Jennylou's Projects

Long time since I posted

2011-11-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

I'm just so busy! Nursing school is super time consuming. The other night I was sitting on the couch and my husband looked at me and asked "where is your book?". I did get it out a few minutes later. :) He's very used to watching tv and asking me a question about it and me being like, "huh?" because I'm really not watching. But, we're spending time together, right? ;) I'm passing both classes and am looking forward to Thanksgiving break. A whole four days with no classes, woohoo! Actually, five for me, since I don't have classes on Wednesdays anyways. :)

The kids are all doing great!

Nora is in Kindergarten and learning so much. She suddenly seems very old to me.

Josh also seems much older to me, I still think of him as like an 18 month old. The other day he was walking away from me and I realized that he's BIG.

Charlotte is almost nine months old and a sweetie!

I'm still avoiding dairy, soy, corn, wheat, peanuts and all artificial stuffs (sugars/colors/flavors). She does well on this diet, and I do too! I'm down almost 90 pounds and am about to say adios to Lane Bryant! :)

Sean's still loving his new job. :) He seems to be doing well at it, which is a big plus. His company is having a party in December. They provide hotel rooms too, sounds swanky, though we'll be skipping the hotel room on account of the nursling. ;)

I took my IBCLC exam over the summer and results just came out last week. I'm proud to now call myself and IBCLC.

Random pics of the kids and some of me currently and before.

More weight loss pics

2011-05-25T18:12:00.001-07:00

So, I'm down a bit more, official weigh in will be Friday, but tentatively, it looks like 60 pounds down. The pink shirt that I'm wearing today is loose and baggy, it used to be tight and very unflattering. The arms used to cut into my arms and leave marks, due to the elastic in them. I'm not sure that it looks like that much of a difference in the photos, but I notice that my pants are getting looser. Obviously, I'm wearing jeans in the first photo and pants in the second, I probably should have worn the same thing. ;)

Weight loss

2011-05-13T15:03:00.000-07:00

Due to some allergies that Charlotte has, I've eliminated a lot of food from my diet. It started with just dairy and soy, expanded to wheat and finally to peanuts. And then the big whammy - the TED (total elimination diet) - where I ate chicken, veggies (minus peas) and fruit (minus berries). I did dairy/soy from about the time Charlie was about a month. I did the TED for about three weeks, and last week added beef and tomatoes back. It has been challenging. The upside is that the weight just falls right off. I'm 52 pounds down since I delivered. Here are a few photos I've pulled together.

I wasn't pregnant here, this was summer 2009, at my top weight. I was, however, one pound from this weight while pregnant.

Then in the spring of 2010, I went and lost some weight. I think it was roughly about 10-15 pounds more than today.

Around Christmas, please remember I was pregnant - due 2/2, so pretty far along. But, I put it in so you can see my legs and my arms on the other picture, the sleeves kept bunching up as they'd gotten too tight on my arms.

Wednesday:

Bedroom progress

2011-04-03T17:12:00.000-07:00

In an effort to get Josh and Nora into the front bedroom, we are doing some freshening up. The room needs new curtains as we've never had more than sheers up (and they've since pulled them down). There are two twin beds, but no headboards for them. So, we went to Home Depot yesterday and bought the wood for these beds, designed by Ana White:
http://www.ana-white.com/2010/07/furniture-plans-twin-storage-headboard.html We're not doing the headboards for now, just the base of the bed. The plain is to paint them white.

In addition to curtains, I'm thinking new bedding is in order. I wanted some stripes for each of them, like this: http://www.potterybarnkids.com/room/rom/romsha/romshabsb/?cm_type=lnav, but can't find exactly what I want that isn't super expensive. So, now I'm thinking perhaps a solid color with some throw pillows and different sheets to differentiate between the two. For instance, Josh loves Mickey and Nora is still very much a Dora gal. But, she's also outgrowing Dora, so I wouldn't want to get her Dora bedding (though, she does have some handed down from a cousin). I like to buy bedding that can be used again and again, simply by changing things up. Sort of like this: http://www.potterybarnkids.com/room/rom/romsha/romshaicn/?cm_type=lnav So, any cute bedrooms that you've seen lately that is for siblings of different genders?

Busy, busy over here!

2011-04-03T16:54:00.001-07:00

Charlotte is growing quickly, she'll be 8 weeks tomorrow! She has had some issues with things in my milk, so I'm off dairy, soy and wheat. Because she is still having issues, I'm thinking that a TED is in my future. On the bright side, I've lost a bunch of weight since the birth and am now wearing jeans that I bought last spring when I was losing weight and never quite fit into. That said, I eat a lot of eggs and eggs are a no-go on the TED, so I'm going to have to make up some meal plans for things that I can eat! It's all worth it though - to see her not breaking out in rashes and having other issues.

Josh is like a little man now! He just looks so big. He's still my happy guy. :) He has an appointment with a neurologist this month, as his speech therapist says he has signs of apraxia. And he does, as I've researched it and can totally see where she's coming from. Since we started with Help Me Grow, he's gone from three words to 11 (in a year). While to some that might not seem like a lot, Apraxia is where the neurons in the brain misfire to the mouth and his words come out jumbled. Thankfully, we've always used signs with out kiddos from a young age (milk is always the first sign) and thus, even with his limited words, he's still able to communicate fairly well with us. I am pleased to note that he's attempting words more and doing less pointing and grunting. Josh will start preschool in the fall. Our district contracts with a preschool that is able to deal with kids that have special needs. I'm hopeful that Josh makes great strides, so that he can eventually not have to worry about extra help, but for now am thankful that it exists!

