still waiting...

I am claiming victory over not being able to sleep when Doug is working...my method? I get in bed at a decent hour and tell God the rest is up to Him...all my crazy thoughts I hand over to Him as they come...in between those I tell God how good He is to me and all the things I am thankful for...it has worked wonders and the last two nights I have had HOURS of sleep and not just minutes. :)

Yay for sleep!! :)

And....can I just say HOLY crap!! That number over there on the baby counter is in the single digits!! AHHHHHHH!!!!

:) xoxo

happenings around the house...

Doug had a couple of days off in a row...ALWAYS my favorite...we got a lot done in those few days...now he is back to work and I am back to not being able to sleep at night...basically, I lay down to go to sleep...feel a twinge of pain or funny feeling...think "Oh my...is this it?"...then proceed to freak myself out of being able to sleep at all...fun right? Such is my life at the moment...regardless we had lots of fun and got lots of odds and ends done around the house. One of Moses' favorite things to do is shown above...he could sit for hours and watch tunes on the iTouch.

Moses became less of a baby...much to my saddened mommy heart...he now sits at a booster seat at the table instead of in his highchair...sigh...

We got a sweet homemade gift from a lovely reader/Etsy patron...it just blesses me to see such a lovely gift intended for my sweet little boy...thank you Elma!!
~*~
I also installed baby A's car seat...YIKES to having TWO baby seats in the back seat of our cars!

Our bags got packed and ready to go...I also scotch-guarded the couch in the baby's room. :) LOVE me some scotch-guard-it has saved my couch from pen, blueberry, jelly, fruit punch, milk and all sorts of baby messes. :)

The boys were boys...running and rough0using...being silly and hanging out...cute little clones. :)

There was apparently an incident with a sheep. :)
~*~
Doug let me sleep in as long as I could each day and I even got a few naps in...the longest being over 2 hours! :) Yay for a good honey, right?

Both of the boys got haircuts...

I made some cute new items for the shop...sweet little burp cloths...there are deer with pom-poms...

Or ones that can be personalized with an initial of your choice...
~*~
This week I am making a master grocery list...addressing announcements...making a boppy cover...sitting on the couch...and staying close to home. :)

One question that lingers in my head a lot is...Will this baby be born with a head full of dark hair (shown much lightened in this sweet baby Moses photo) like Moses...or will he be a tow-head like Doug was as a baby? What is your vote? (And oh my goodness...what a CUTE baby, right?)

xoxo

how we do love...

We aren't big Valentines people here...ever since we started dating Doug and I have agreed that if we wait until assigned days of the year to show each other how much we love one another...then our relationship would probably not be so great. So we work really hard all of the time to speak love to each other in ways the other can feel it...if you haven't read The Five Love Languages...I highly recommend it...it will change your path...in a good way. :)

We try to share the love in every day ways that cater to the person we are trying to show love to...we don't go for when and what Hallmark says our mates, friends or children need to feel loved. :) I would actually be a little sad if Doug showed up with a dozen red roses and a box of chocolates...because that is SO far from who I am...I would much prefer a hot Starbucks and some daisies on a random day of the year. :)

So Valentines, this year, consisted of me making pink rice krispie treats...
...in X's and O's of course. :)

And some love themed pancakes for dinner for my two Valentines. :)
Even if Moses repeatedly refused to be mine... :)

I know I am not the best wife in the world but I try really hard to let Doug know he is loved and appreciated by me in ways that I think speak to him best...

I try daily to live up to being a Proverbs 31 woman for him. :)
Now there is a life goal for any wife to work towards! :)

And yes...that number over there on the baby ticker keeps getting smaller...if I think about it too long, I scream a little on the inside! :)

Hope your day is blessed and that you can feel the love!
xoxo

love to you...

This is how we know what love is:
Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.
IJohn 3:16a

let's catch up real soon...
xoxo

so i am wondering...

what you think of this octuplet mom?

Me? I live under the general idea that your ability and "right" to make bad choices ends where another persons rights begins. In this case, that would be her children. My heart breaks for those kids...each born with the "job" of filling some hole in their mother's heart...that she admits. Don't even get me started on the fact that she has no job, no husband and already had six kids to start with (that she wasn't and was unable to support on her own)...She claims to be a Christian but it seems to me that she picks and chooses what she wants to live by...yes children ARE a blessing from God and God blessed man with the ability to do IVF...but what about her accountability in how she uses these blessings? What about the doctor in question?? God created food too but that can be abused as well...Yes, she loves her children...but that will not fill their bellies, clothe them or give them what they need in life. Her bad choices are one thing...but now their are 14 lives that have to live with the consequences of those choices. And THAT is what breaks my heart.

