and she hates getting it done. I was opting for protective styles via cornrows, but she barely lets me detangle on a wash day! I've tried snacks, movies, everything. She hates getting her hair done. Thus, she's been rocking a fro and honestly - her fro is a show-stopper and gets rave reviews. I spritz it at night and in the morning and add oil and Shea Moisture Curling Smoothie to help keep it moisturized.

Off of hair...the past few months have been very eventful in a wonderful way. I have been fairly busy with a few things. You may remember I hinted that something big may be coming my way, and I'm finally ready to make my announcement...I'm going to business school full-time in the fall at Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business in Pittsburgh, PA!

It's crazy and unfathomable the way things just work out sometimes. For those of you who know me personally, you know that I was in the process of applying to b-school right around the time I found out I was expecting (Winter 2010). Knowing then that I'd be a single mom, I didn't think b-school would be a possibility anymore. Especially since I wanted to go full-time, and I wanted to go to an elite program (Top 20), but how would I, or could I do that as a single mom?

Sometimes, you just have faith and let God work things out - and He worked things out AGAIN - financially,  socially, personally, I have a ton of support all around, and I'm so incredibly grateful. In short, I received a fellowship to cover tuition, and my parents live in a suburb of Pittsburgh, so we're staying with them (again). Praise the Lord for minimum grad school debt - I couldn't have asked for more!

My job knows about business school now, and I'm working there through the end of June. I'm taking off some time for a few b-school related conferences to attend, and then I'm using the month of July to not work at all to take a few road trips, hang out with Naja, and relax before school starts in August.

My focus in school will be in strategy, with a focus on analyzing market research to make recommendations for larger business decisions regarding trades, sales, acquisitions, or brand changes. I would love to leverage my MBA into the retail space, which means blogging more could actually help me with these new career goals. I'm looking forward to the new scene. I've gained a lot of perspective on life in the past two years. I'm ecstatic about what's to come...I hope you guys are going to join me on this new journey.

If you do want to stay along for the ride, and you follow me on GoogleReader, follow me on bloglovin by clicking here, or you can always click the 'heart' icon in the top left side of the side bar. Peace & love.

What's up (part 2)

Part the table set up for the bridal shower I hosted

Bridesmaids from the wedding, I'm in the middle - September 2012

Some high school friends gathering for breakfast after a wedding in October 2012.

Grilled cheese and tomato and roasted red pepper soup (will post the recipe from Top Chef Cookbook later). November 2012.

The invitation for the baby shower I hosted in December. The theme was: What are little girls made of? Sugar and spice, and everything nice. December 2012.

Momma's night out - a rare occasion, out at The Park for an Inauguration Party with a friend from undergrad. January 2013.

I've finally had a chance to write about myself. This used to come so easily to me, and now, it's like I've got nothing. Since I last gave you an update on me, I've been to a few weddings, one which I had the honor of being the maid of honor. I planned a few showers (one bridal, and one baby), I've been cooking up a storm, I've changed my hair twice, and I just completed a three month shopping hiatus. The pictures are more descriptive of most of the things I mentioned, so I won't go into detail. If you're wondering what I did with my hair...let's just say I paid a lot of money for lock extensions, and hated them, and took them out after 2 weeks, and now realize that I will probably never lock my hair, and I will probably never grow my hair super long. I like ease of hair, and I like styled hair, which translates to short hair for me.

I've really come to appreciate good friends recently. The past month has been filled with a few weddings, meet ups, parties, and general fellowship, and it's been awesome. This January, I approached my two year mark as a single woman, and I have learned a lot!  I am comforted, and appreciative of my friends. They answer when I call, keep me in check, are there for a good laugh, and that is something that I missed when I was dating. I was one of "those friends" who ditched their friends when they got a man. Note to self: don't ditch your friends, it's natural to see a shift in the balance, but ditching is a not cool.

I feel like posts will be forthcoming as the weather gets warmer. There are some big changes coming that I can't wait to share, but I have to wait for the right time to break the news.

There is one thing I'm excited about that I can talk about...I'm going to Jamaica in a few weeks! Remember this trip from last year? Well, my department hit our 2012 goal, so the company is paying for us to go to Jamaica, and we're staying at The Ritz! My mom is going to watch Naja for me, while I'm away. I'm looking forward to a few days in luxury, but I think I'll miss Naja a lot. That's all for now. Peace.