Nora has kindergarten screening next week! My little baby is ready to start school! She is going to be attending our parish school, which is where she's at now for preschool. We chose this for a few reasons. One is that she misses our districts cut off, by nine days and they're cheap and won't let anyone in, one person (whom I trust) told me her daughter missed the cutoff by a week and was not let in because she wasn't tall enough. The other reason is that even if they would let her in, I hate their kindergarten schedule. It's either M, W and every other Friday or T, TH and every other Friday. Now, it's all day, but I know that I'd be all sorts of lost every Friday, lol. We need a lot of consistency (because of the next update) and thus, the parish school is perfect for us. Plus, the parish school ranks two grade levels above their peers in the state. In addition, she knows everyone there.

So, why do we need consistency? I've officially been offered a seat in the fall nursing program! I'm super excited, but a bit nervous as well. I know that it's going to be a very intense two years. To that end, if you have a way that you keep track of the entire family and all the events going on in a way that will be easy for everyone to access - please post and let me know! We have Dr appts, schooling (three different schools next year), the sitter, DHs work, my clinicals, lab and lecture, plus running the house, my volunteering, birthday parties, holiday parties, family obligations, etc, etc! Clearly, we need something that will organize us! I'd love for it to have a digital component - an email to both DH and I every single day on the activities that day would be awesome. But, part of me also thinks we need something colorful for the fridge (where we are both likely to see it daily). Maybe a combination of both. Maybe a monthly fridge calendar AND daily reminders? If there's an app for the daily emails, let me know! I'm sitting for my IBCLC Boards in July this year! :)

Sean just got a raise (well, it is effective April 1, so we'll see it next pay)! Woot! I'm so happy for him and proud of his success!

Next up...a project :).

party of five....

2011-02-26T14:44:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile, like the end of December of 2010. I suppose I should start my 2011 posting, ahem.

For starters, our family became a party of five...

And for the birth story....
On Saturday, February 5th I woke up with contractions. They became as close as 7 minutes apart. Sean, I fear, called his sister too early and when she arrived, they sort of fizzled out to every 10 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, etc. Completely random and not at all in any pattern at that point. Totally not her fault, it just stalled me out. She stayed the night thinking it would happen overnight. But, alas, it didn't. She went home the next morning and we putzed around the house. Contractions were about 15-20 minutes apart all day. It was cold that day, so we just stayed in. We even skipped mass on account of the contractions.

So, that Sunday was Super Bowl Sunday. Pittsburgh Steelers versus Greenbay Packers. We're Cleveland Browns fans, so we naturally turned in to cheer for the Packers. ;) Around 9:30 pm, I noticed that my contractions were starting to pick back up. When the game ended, my contractions were about every 8-10 minutes apart. I decided to take a shower, knowing that if it was the real deal, the shower would not slow these contractions down. So, I hopped in the shower and the shower did not slow my contractions down. The shower felt great though! After showering, I decided I would go to bed - thinking I'd be awake early in the morning. When I laid down, I noticed the contractions were coming every five minutes. After three contractions, I jumped out of bed because it was too much to be laying down. I continued timing my contractions and around 11:45 I called the midwives answering service to page the midwife on call. The person who answered the call told me that Erin would be calling me back shortly. The contractions were coming even quicker at this point and Sean asked me if he should call his sister, I told him yes. By midnight, contractions were one on top of another. Sean called his sister who said she was on her way. Despite the fact that my midwife still hadn't returned my call, I went outside to be ready for his sister. She arrived around 12:10 am. I would say that I jumped into the truck, but between contractions and being hugely pregnant, I'm sure it actually took me a few minutes just to get into the truck. Sean drove quickly to the hospital, briefly stopping at the two red lights before running them (one was a right turn, so not as bad as the left turn he ran). I could not sit in the truck so instead I sort of kneeled. Sean said if the window would have been down, I'd have probably jumped out.

Thankfully, the hospital installed an entrance with an elevator directly to the OB unit when they remodeled, so we went directly to the OB unit and didn't have to make our way through the ER or any other part of the hospital - which was a very good thing. We made our way to the third floor and we started walking towards the nursing desk. But, every time I had a contraction, we'd stop and I'd hang on to the rail on the wall. We got halfway to the desk when a nurse came and found us. And then another nurse, Marianne, came out of triage to see who was in labor in the hall. She left a stable, only 4 cm dilated patient in triage and came to help Hannah (who was in her first week of night shift!). Marianne sort of took the lead, getting me in a gown and on the bed to be checked. I was 8 cm dilated. Marianne asked what I was feeling. Between loud groans, I told her pain from the contractions and pressure. Boy, did that get some movement. Right away, she was on the phone with the midwife, Erin (who was on her way due to the patient in triage). Erin informed her that I was a VBAC, which seemed to freak out both Marianne and Hannah until I informed them that I'd already had two VBACs since my c/s. One of them went to the OR to find out how soon the c/s would be over to see if the house Dr would be available to catch the baby.

And then, despite Marianne's urging me to blow through the pushes and my best efforts to do so(haha!), 18 minutes after I arrived at the hospital, at 12:38 am, our baby girl, Charlotte Jane (nn Charlie) arrived after just a few pushes. Marianne got to catch her first baby and Hannah got to see exactly what happens when you're short staffed, the house Dr is doing a surgery and no other person is around to handle an imminent delivery. At that point, Marianne and Hannah began to do things like start an IV (just in case of a hemorrhage to push pit), draw blood and ask general intake questions.

Erin, the midwife, arrived about ten minutes later, just in time to deliver the placenta. She also ordered the pit for me at that point because I was losing too much blood. I had a second degree tear (right on that old, unneeded episiotomy site), so she stitched me up. Erin had never returned my page, but I learned that she got a blank page and called back the patient in triage thinking it was her again. They had problems the next morning with the answering service when they called every midwife but the one that was on call (they do 7am to 7pm). Erin felt horrible because she felt like she could have prevented me from tearing. She said that she hardly ever has to do any repairs because she prevents nearly all of them.

