Busy, Busy, Busy!

I can truly say that "nesting" is in full swing! Whew! I might not live to see this child be born if I don't slow down a bit! It's like I have a million things in my head and on my list that I want to clean out, throw away, use up, make and create...and too few hours in each day. I am finding myself burning the candle at both ends and hoping that this burst of energy last a few more weeks. I have several projects that I put on Kev's to-do list but the poor guy is overloaded with school right now. Two more weeks and he'll have a short two week break before his fall semester begins. Hoping we can knock out a lot of stuff them.

My nesting seems to always throw me into a major crafty stage. I have tons of projects I am working on...from finishing eliza's bedding, to sewing curtains, a fall jumper for ella, scrap booking! Seriously, I think I will be glad to feel lazy and unmotivated again. I know it is coming!

Another thing we have been doing is eating up everything in our pantry and freezer (no not all at once!) This is something Kev and I started doing early in our marriage and we have always found it to be resourceful and good on the budget! It calls for some creative and maybe not our favorite meal choices...but this will be our third week with no grocery buying other than bread, milk and fruit. I think most families are like this but we are bad about buying foods and not eating them and just letting them sit. For example, we had breakfast for dinner on Wednesday night with a bag of frozen hash browns and bacon that had been taking up freezer room for way too long. I did have to be creative with my hash brown casserole because it called for cream of mushroom and cream of celery soups and I didn't have either...so I just used cream of chicken. I turned out really yummy! I made a blueberry cobbler last night to finish off our blueberries before they went bad, and we've been having lots of Bisquick biscuits and jello with our meals! We always seem to have tons of jello...but rarely eat it! We are also bad about buying snacks and not finishing them before I get tired of them and want something new. It feels good to get it all used up and start over with a fresh supply! One more week of "creative meals" and then we'll shop!

Ella has been so sweet and cute lately. She has started wanting to pray at times throughout the day other than meals and before bed. It is so sweet! She'll say, "Mommy, I pray!" She'll fold her little hands and bows her head (we really haven't taught her that) and say Je-sus, thank you...and I fill in words and she fills in the rest! Her prayers usually sound like this...Je-sus thank you for this day. Please help me to obey. I love you. Amen. Nothing makes me happier than to see her little heart being tender toward the Lord. We have been working on colors and shapes....and would you know that the only colors she knows is gray and black! Those are the only two she is interested in! She always wants to see the gray and black pictures cards. Too funny! Kids surely have a mind of their own!

have a great day!

Happy Birthday Joy!

Today is my sister Joy's Birthday! I feel very blessed to have been given two sweet sisters! I have been thinking a lot about the "sister" relationship as I am about to be the mother of two sisters just barely two years apart. I am already preparing for lots of drama, arguments over clothing and shoes, comparisons, but best of all two lifelong friends.

Joy and I are 2 1/2 years apart and yes that makes me still very young in comparison! Funny how I always wanted to be older like her until I got into my mid 20's and then I was glad to be a little younger! In my opinion the sister relationship is often a very complex and deep one! Joy and I spent a large portion of our lives sharing a room, bed, friends, and even clothes...which really caused quite a bit of drama back in the day! We look completely different (she got the dark skin, hair and eyes and I got the red hair, fair and freckled skin and blue eyes...so funny how those different combinations come out...and yes we have the same two parents!) Our personalities are also very different in many ways. Although we have our differences, I am thankful for the many memories and experiences we've shared throughout the years.

So as I await the arrival of ella's little sister....I am already praying for their relationship. I am praying that they will love each other. I am praying that they will celebrate their differences and unique qualities and learn to be who God made them to be. I pray that they will one day learn to share toys and clothes. I pray that they will grow to be two Godly young women who will care for each other, call each other and always be close friends. I pray for strength and help for me as I know a little about what this sisterhood relationship is all about....and all that is to come!

So...Happy Birthday Joy! Thanks for being a sweet and caring big sis and for helping me learn this sister thing!

Kelly's Blog Children's Parties

Kelly's blog this week is featuring children's parties. Although I am not linking this to her blog I thought I'd share ella's first party! I really spent a lot of time thinking and planning her first birthday! It was so exciting to me and a chance go all out! I seriously worked for months! I went with a pink and green polka-a-dot theme. It was a hot, fall day and one that I will never forget.