Updates & Happy Holidays 2012

a little blurry, but I love these boots & this vest

part of our weekend routine involves big breakfast on saturday: helping mommy make vegan banana pancakes (taste-checking is necessary)

watching the game with her uncle

cheesing after a fresh bath

weekend lounging: playing in her toy box

holiday photo...for the announcements I needed to send out yesterday

Hi everyone, it's been a while. Life is so interesting, it has its peaks and valleys, its lulls and highs, its busy and quiet moments. This year has been filled with momentum, surprises, and changes...more on these things later, as some things are still materializing. To all of you - I wish you happy holidays, may the season bring you peace, joy and love. I am so incredibly thankful for the good friends and family in my life, I hope to share my sentiments with them this season.

I have quite a few updates, and pictures, so I'm going to split this update post with one post focused on Naja, and another focused on me, so to speak. I will begin with the little lady first, who is now 17 months old - where does the time go?

Naja is able to run now, and her break-off speed is quite impressive - she continues to keep me busy. Naja is also talking more now, and is very friendly to strangers. She said a sentence last Saturday morning while we were playing with her Brobee stuffed animal. In a high-pitched voiced she said, "Hi Brobee," I was so proud! But didn't freak out with excitement because that sometimes upsets her - my extremely loud moments upset her when they happen by surprise, lol. Every week she's talking more and more. She says some words very clearly, and others that those close to her understand. She recently started this new thing where her talking is something like baby blibber blabber, and I really don't know what she's saying.

Definition
Baby Blibber Blabber: a series of noises with varied voice inflection followed by a pause that assuredly garners a response.

I'm confident that she thinks I understand her, and I'm sure I'll understand her soon enough, we'll just keep trying and chugging away with the baby talk for now.

Naja is also approaching the age of defiance. She has temper tantrums around those she knows well (I.e. my mom and me). Just in case you guys want a few examples: she has thrown items on the floor, bit my mom, and head-butted both of us to name a few. She knows exactly what she's doing, because these reactions only come after she doesn't get her way. She's stubborn, feisty  and quite a drama queen.  Those who know me well that are reading may be thinking, "...that's what you get," but I can promise you, I was nothing compared to Naja.

She's been getting a lot of timeouts, stern looks, and firm reprimands, and I don't know if it's "working." I'm finding it difficult to figure out the right way to discipline Naja since I'm not a fan of spankings. Everyone has different parenting styles, and each child is different. I'm just trying this out to see how things go -- I surely don't want a snobby-bratty child. For now, I'm praying for patience while I discipline her, consistency, grace and fairness.

Recent things Naja's been loving: a ride on shopper I got her, clementines, her princess snow boots, Princess Tiana, dinosaurs, and my pots & pans

Ok, that's little miss thing. Updates from me are next...

On Naja: one & three: top - h&m; vest - nordstrom; jeggings - target; boots - baby zara | two & five: onesie -  children's place | six: top - target; sweater - h&m

September Updates

Happy Friday folks! I've been a little better snapping pictures of Naja, although she is incredibly difficult to catch these days. As soon as she sees the camera, she walks up to me and wants to look at pictures, or she runs away like we're about to start a game of hide and seek. I think we're well past due for some updates on the little one so here goes...

Naja is growing like weeds these days. She's pretty tall for her age - but she doesn't have a lot of girth. I'm still cloth diapering her, and she's long off the bottle and uses sippy cups with a straw. She is starting to formulate some words/sounds. To name a few, she says "buh" for book and "bah" for bath, and she says "Woof woof" whenever she sees a dog. She also says three words very clearly now:

1. "agua" for water - yep, she's bilingual - JK - agua is much easier to say than water
2. "Naja" to refer to herself, because she speaks in third person often and loves the sound of her own name...
3. "Momma" It may sound crazy, but whenever Naja sees a picture of me, she calls me "Naja" or "Momma". When I point out that I'm Momma, she sometimes points to herself calling herself "Momma". So, basically - we're both Momma and Naja.