Here's the proud papa, who started calling people to let them know Charlie was here.
When he called his sister, she thought he was calling just to let her know that we had arrived. She was shocked that he was calling to say we'd had a GIRL!

She was 8 pounds, 2 ounces at birth. She dropped five ounces after 24 hours, but rebounded by an ounce in the next 24 hours. My milk came in quickly, I've nursed long enough now that my body remembers exactly what to do. ;) Here's Charlie, all cleaned up and sleeping:

As of breastfeeding support group Wednesday night, she was 9 pounds, 6 ounces - at 16 days old. Yes, she met and way exceeded the goal of back to birth weight by two weeks old. She's a nursing champ! So far, she has a sweet disposition, just like her older brother Josh. :)

A quick year in review - projects

2010-12-31T07:01:00.001-08:00

I've seen a number of these types of posts floating around and I thought that I would go ahead and compile my own. I've been busy with school and with a lactation mentorship, so my sewing was scattered and not at all regular.

Pink, black and white apron. Became part of my sister's Christmas gift. :)

Black, red and white apron. I think this is my favorite apron from the whole year. And it sold. :)

Steeler apron #1 - My sister snagged this one from me for a gift. Hopefully the gift recipient likes it. She's a huge Steeler's fan, so she just might. ;)

Steeler's apron number 2. This one will be on it's way soon to the intended gift recipient. I'm just bad with the mail.

Another of my faves. It didn't sell, so I kept this one for myself. Because we all need a cute apron (or eight). ;)

Apron for the Christmas flirty apron swap.

One of two identical aprons. One went to my mom for Christmas, the other one is still here. I'll keep it on hand for a quick gift.

The couch recover. I've since washed the cushion covers and as predicted, they shrunk, so they fit much better. It's slightly concerning that I prepped the fabric and it still shrinks every single time in the wash because I don't know how long they'll last at this rate. After all, I've got young kids, making washing often necessary!

I did start and not finish a number of crochet projects. I need to get back into that - as I'd like to make the newest little one on the way a blanket. Plus, I'm teaching myself to knit. So far, I like it, but I can see me tossing it to the side because right now I'm just practicing - not really making anything. I could make so much more with crocheting and the time spent. I have a scarf for DD almost done but ran out of yarn, went to a different JoAnn's and they were out of that color, so I need to go back and get some of that yarn yet. Also, I made a cowl for my sister for Christmas. I didn't take a picture of it, but my sister snapped one of her husband in it. It's very warm and fluffy.

All in all, a light year in terms of craftiness. Maybe 2011 will be better. I'm almost hoping it won't - as I'm hoping to finally start nursing clinicals in the fall. But, maybe I'll have some time between now and then, you know, despite being about to welcome another newborn home. :)

Christmas sewing....

2010-11-29T07:51:00.002-08:00

I had a whole post written about various Christmas sewing that I'm undertaking, but alas, a spool of cotton yarn fell off the back of my desk and knocked the plug out of my computer. I don't feel like writing the post completely over, so let's just say that I have lots of Christmas sewing to do - both to sell and for gifts.

And here's where I started - with a swap apron. I still have to buy the tuck ins, since I've been sick this weekend and haven't ventured out since Friday. I also don't recommend sewing while having a sinus headache, because you'll likely end up like me, with her seam ripper the next day. Ooops.

And, I also discovered that my coat rack works wonders for taking pics of aprons (not perfect, but the best I could do - and no, the houndstooth is not in the apron, that's my daughter's "fancy coat"), since when I put the apron on to take a self photo, I realized that my big baby belly just got in the way, lol.

Christmas decorating

2010-11-28T05:22:00.000-08:00

We're hosting Christmas this year, including for my lovely sister, BIL and my mom. Because they'll be venturing from California and Montana, we're busy here prepping the house. General organizing has been happening since October. It's amazing how quickly I've filled up tubs and tubs of kids clothes (out of season, too small), bags of Goodwill donations and yet, we could probably still fill dozens more totes and bags! We have some time before they arrive, so we'll continue to purge stuff out of our house - it's good for when they come to visit, but it's also good nesting for me. Speaking of nesting, this baby is due in just about 8 weeks. Not sure how that happened!

Oh, back to Christmas decorating. Yesterday I brought up all the decorations and the tree from the basement. Very tiring for a pregnant woman! I then set the tree up, scratched my arms up arranging the lights and branches (yes, we use a fake tree) and then set about decorating. The pictures aren't the greatest, as they're taken by my itouch, but I didn't feel like bringing out the camera. I'm sure I will at some point. And, I didn't take a picture of all the decorations evidently, I was too tired.

Finally finished those couch cushions...

2010-11-28T05:01:00.000-08:00

It took way longer than I anticipated. Not because they took a long time, but because it took me a long time to get motivated. In the end they came out okay, not the best, but certainly better than what they were. The cushions look a little big, compared to the cover itself - but, the cover has been washed about five times since I made it, and has shrunk a bit each time. I expect the same thing to happen to the cushions over time, so I purposely made them a bit big to start with. This couch takes a beating, with a two and a four year old being the primary beaters, so it is good that the fabric washes up so nicely. Now we just have to hope that it stops shrinking! The couch is so comfortable and even though it's our main couch, one day when we can afford to buy a new couch, this couch will be kept for a basement rec room couch - it's that comfortable, I just won't be able to part with it until it falls apart. Since it was built well, I'm hoping that day is a long, long way off.