I decided to make as many of the decorations as I could. I got a lot of my ideas from etsy and other blogs and in my usual attempt to save money (actually I don't care so much about the saving but I knew what I wanted for her first party and knew if I wanted all that I'd have to make it myself!) I used lots of cute scrapbooking paper and saved lots of money rather than chunking money on cheap party supplies. I saved everything so yes eliza will someday have a pink and green polka-a-dot party herself. I made the cakes, cupcakes, and food. We borrowed the tent, tables, and chairs from our church (we have some good connections!) My one splurge thing was that we hired a family friend who is a photographer to take the pictures. I knew I wouldn't have time to take them and I wanted Kev and I to get to enjoy watching ella and I didn't want to not have pictures. I am so glad I did this. I may always consider doing this! I bought her cute cupcake outfit from a consignment store when she was about 3 months old. I saw it and knew it was worth saving! Her cute puddle jumper shoes came used from ebay! I say all that to say that you can have a cute, cute party and stay on a budget...it just takes a lot of work!

I am now thinking of her second party which is actually right around the corner. We will be having it early this year because I don't want to have a newborn at the party! She is going to have a pink and brown monkey party! I have been collecting cute things for a while now. It may be more low-key this year but I still want to make it cute and special. I am debating if I want to invite a few of her friends or just keep it to family again! Our families equal a pretty large crowd so we may just do one or two friends. I recently saw the idea of inviting as many friends as your child's age. I thought that may be a good idea. Ok...now for the pics. Remember these are from last year. She looks so little!


Good ole betty Crocker cake mix!

Costco dozen roses, 1 yard of wal-mart fabric cut into squares and a spool of ribbon!

Scrapbooking paper to make the napkin rings and it was fall so we had candy apples!

Party hats made from Scrapbooking paper and thin elastic!


The tent and my Happy Birthday sign made from scrapbooking supplies!

Yes, I did pick out his outfit to match ours! He is so agreeable!

Bib and Birthday crown! I wanted to order these...but instead I found a how to make them on-line!

The cakes. I used a small Wilton cake pan and made two layers!

And last but not least my most precious birthday girl!

Wordless Wednesday!

When Life Gives You Blueberries....

go make some muffins or just sit and have a cry! This will make more sense in a minute. It's been a challenging day today. I sit here trying to process, get my thoughts together... while listening to ella have a full-on conversation by herself. I think she just said...mommy, happy! I guess from my sour expression I am not looking so happy!

We headed out for lunch when I knew we should just eat at home...but I was craving a yummy cinnamon bagel and hazelnut cream cheese from panerea bread. Ella thought she was in charge and refused to get in her stroller. She screamed, "Mommy, I hold you!" as we had a battle of the wills in the parking lot! As much as I would like to just hold her it is getting more and more physically challenging..esp while ordering, paying and carrying our food! I won but not without a physical struggle! We should have just headed home then! So we made it through lunch or me eating my lunch with ella playing with the buckles of her stroller...and pushing it into one not so friendly lady who evidently wanted a nice, peaceful and quiet lunch! I should have warned her when she sat done close to us!

We decided to make a quick run into Costco for some cherries and blueberries! This went well until the whole entire Costco sized container of blueberries dumped out in the bottom of the stroller as I was getting it out to pay! Evidently the tape that was supposed to hold it together was broken! So here is the big pregnant girl squatting down picking up hundreds of little sand and fuzz covered blueberries while holding up the entire line. While all this is going on ella begins to scream for me because she can no longer see me. Whew! I think my patience was gone but I tried to hold it together for the sake of the public!

We rode quietly home thinking the worst was over! When I got home I went to open ella's car door to get her out and what do you know those stupid blueberries fell out of the car and hit the driveway! All 500 of them began to roll down the driveway! I couldn't believe it! Do I leave them for the wild animals! Do I waste the $5.00 I just spent on them. I knew my husband wouldn't like that! So I did what most would do...big pregnant girl bent down in the 100 degree heat and began picking up blueberries. Ella was still in her seat and was ready to get out! She began screaming to get out! It was hot...and it seemed like the job was never ending. I finally couldn't take the screaming any longer, decided to leave the rest and unbuckled her! I guess she couldn't tell that mommy was on her last thread because she thought it would be a fun time to play chase! I was hot, tired and frustrated. I got her inside as fast as I could and put her in time-out! It was not a pretty scene. In fact I prayed that none of my neighbors were watching as I carried her inside kicking and crying...along with the blueberries I prayed wouldn't open again!