This stage of motherhood is a busy one! I can tell I'm going to have lots of fun stories raising this little one!

As for me - I'm rearing up for the last week before my cousin's wedding. I passed my sign off for the new role I assumed at work, and I have a new look.

The glasses are prescription - I wear them for distance, and while sitting at the computer at work. As for my hair - I cut it...why? well...why not? Peace.

On Naja: 1 & 4: top - gift; leggings - gap kids; sneakers - baby zara |  2 & 5 - tutu dress - gapkids; boots - baby zara | 3 & 6: top - target; skirt - baby zara |

Expressions from Naja

...stank face

...ham

...sleepy & contemplating

...wanting something

I took pictures for a friend of the family who had a rededication of their vows...so Naja got to wear a pretty dress. My child is truly expressive, and this is just the beginning folks! I hope you all have a great weekend!

On Naja: Dress - Baby Gap; Shoes - Baby Zara

Part 1: A Fresh Look - Repurposing a Dresser & Nightstand

In my last post I referenced doing some repurposing projects, and I've finally snapped some pictures and gotten around to posting them. FYI - taking pictures, and actually posting them to your blog are two totally, separate, and independent things.

I don't know how many of you remember this "Smile" post from last July, where I talked about getting new (to me) furniture that I planned to use for Naja's room. I got the furniture for free, and it was in spectacular shape, and it's probably as old as I am.

I loved the framework of the furniture, but I hated the color - this pale yellow is just so flat and blah. Originally, I planned on using the dresser in Naja's room. However, I soon changed my mind after I finished another repurposed dresser (to be posted in the near future) and I knew that should be saved for her room. Thus, I knew this furniture had a home in my room.

Here are some before pictures of the repurposed dresser/chest and night stand:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Wow - what a world of a difference a nice paint job makes! Thanks to some help from Libby, and my good friends at Home Depot, I did the lazy man's repurposing job with this project. Note: I had one day to do this job, by myself, so I was all about the short cuts, not my preference, but it's real life. I did not sand it, instead I applied a thick coat of primer (only one coat), and then applied the paint. I used a glossy black paint by Rust-Oleum, because they also manufacture paint in a spray can - and I used the same color to repurpose some chairs (also to be posted in the near future). I then used chrome spray paint on the hardware, and voila - a repurposed dresser!

There are some white parts that peak through around the drawers, and the paint has some texture to it, but I kind of like it. All in all, I am very satisfied with the finished project.

The cost of this project was:

Primer - $9.99

Paint - $9.99

Spray paint - $3.49 

Furniture - Free

Total - ~$25 (including taxes)

This post will be part 1 of 4 of the repurposing projects I embarked upon before my move. I've taken pictures of the other projects, so I will try to focus on posting them across the next few weeks. Peace.

August...

Painting that we did for some decorations for Naja's birthday party

 Naja winding down at a family picnic with her great-grandmother

Personal invitations for my cousin's bridal shower

Hanging in Philly with old friends - I'm such a ham :)

 Naja's new, favorite face - she does this any time I say " Say Cheese"

Is it just me, or did this summer fly by? I cannot believe it's late August. This summer was packed with a lot of action - most of which was not captured by the camera lense, but it was fun and eventful nonetheless. Some items from this summer include:

Visit to Philly to hang with my college friends
Moving out into our own space & repurposing half of the furniture in it
Naja's 1st birthday (and party)
My cousin got engaged, and I'm her MOH!
Weaning Naja - drinks up ;)
Locking my hair...and then not locking it (again)
Training for a marathon...

I met up with so many friends and family these past few months, it was a wonderful reminder of how blessed I am to have kind, caring, and loving people in my life. While I'm a bit saddened to say goodbye to summer, I am looking forward to things slowing down in the fall. I like the cool weather - the turning of leaves...and I can't wait to get Naja outside in the snow!!! I know, we have to get to fall before winter...

I hope to blog more in the coming weeks - I have some pictures from my trip to Philly that I'd like to share, and I want to share some of my furniture repurposing projects, so there's more to come!

To my readers - thanks for hanging in there with me. It really means a lot when I read comments even when my posting is sparse. This corner of the internet is really special to me, and I appreciate the support and encouraging words you provide.