Without further ado, here is the couch today vs what it started as:

For more before pictures, and to see just how bad it was, see this post. At some point, I'll probably add a pleat around the bottom like it had before, since as it shrinks, it rides up a bit, but for now, I'm going to leave it as it. ;)

The weather is cooling down....

2010-10-04T16:58:00.000-07:00

And I'm thinking Halloween! I'm going to be more ambitious than normal and attempt to make Nora's entire costume this year. Last year she went as Little Red Riding Hood. I made the cape and her apron, but the rest was just things that I pulled from her closet. Still, I got lots of compliments on her apron, so I'm going to attempt to go all out this year. I want to be super mom this year. ;)

ahem, yes, it's been another month...

2010-09-27T16:11:00.001-07:00

I've been busy. Completely my 500 hours for my lactation mentorship, studying for school, reading for the lactation exam and shuttling my kids around.

Nora started back to school and is doing well.
It's her second year of preschool and I was initially apprehensive about the fact that the school switched teachers, but so far, it seems great. Nora grew socially last year, but there wasn't really an academic focus for her, since it was geared towards things that she already knew. This year, she's starting to identify lowercase and uppercase letters. I can tell that things are clicking with her when we're reading books now! She can recognize letters and even a few words (mom, dad and her name for now). It's so exciting!

She misses our school districts cut off for Kindergarten next year by 9 days, as the cutoff is Aug 1. They'll test her, but from what I understand, pretty much no one passes their tests. One woman told me her daughter was short for her age and didn't get a point for height and ended up one point short. For reals. I am a public school product and really thought that we would go that route, but it's now looking that at least for Kindergarten, she'll be going to our Parish school. I'm not entirely upset about this for now. It's five days per week full days, whereas the local school district is split into two groups, the Monday/Wednesday class and the Tuesday/Thursday class. They go all day on their assigned days, plus every other Friday. Can you say scheduling nightmare? Especially since I should be in nursing clinicals by then?

Josh is still receiving early intervention through the Help Me Grow program, for his speech delay. Cognitively and Gross Motor skills are ahead of the pack, Fine Motor skills are the only other area that he is even close to borderline on, and I'm told that it's common for a speech delayed child to have some Fine Motor skills that are slower in emerging. And, let's face it, this boy is all about the Gross Motor skills at this point. He climbs, jumps, does stairs, etc. Josh has several words that he uses very regularly: mommy, daddy, 'kay, go, kitty and his new word that emerged this weekend was sissy! Yay, so happy to hear that one. :) He also signs, with his big ones being please and more. The EI Specialist and his EI Coordinator are impressed that despite his speech delay he is able to readily communicate his needs. They note that he shows his emotions well (his smile does light up a room if I do say so myself) and he's generally just good about pointing and letting people know his needs.

All is going well with this pregnancy. I think I'm 23 weeks along (yes, I said think....that's what happens when you have a few to chase down, you can't keep track as well). We're members of Team Green (and no, I'm not talking earth friendly here, rather the want to wait and find out group). :)

I skipped a whole month, oops

2010-08-06T12:13:00.001-07:00

So, apparently, I haven't posted since June. Ooops. That's what taking microbiology in an 8 week summer session does to one, I guess. That class kicked my rear end. Thankfully, I passed (with a C, which I normally would have been upset over, but oh, heck no, it was just fine!). I got sick one week, then Nora, then Josh, then Nora got it again. Did I mention it was an 8 week class? Yeah, that's a lot of sickies in 8 weeks.

I haven't been doing much in the way of projects or craftiness. I plan to remedy that. :) My fall term looks pretty mellow - all online classes. I still haven't finished the couch, though it's a big part of this month's plans. I will finish in August. :P

I guess the only think that I've been working on this summer is baking. Baking a new baby. ;) I'm 15 weeks pregnant (heard the heartbeat today!) and due in January. I plan on a few projects in anticipation of the baby arriving. You know, things like moving rooms around to make room for a new little one. :)

Progress on the couch

2010-06-03T12:56:00.000-07:00

The actual couch portion of the slipcover didn't take me too long and I think it turned out fantastic! The seat cushions, however, are way more time consuming! I've been working on one this afternoon. ONE. It's done, minus the closure (and I haven't decided how I'm going to close it). Sean thinks that I should close the backs with snaps, but I can seem to find the actual snap press to do so. I'm sure I'll find it, it's just that currently my sewing stuff is in two different rooms (well three, since I took over the dining room too!). :P

Each seat cushion has been double stitched, which also adds to the time investment per seat cushion. I'm sure being as it was the first one, made it take longer as well.

I think I'm going to work on the back cushions next because I think they'll go way quicker than the seat cushions and at least I'll feel like I've gotten more accomplished!

Please ignore the fabric mess in the second picture. :) I'm still working now and that's my great cutting surface - the floor. ;)

A project finished

2010-06-01T06:05:00.001-07:00

l
Slightly under nine years ago, Sean and his dad built a new porch, really small, just to enter and exit the kitchen because the cement stairs there at the time were just not cutting it (no hand rail, not even, separating from the door, etc). Well, they built the stairs and they built the floor, but never put any side rails on it. With Nora, she always stayed close and we never had any fears of her jumping. But, with Josh, well, we did. So, Sean finally built the rails to surround the porch. It's fantastic, now I don't need to wonder where Josh is while trying to unlock the door! Now he just needs to build a nice handrail to match!

In the next few days, I'll have some pictures of the basement - as we've been working down there as well. All we're working on is walls and floors, not getting too fancy with a ceiling or anything. ;) We've set him up an office, just in case he gets a job working from home (and also to get all his stuff in one place - anyone with a husband in the IT field can understand that you have lots of crap, particularly if he does both hardware and software). We're also going to work on the main area in the basement, tossing up a few walls (to block off the sump pump, water heater and furnace) and finish painting walls and floors.