This is life! Normal annoyances like flat tires when your running late for work (that was kev's morning)...dropping an egg on your freshly mopped floor, and children who want their own way! After ella was in time-out I sat down for a few minutes and had a good cry! I felt like such a terrible mommy! I know my tone was anything but loving and I was frustrated and lost my patience with her! Oh how I need the Lord's help today! I need His help to soften my harshness when I am frustrated. I need his help to see the big picture of life when normal life annoyances seem to be overwhelming. I need His help to love and nurture my precious bundle of energy on days when I have none.

So today life gave me some blueberries, I've had my cry and later I will make some muffins!

Do it Yourself Crib Sheet

If you have been reading my blog you know that I am attempting to sew some of my crib bedding in order to save some $$$! So far I have finished the crib sheet and the curtain! They were both relatively easy (and I am a beginner) and they each took just one evening! I now have the crib skirt and quilt left...which are the most intimidating to me!

I did buy a pattern but really didn't use it at all! I found some good tutorials on-line and they were the most helpful! Patterns to me are like reading a foreign language (even the ones that are supposed to be for dummies!)

Here are my steps:

1. Wash and dry your fabric so it will shrink before you sew it!

2. Cut a 45 by 70 inch rectangle. (I found several different measurements on-line!)

3. Cut out a 9 inch square out of paper of scrap fabric for a template! (I also found several diff. sizes for this too!)

4. Cut a 9 inch square out of each of the four corners. Your sheet will look like this.

5. Iron your ends under all around! There is a fancy sewing term for this....but just fold 1/4 under and iron and then 1/4 under again so that when you sew there will be no stray ends to fray.

6. Sew around your sheet.

7. Now for a french seem. This is a fancy way to say a way to have a good closed seem. You are going to sew parts where you cut out the squares to forms the pockets of your sheet! You sew the the two right sides tog. which feels like you are really messing up. Then trim any excess. Flip to the back and sew the wrong sides. When you open it...it will be right!

8.Elastic! This was the part I was the most unsure about as i have had very little exp. using elastic. You cut (4) 10 inch strips of 1/4 in. elastic. You will fold the elastic in half and match the middle of the elastic to the french seem you just created! Start in the middle and use a zig-zag stitch and sew over the elastic as you pull it! This is all you do. Make sure to back stitch your ends. Do this to each corner.

9. You now have a crib sheet! Woo Hoo!

22 Months Today!

This was about the best picture I could get! It is hard to get a decent picture of a busy little one!

Ella is 22 months today and I cannot believe how fast it is going. It seems like the months and years just fly! She is such a joy to her daddy and I. She is growing, learning and changing so much!

Ella at 22 months:

-is talking all the time! I love when she says "dank do mommy!"

-Is super apologetic! Anytime she gets in trouble it is soon followed by "sorry!" She sometimes gets sorry and excuse me confused and if she bumps into something always says "sorry!" I hope she will always be sensitive like this!

-She loves to be outside and is super energetic!

-She loves to help her daddy! She always tells me she is gonna help daddy work! They take out the trash and he lets her help him fix things around the house. He is so patient with her and gives her a screw driver and lets her help! Maybe she'll be handy like her daddy!

-She loves playing with her babies. She is really starting to pretend play! I love to watch it! The other day her baby got in trouble and she put her in time-out! It was hilarious because in a firm little voice she told the baby to sit...walked away and told me that baby was sad. She then went back to the door (our time-out spot) asked baby if she was happy....got the baby up and hugged and kissed it! She was copying me to a T! Can you tell we have done this a lot!

-She is still a picky eater! She loves apples, mac and cheese some days, chicken some days, veggie straws from costco, oranges, cherries, and well...that is about it. She has a mind of her own when it comes to eating and has from day 1! This is always stressful for mommy!

-She knows our town and where things are. She knows where to turn for church, her grandparents house, target, wal-mart, her cousins house, the doctor, etc.

-She loves to for us to sing! Her favorites are "If your happy and you know it!" and "Love somebody!"

-She is now praying at our meals (copying our words) which is so sweet to hear.

-She loves to look at her scrapbook and pulls it out almost everyday! She also likes to look at Sam-ewls and tells us Jesus which means he lives with Jesus! I love that this is just common understanding to her.

We love her and thank the Lord everyday for blessing us with her. The wait for her was long and painful, but was so worth it! I am so thankful that the Lord waited and gave us her. I am thankful that God knows what he is doing when he blesses with children. I am thankful he has a plan for us and also a plan for ella. I cannot wait to see what the Lord will do in and through her as she grows to know Him!