Just for the record, I am not anti IVF in any way...I believe that God gives man talents and abilities to use to help each other out and this is definitely one of them. And I know that there are other families on TV that have large families...but the difference is that they are equipped with a mom and a dad...and an income!

So what do you think? I know I usually avoid controversial topics here but I thought this would make for a lively conversation piece...please be nice so that I can do this again in the future. :)

xoxo

Do You See What I See...

Look what I found just outside my door the other day! :) AND we have had unseasonably warm weather lately. I have a serious love/hate relationship with these kinds of things...they make you get all excited that Spring is coming...but it's not really. At least not yet.

A couple questions answered:

Playlist at the bottom?
you are the best thing, Ray LaMontagne
Be ok, Ingrid Michaelson
I'm Yours, Jason Mraz
On the Radio, Regina Spektor
So Long sweet Summer, Dashboard Confessional
Anyone Else but you, The Moldy peaches
Three Little Birds, Renee and Jeremy
Summertime, Summertime, the Jamies
Pocketfull of sunshine, Natasha Bedingfield
realize, colbie callait
aint no reason, brett dennen
The way I am, ingrid michaelson
Light&Day the polyphonic spree
blue alert Madeleine peyroux
New soul yael naim
Bubbly colbie calliat
Closer Joshua radin
Star mile Joshua radin
Hallelujah Leonard cohen

Music inspiration?
Before I met Doug I was pretty good at finding out of the way good music...since having him in my life I have become permanently lazy in regards to this...I let him find most of the good music...though I can still come up with a new song here or there. :)

Moses' bedding in his room?
Ikea. :) Cheap and wonderful!

Daily routine and Jesus?
The short answer is that I am always reading the One Year Bible...this is my third or fourth year. I usually do this right before bed...I also like to read books with a purpose, like Christian fiction or biographies. I hardly ever read a regular ol' novel...not that that is a bad thing but for me, if I take the time to read, I want it to challenge me and improve who I am. We go to church, I do MOPS, I am in a Bible study, we are part of a new parents group at church...as for Moses we try to live what we preach. :) We talk about Jesus to him, pray with him, he is in Sunday school and the MOPS program as well. We do our best to be living examples. :)

I think that is most of them...if I missed one just let me know. :) My hubby has a couple of days off so you may not hear from me...it's all ok though! :)

Happy Wednesday!
xoxo

preserving the little...and documenting the growing...part two

More ways to preserve the little bits...but first we got some very happy mail yesterday. :) Included in a fabulous box of goodies was a new little friend for Moses...who he immediately adopted. :) How *cute* is that boy!!?? :)

One of my etsy/blog reader friends was ever so kind enough to surprise me yesterday with this amazing box of goodies...some for me and some for the new little guy on the way. :) Some sweet onesies, a paci pod...an entire cookbook of crock pot recipes and some super YUMMY Blondie brownies. :) You were right Julie...they were VERY tasty warmed up with some milk. :) Thank you so much sweet friend for thinking of me...it was definitely a bright spot in my day and Moses' too. :) Is the blog/etsy world amazing or what?

So ever since doing THIS craft from a few posts back I have been hanging onto the card stock hand print cutout of Moses' that I had...then yesterday it hit me what else I could do with it! :) Say hello to an easy keepsake! :)

I just traced the hand print onto the back of the fabric that I wanted to use...I made a left and a right out of the same hand print. :)

Then after you cut out the hands you stitch them onto a towel with a zig zag stitch...go all the way around sticking to the edge of the cutout...

Then add some coordinating ribbon/trim...if these were a girls hand prints I would have added little hearts to the center of the hands...I'll put Moses initials and age on the tag with permanent marker. :) You still have time to make these for all the grandma's out there for Valentines day...or Mother's day! :)

Next...Doug made one of these for Baby A the other day...we had already made one for Moses when he was born. It's a portable...funky and fun growth chart! :) We have one for each boy so that they can take them with them when they have their own families and measure their own kids on them one day! :)

We just bought a one by four from Lowe's...six wooden rulers and some screws...lined up the rulers and attached them with the screws. :) I love that wherever we go in life we can take them...you can't do that with a permanent doorway.
And here is a peek at the next house pillow to go in the shop...look for it tonight or tomorrow. :)

Hope your day is great...looking forward to a good nap today! :)
xoxo

the weekend...