So there's a party going on....

2010-06-01T05:23:00.000-07:00

And it's for the ugliest couch. I'm pretty sure that I've e got it. The thing about this ugly couch? It's so comfortable. I adore it for it's comfortableness. It's also very old, it was Sean's great Aunt and Uncle's couch. It's solid. None of that cheap crap that they make today, kwim?

So, what makes it so ugly? Well, clearly the pattern is old and dated. I'm sure it was fantastic during it's prime. Also, notice that it's white? Well, it should be white, I know, it's pretty dirty. We used to have a 90 pound black lab that would jump on the couch - especially when the couch was in front of the front window because then he could see (and bark at) his squirrel friends. Add in a few kids and well, the couch is now stained and even torn (part dog, part kids). But there are parts that are worn through (like on the arms) that clearly were not caused by kids or dogs, but rather, probably just age of the material. We try to position the torn cushions upside down so that it doesn't look totally hideous, but if the kids put it back together (because the love tearing it all apart), you never know what you'll walk into.

Here it is.

The torn arm.

Notice the marker here?

And the many tears....

It might be the last time anyone sees the ugliness though, since I bought some fabric yesterday for a slipcover. I'll be slipcovering the main part of the couch and also making individual cushions. Everything will be removable, because, as most of my momma friends can attest to, kids make messes. ;)

Five years ago...

2010-05-20T04:53:00.000-07:00

I became a mom. After 17 hours of labor, I ended up having a c-section for fetal distress and failure to progress. We spent two days with our little man.

The Dance, by Garth Brooks always makes me think of my little boy.

Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared beneath the stars above
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known you'd ever say goodbye
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I the king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance

Happy Heavenly Birthday, Andrew Wyatt.

School's out for....

2010-05-17T18:48:00.000-07:00

Well, school's out for a few weeks at least. I have an online medical terminology class that will start the end of this month and last for ten weeks. I'm also taking Microbiology, but that doesn't start until June 7th and lasts for 8 weeks. I have a feeling it's going to kick my butt this summer. I might be slightly possessed to be taking it over the summer. I'm also going to take a one credit, two day course in cpr for healthcare workers in early June.

Sean has a few more finals this week, but he graduates on Saturday! I'm so proud that he went back. He'll graduate with two associate degrees, one in software development and one in web development. I hope that at some point he'll go on to finish up his Bachelor's degree.

As for me, I'll be renewing my name on the applicant list this August, but I'll also be applying to a few BSN programs as well. It'll take a year longer in most cases (3 versus 2), but since I don't know when I'd start the ADN program, it might work out to less than 1 year.

My view - Top 5 baby items you'll need

2010-05-11T06:30:00.000-07:00

I recently read an article by yahoo finance about the top 5 things that you need for a baby and they are pretty far off the mark. Here's a link to their top 5. As a side note, since the author didn't include items like diapers, wipes and clothes, I'll omit them as well. :)

Here are my top 5 things you'll need for a baby:
1) An awesome sling or wrap. I think wraps are fantastic as they're forgiving on size and allow you two hands of freedom. Plus, there's tons of holds that you can do with a wrap. A good sling is a nice alternative though. I've had both and would pick a wrap over a sling, for it's versatality.

2) Car seat - look, even if you live in the city, you have to have one in order to leave the hospital. This isn't a purchase that I ever buy used on, either. You can borrow from a close friend or family member if the seat hasn't been in an accident and isn't past its expiration date - which, for most seats, is six years. This is the only one that I agree with from Yahoo's list. I like an infant bucket seat when the babies are younger than six months old, but switch around that point as they become to burdensome to carry and to awkward to just leave in the car. For that reason, I recommend the Graco Snugride (not the 30 pound one). Great seat, easy to use and install and come with bases so that you can outfit more than one car as a baby mobile more easily.

3) A great double electric pump. Okay, so you're not going back to work, so you don't really need, nor can afford the double electric pump? Then buy a decent hand pump. The Medela Harmony or the Avent Isis. Both are good hand pumps that retail under $35. They usually both come with a bottle too, so you might not even need to buy number 4 on my list.

4) Bottles - contrary to the Yahoo Finance article's suggestion, you do not need to buy several sizes of bottles. Try the ones that came with your pump first, if those don't work buy another kind. Breastfed babies can be somewhat finicky with artificial nipples and bottles, you have to find what works for you. As to the suggestion that you'll need larger bottles, I call major shenanigans on that one. Most breastfed babies aren't sucking down 6-8 ounces per feeding. They typically take what they would get at the breast, a normal amount being about 2-4 ounces. There are some breastfed babies that are super amazing (as is mommas milk supply) and can quickly nurse 8 ounces, but those babies are the rarity, and not the norm. I have no scientific journals to back this up, this is all personal opinion, having spent the last year as a volunteer weighing babies at a breastfeeding support group.

5) A good swaddling blanket. The ones sold in stores are usually too small, so look for large ones as a swaddle is so important for super young babies. Some people have friends or family make them some larger blankets - super easy as you just need flannel and to either serge the edges or to finish the edges with a sewing machine.

As for a place to put baby, well you have the infant car seat if you need it. Or you can try putting the babe in your partner's arms (or a grandparent, etc). While a swing or bouncy seat are essential to some babies, they aren't for all. We got our use out of our Fisher Price Papasan Swing with my daughter - she loved it. My son was just as content to lay on a blanket on the floor. Different babies, different personalities, and all that.

Finally, as to author Stacey Bradford's assertion that "of course, you'll also need clothing, formula and diapers", well, I can agree with the clothing and diapers. I completely disagree with the notion that you'll need formula. While supplementation is sometimes needed for medical reasons, for the majority of nursing babies, supplementation is not needed. What's needed is support for the breastfeeding mom, so instead of putting a can of baby formula in your kitchen for just in case or taking that free formula bag, why not find the name of a local IBCLC as well as the meeting times and dates of local breastfeeding support groups (or la leche league meetings). If, for some reason formula is needed, worry not....there are tons of stores open 24 hours a day, no need to keep that can of formula tempting you at 2 am because the baby isn't sleeping and you're tired (it gets better, I promise!).

Life is busy

2010-05-02T20:49:00.000-07:00

I actually go to class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. My other classes this semester are all online. Wanna know what my next two weeks look like? A&P II lab final test, Digestive System test, Reading Day HAPS test (I'm not sure what to expect, but it's bonus just for taking it) and finally A&P II final exam. Yep, two solid weeks of tests.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it here or not, but I'll be all finished with my support classes for the nursing program this summer. All I have left is Microbiology and I'm taking that, along with Medical Terminology this summer. My apparent wait for the nursing program at my local community college is at least until Fall of 2011. I met my pre-reqs in August 2009 and got onto the list for the applicant pool. The college likes to boast that they have no wait list, but um, they really do. :P

I'm considering applying for some BSN programs, as it would only take another year to finish. In addition, I'm going to be doing a mentorship to become an IBCLC over this next year, and then will hopefully sit for those boards next July. I'm excited to do that! When I finally do get into and finish nursing school, my hope is to work L&D, so I'm hoping that will help!

And with that, I'm off to bed!

A review...

2010-04-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

So, life is really exciting around here! We were recently in need of a new vacuum as ours just wasn't doing a great job. While shopping at Target (you know, the place you go for q-tips and walk out spending $100?) we happened upon the vacuum aisle. Sean started checking out the various models, I lovingly stroked the sides of some Dyson's and I thought we would be on our way, but Sean insisted I look at his new favorite vacuum, the Hoover Wind Tunnel Rewind. After I looked at it a bit, I noticed that it was on sale, marked down to $99 from $149. I was sold as that was my price limit on a new vacuum.

It's very cool! The cord rewinds automatically when you press a button. I know many who hate winding the cord will enjoy this feature. In addition, it has all sorts of cool little gizmos and gadgets on it. But perhaps my favorite feature is that it has a washable liftetime hepa filter. You have to let it dry for 24 hours, but still, washable! Our last vacuum had a filter that cost almost as much as the vacuum itself. We never replaced it.

Finally, the first time I vacuumed with it, it wasn't a particularly bad day at our household. If you have kids, you likely know what I mean, some days are way worse than others in the vacuuming department. This was a typical day for us and yet it filled half of the canister. I think it was picking up stuff that the old vacuum had left behind. Now, to understand our carpeting situation, we have one room of carpet - the dining room. The worst possible room ever for carpeting (it will be getting yanked out soon and the hardwood's redone) and then the living room has a very big area rug in it. I love that this vacuum can go on the plush dining room carpet, the bare floors and the low pile area rug without adjusting the settings.

I'm very pleased with the money that we spent on this vacuum. We've had it a few weeks and I still love it. :)

What to do, what to do...

2010-04-24T08:27:00.000-07:00

It's a rainy Saturday here. We need a good nap time today for the kids, for good study time for mom and dad. But, what to do on a chilly, rainy spring morning? There's the Green Fest in North Ridgeville, but that promises to be a soggy mess. There's the library, but that probably wont' get enough energy out of the kids. And energy do the kids need to spend! This morning, Nora, supposedly going to the bathroom ruined my phone. Now, you might be thinking, what was your phone in the bathroom for, and well, let's just say that I forgot it last night when I was taking it out of my pants. So, yeah, partially my fault I suppose. I found it a soggy mess. To be fair, the phone is about six years old. My phone, that was decent, but not fancy, broke last fall. The phone quit picking up my voice. For a few days, Sean and I would have conversations that lasted like this.

Sean: "okay, I need to ask you a question, press one button for yes, and two buttons for no" Got it.
Me: press one random button.

Then my husband would ask me a question and I would respond, with one button or two. Around that time, my ILs purchased new phones for themselves and gave me FILs old phone. So, this has been the very crappy phone I've been using for the last six months or so. Now, to be fair, I'm very thankful for it, because we had no extra funds to purchase a new phone and we weren't eligible for an upgrade.

But, I am eligible for an upgrade now. Blackberries are buy one for $29.99 get one free right now, but unfortunately, I can't afford the $50 per month it would cost in additional data charges that it would cost us. On the other hand, I really don't want to have the basic, basic, basic phone because, well, they're ugly. But the phones in between the blackberry and the basic phone have additional charges on them as well. I guess I'll have to go into Verizon today and find out exactly what my options are.

Although I would, love, love, love a blackberry, I think perhaps, an itouch would meet my need of wanting internet access on a little gadget. And, the itouch would also allow me to put educational type applications on it - things that will help me in nursing school (you know, when I finally make it off the wait list, er applicant pool list).

I've been a bad, bad blogger

2010-04-23T05:40:00.000-07:00

I'm having a heck of a time finding time for blog posting these days. We're in the midst of the craziness of the last few weeks of spring semester. I feel like I have a test or quiz every few days, papers due, etc. I don't think I have any tests next week, but I have a lab final test the following Tuesday, so I'm preparing to sink my teeth into a review this weekend of the anatomy of reproductive, respiratory, cardio, veins and arteries, digestive and urinary systems in preparation for that final.

I'd like to promise that things will get better, but I can't. Summer courses will be here before you know it, and I have class on campus four days per week during the summer. I'm taking Microbiology in eight weeks, Lord help me! I might be crazy. That's half the amount of time that it normally takes, with all the information still there to learn.