This is my favorite position and place at the moment...a close second is behind my sewing machine...I am wondering if my couch will recover as quickly as I do? If you look closely you can see the muffin tops over my socks...that's attractive right? :)

Speaking of my second favorite place to sit...I started making these this weekend too...love to pile on the goodies and see how it takes shape...looks almost too cute on my couch to give up...but it's in the shop now if you must... :)

This weekend a friend of mine sent me a sweet diaper cake for the baby! :) How fun is this? I LOVE Burt's products...one of the few things I asked Doug to buy me for Christmas. :) So my friend, Leah owns a fabulous business called Diaper Cakewalk...she did an amazing job on this sweet number...Moses actually carried it around the house for a while and it never fell apart...

It was chock full of goodies and made with Pampers swaddlers...our favorite diaper! :) I will have to keep her in mind for future mama's to be because I think they make an awesome gift AND they survived a toddler testing it out!! :) Flowers can't do that, right? Plus, she is a stay at home mama to two sweet girls...and you know I love to support other moms...go check her out. :)

All in all a nice quiet weekend...just how we like it...just doing what we do. :) I have every intention of "working" right up until the baby comes...that is just how I am...it would be so like me to stop by the post office one more time on the way to the hospital. :) That is how it was with Moses...worked with several clients the day before he was born. :) People are often asking me if I am super busy getting ready for the baby...hmmm not so much really. His room is ready...diapers are stocked...house is clean...laundry is caught up...we are just waiting for him to come along...living life until he gets here.

I was also that nerd in college that had all my papers and projects done and turned in halfway through the semester...so there is that...if there is something to be done I like to have it done already so I don't lose sleep over it...because I totally would. :)

What can we get accomplished today?

xoxo

apparently I love me some me.

At least that is what my husband is claiming...he says when I make something that I think is really cute...that I get a little arrogant or full of myself about it...I think arrogant is a strong word...I think giddy is more appropriate. I just get so tickled and thrilled when I make something that I see as wonderful...if others like it too then that is just bonus to me. :)
~*~
Giddy is what my new couch pillow covers make me feel...

The fabric makes me SO happy...polka dots---YUM!!!

I made them during Moses' extra long nap yesterday...no pattern other than tracing the current pillow cover...I made them pocket style with Velcro...

...took my time and added some finishing details to make them look like a someone who knew what they were doing made them. :)

LOVE the red/pink color with my wall color. :)
The print in the frame behind the couch is from HERE. Love that too. :)

Have some great ideas for house shaped pillows in my head...love that...I have a precious son...love him...I have a hardworking husband...love him, too. I have a kickboxing ninja living in my womb...love him. I have a Jesus that makes it all possible...really Love Him.

and yes...on occasion, I do love me some me. ;) Shouldn't we all love ourselves some us?

~*~*~

I know I owe you some more answers to the questions from the giveaway...I am just waiting on the mood to strike me just right. :)

why NOT to say things out loud...

So say you are at MOPS...eating a tasty (5x the normal size) breakfast...sipping your sweet tea...telling your friend what a dream it has been to transition Moses to a toddler bed. And it has been...no trouble whatsoever. Night time is good...naps are good. No complaints here.

But I said it all out loud. To someone outside of Doug or family. What was I thinking? Might as well have done myself in right there. Should have known I was in for it...

One nice advantage we (adults) have over toddlers is that we know that sound travels. They don't. So while Moses was supposed to be settling in for his nap, I hear noises over the monitor that assure me that is not what is happening.

I go in to find him out of his bed...not so bad in and of itself...but the twin bed in his room...along with his comforters, a book or two, blankets and Doggy (his bff) are CoVeReD in bum cream. Yep. I put him back in his toddler bed(with his chin quivering), scoop up all of the covered goods and leave the room...the wailing for Doggy begins...ugh. At the end of his rest time (because he didn't nap a wink) I went to go get him...his little toddler brain was intuitive enough to pretend to be asleep!!!! When he "wakes" up he says to me "naughty", with the above look on his face. Yep.