The kids and I have managed many little trips out. We are usually at a local park once a week or more, which feels pretty good since the weather is still rather iffy. We've been to the zoo every few weeks, which we really love to do. We got a recent deal on the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for only $30, so we can't wait to add that to our things to do list. We can activate the membership anytime until August, so we might wait a few months on that. Our zoo membership will expire around September, so that will be a nice replacement. Although, hopefully we get gifted another year which is how we got last years. A gift for the kids birthdays. Best gift ever!

Wednesday we went to Cascade Park. What a fantastic day! We played on the playground and then took a hike. Here's Josh enjoying the swings:

Time at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo

For real? Chocolate Formula?

2010-04-06T06:24:00.001-07:00

That's right, a new formula is on the market folks. This time, it's chocolate formula. Don't believe me?
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4020608&pr_highlight_review_id=15042348&source

One of the saddest parts is the one review who says that it's a great product for newborns. YUCK!

Formula is sometimes needed and I'm not even going to get into the long list of reasons why you should nurse today, today I'm just going to talk about this disgusting formula.

Frankly, it's just wrong. The idea of toddler formula isn't a bad one, especially from the standpoint of Enfamil. It can also lend argument for extended nursing of a toddler. Toddlers are often picky eaters. But, why are they picky eaters? Why are so many young children only eating crap food, food like mac and cheese, chicken nuggets and french fries?

Why? It's because we give them tasteless, bland food. Have you ever tried baby food? Nasty. Every child I know who ate from their parents plates continue to eat what their parents make. Of course, if you're going to feed your child off of your plate, you should take safety precautions and you should make sure that you're eating healthy food.

And why will kids only drink chocolate milk and juice? Why will they not drink any water? It's because we start giving them juice in a bottle! Babies don't need juice! My daughter did not have juice until she was two. She's three and a half now and although she asks for juice first and foremost, she will drink water if she exhausts her other options of milk and apple juice. And that apple juice? Yeah, that's about 8 ounces of water with a splash of apple juice. And, we won't even get into the number of children that demand soda. Soda, demanded from a two year old! My husband's cousin had his two kids one day and she whined for about two minutes before he gave it to her. I said "C, what are you doing? She doesn't need soda, she's two!" to which he responded "it's easier to just give it to her. You'll understand when you have kids". Hey, cousin C, I still don't understand. There's no reason to give your two year old a soda. None. Sure, there is the occasional child who will grab a soda can or a glass, but we're talking about deliberately giving your child a soda.

Chocolate milk? Yeah, the first time my child had chocolate milk was in preschool. This is the same preschool, that when I protested about bad snacks and suggested fruits and vegetables, I was told that the teacher buys healthy things like Ritz crackers and saltines because she has to find things that all the kids would like. My daughter asked for white milk and was told they don't have any.

For me to think of chocolate formula is insane! What are we setting our kids up for when we have these products being pushed at us? And if you think they aren't being pushed, think again. Enfamil, and all the formula companies, do an awesome job of pushing formula on moms. My husbands cousins were amazed by how much free formula the formula companies sent me versus them. Well, the very simple explanation is, I was a breastfeeder and they were formula feeders. They wanted me to wean early to have to rely on formula. They already had them in their pockets.

Now, back to our chocolate formula. Our obesity rates continue to climb. More kids are now obese than ever before. Kids don't know what vegetables are. Kids won't eat vegetables. Kids are drinking juice, soda, etc out of baby bottles and then sippy cups. And now, enter chocolate formula. What a recipe for disaster.

more on jeans...

2010-02-21T12:29:00.000-08:00

Yay! I found jeans! I browsed around Lane Bryant's website and then was able to swing out to North Olmsted after Mass today. Sean sat in the car with the kids while I ran in.

When I went in someone asked me if I needed help and I replied that I was just looking for jeans. Quickly glancing around I notice that they are all distressed, otherwise known as full of holes. For real? The sales woman tells me that they have some great styles, blah, blah, blah. I smile and nod my head and then ask the young whippersnapper for the jeans without holes in them, telling her I tear them easy enough myself, but I'm looking for something more age appropriate without holes in them. She laughs with me and then tells me that they're mainly all distressed, but they have a few left of the ones without the distressing, but that it's slim pickings as they won't be getting another shipment of the Right Fit jeans until July. Yikes! I go over to the one stack of the blue (that would be blue for curvy) and discover that they do not have the size that the online sizing chart tells me that I'll need. So, I grab some that are two sizes smaller than the online chart tells me that I'll need. I also found a few more pairs within the clearance racks, one of which was just one size too big. The sizing chart online runs WAY big, so I'm glad that I went in.

I venture back to the fitting room and I put the one size smaller pants on and um, HUGE. Hey, that's a nice feeling! Then I put on the first pair that are on clearance that are two sizes smaller. A bit loose, but not bad. But they're LONG. I mean, they were marked long, but me being 5'7" you'd think that they wouldn't be super long. Um, wrong. They're about a foot too long. I try on the other pair that are two sizes smaller but a different style. They also fit nicely except for the length. I take both of the two sizes smaller out and have the sales clerk tell me how much they'll be (one is on clearance). That's where I find out that the other pair is also on sale. It's really like getting two for the price of one! So, I bought both, despite knowing I'm going to have to bring out my broken sewing machine. Or maybe I'll have to run over to my mil's house if my sewing machine won't work.

Oh, and not only are there some crazy distressed jeans and some bleach stained jeans, there are gasp.....zippered ankle jeans. For real! The pair I saw in store were much lighter, very reminiscent of 1988.

jeans....