And just so you know...it takes 2 runs through the wash and LOTS of dish soap and hot water to get bum cream out of a stuffed animal...and only two runs through the wash to get it out of everything else.

He knew he was naughty, too...cause he spent the rest of the day trying to make it up to me...being silly...telling "jokes"...being cuddly and sweet...It's a good thing this boy is cute...and that he knows it...and knows how to use it...I mean, who can stay mad at that face?
And I am steadily running out of lap and lung capacity. 37 weeks today!!!! I could cry and laugh all at the same time...and apparently I look very tired...at least that is what the general public feels the need to tell me repeatedly...thus the photos of my belly and not my face. :)

preserving the little...and documenting the growing...

...yet another cute little project that I found somewhere...actually the idea was much more simple than I have made it here but I like this one much better. :) I wish I has been able to start this sooner but honestly, Moses has never let me trace his hand until just recently. :)

...so the idea is...every year around the same time you trace your child's hand...next year when I trace Moses' hand I will cut it out of a different pattern of paper than this top layer...then gently pull up the layer shown here...place the new (bigger by a year) layer underneath(matching up the bottom of the palms) with double stick tape or something similar and then place both together back onto the green background (using something less permanent and easy to pull up every year). :)

...I then attached a little tag with Moses' initials, the month and year...eventually the effect will be like rings in a tree...each year's hand/layer will be a little bigger...make sense at all?
The original idea I read about was to take a piece of paper and trace the hand once a year and frame that piece of paper...that's cute too but I just love the color and depth of doing it this way.

I also thought it would be cute if you traced each family members hands, cut them out of different papers and layered them from little (on top) to big (on the bottom). :)

xoxo

today...

...we got more snow!! and for real this time...sort of. :) And Moses was lucky enough to have daddy around today to really play with him in it. :)

He loved it once again...

...but I think he loved it even more because his daddy was around...he calls daddy his "bess buuudy" aka best buddy. :) Man, I love these guys! :)

...pure cute...if I do say so myself. :)

...in project world...I made these for my boys today. :) I love the sound of that by the way..."my boys". :) Moses has had "blue blankey" since birth...we bought A one just like it...it is THE perfect swaddle (aka baby burrito) blanket. :) And once again I prove that I cannot stop putting initials onto things. :) I also made a couple of other things this morning but they are gifts and I know the recipients read this. :)

I also made this bit of heaven that I stole from Julie...OH man...this is good stuff...and SUPER easy...and good for you...except the brown sugar, butter and chocolate chips. :)

Here is how you make it...(I stole Julies directions word for word. Thanks Julie!)

~*~

Fill a cookie sheet with saltines.

Melt one stick of butter in pan.

Add one cup of brown sugar.

Stir until slightly caramelized.

Pour over saltines and spread evenly.

Cook at 350 for 5 minutes.

Take out of oven and pour entire bag of chocolate chips on top. (I used the mini ones).

As soon as chocolate chips melt, spread them evenly over entire pan.

Stick in fridge to set. (I allowed it to cool to room temp first).

Break or cut into pieces.
YUM!!! :) A perfect little treat! :)
~*~
Here are a couple more questions answered:

*How long have I been sewing? Uh...just since last spring really. :) I used to have a not so great machine that made it really frustrating to learn...then it finally just died on me. Then my honey bought me a Husqvarna Emerald 116 and it has been love ever since. :) Her name is Ethel. :) I don't think you have to spend a fortune to get a good machine but I DO think you should spend a little more to ensure that you get something that is easy to use and good quality. A poor quality machine will just leave you frustrated. I taught myself everything I know...I tend to be a visual learner so I enjoy looking at something to try to figure out how it goes together rather than following a pattern and learning how someone else did it.
~*~
Sleep sacks? Go HERE. They are the best...keeps babies and toddlers warm AND one less thing to worry about. :)
~*~
Do I keep a running idea list? Sort of but only in my head. :) I try to make paper lists but that never seems to work for me. :)
~*~
Where do I get most of my fabric? Etsy of course! :) LOVE me some Etsy.
~*~
My camera? Nikon D40x...also a gift from my honey. :) LOVE it!! :)

Ok, enough about me for today...hope your day is great!! :)

Here's to a pants off-dance off kind of day!! :)

...if you are two that is...otherwise it's probably not as appropriate! :)
xoxo