2010-02-17T10:55:00.000-08:00

My favorite pair of jeans bit the bullet recently. They wore out in the thigh area. At first, I patched, like any good seamstress would. I matched the thread to the color of the jeans and patched on the inside. You couldn't tell. I was thrilled. But then two more spots popped up. Now, it wasn't like these jeans were tight - they fit perfectly. I knew that they were destined to rip when I bought them, back in October. I knew because the material was just too soft. But, at $8, who was really going to complain about a pair of jeans that fit. And why did these jeans fit so well? They fit because they had a built in elastic in the waistband. You know, like the one for your kids? Pull the elastic on the inside and put it through the button hole? Yeah, like that. Well, I get horrible back gap in most pants, no matter my size. My hips are large and my stomach is smaller. It's not exactly hour glass right now, but when I'm smaller, that's what I'd call myself. Right now, yeah, not so much.

Anyways, so the jeans were patched again. When two more spots popped up I knew that it was over. The middle portion of the jeans were practically a patch job now and the material was just breaking down everywhere. I have several pair of jeans that fit, but none that are comfortable. One the waist comes up too high. Another is just a smidge tight in the thighs, etc.

Last week, I decided to make a quick trip into the mall on my way to class. AKA = time without the kids. So, I walked in by the store I knew wouldn't fail me - only, Lane Bryant did fail me. Why? Because they closed the store! This particular mall is slowly dying and now my favorite store was gone. How come I wasn't warned? Why didn't someone call me to tell me that they were closing? Surely there were some great sales that I could have scored some good deals at! Alas, no one called and I was sad, but decided to trudge on. I went into Sears (my now retired jeans were bought at Sears) and JcPenney. Why is it that the pants that they sell are only granny style or cut so low that they don't cover my crack?

Hello, designers? I'm talking to you. Yes, I'm a plus sized woman, but I do not want to feel like I'm 70, when I'm only 30. And designers? I'm 30, I have no desire to show my crack. Her's a good litmus test for you - when you design a pair of pants, ask yourself, if a mom was wearing these, can she bend over and pick a small child up without showing off her crack? If so, you've got a winner. Oh, and one more thing, not all of us like jeans that are cut slim in the hip. So, maybe have more than bootcut - slim in the thigh available. Mmmmkay? Thanks.

I'm going to venture to the bigger mall in the next county over soon to check out Lane Bryant. I hope they don't fail me this time.

PS - I hit up two thrift stores later that night. I was able to get some cords and a dressier pair of pants but no jeans. It's slim pickings in the thrift stores too, unless you want to pay $7 for some jeans that had a bleach stain on them.

Time Warner Cable

2010-02-17T10:40:00.000-08:00

Recently, we got a bill from Time Warner Cable that drastically increased our monthly bill. From $106 to $131 per month. That's for basic digital cable, DVR and high speed internet. I called and was told that I was on a promotion package and it's done. The best that they can do is take my bill to $117.84 (before taxes). I told them that I was considering other options. They didn't care. I guess that they'd rather no money from me than the same amount? Unfortunately, I called AT&T and Verizon, neither of them are in our service area. Which means, we're stuck with TWC if we want the joy of high speed internet. What's that? There's DSL? Um, yeah, which is rather like dial up. Been there, done that and we went back to cable.

Unfortunately, with Sean being laid off, we can't exactly afford the increase - either one. I mean, we justified cable right now because it's pretty much our only form of entertainment. The cable internet is easy to justify, I'm taking so many online classes that if we didn't have cable internet, I wouldn't be able to watch the streaming lectures, so I would have to go to campus to take classes. Going to campus = more $ for the sitter. Needless to say, the internet is cheaper than the sitter. ;)

So, we can:
1) Go with the local phone company and get a phone, DSL and satellite dish. It's about what we pay now. The cons are that the DSL is way slower than the cable internet and we'd get next to no channels. I mean, no Bravo? Adding more channels would put us more than we're paying now, which isn't an option (at least not combined with the slow internet).
2) Cancel the cable and DVR and just have the internet. We can watch shows on various websites (abc, cbs, nbc) or on www.hulu.com. We'd also get the converter box to pick up the local channels and PBS. The internet price would got up, but we would still save about $30 per month this way. Cons - no DVR! I love having a DVR. No Nick Jr. Which means we'd need to buy a new DVD player (thanks to the kids, it's broke) and buy more DVDs to keep the kids company for 20 minutes here and there while I get things done.
3) Suck it up, lock into the 2 year rate of $117.84 plus taxes.

I'm thinking. If it was soley my decision, the cable would already be gone, even though I'll miss shows like House Hunters.

Just another update

2010-01-29T12:48:00.000-08:00

School started again = busy.

Sean and Nora were sick this week, but seem to be on the mend now. Nora stayed home from preschool all week since she goes W-F. We thought about sending her today, but she was still sort of out of it today. So, to recap = Daddy and Nora being sick = 3 babies to take care of for mommy. ;)

School started, did I mention that? I have a crap ton of homework to finish before tomorrow, plus a quiz, a test, a paper and studying for an A&P quiz on Tuesday. Um, I'm taking flash cards to bowling tonight.

And because every post needs a picture - I give you one from a few weeks ago in which Josh destroys the living room shortly after I clean it. It's a common theme here. If it's not him, it's Nora or daddy.

Because my sister requested more pictures of the kids

2010-01-07T20:29:00.000-08:00

Josh isn't an easy boy to capture these days. Between his speed and the digital lag, I end up getting a lot of shots of his head, back and sometimes nothing at all!

Not to worry, sister will help!

Nora with daddy.

I love this girl. :)

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

2010-01-06T09:10:00.000-08:00

While some of my friends are complaining left and right over the snow that has *finally* hit our area, I find myself enjoying it. Except for the lack of boots (since my two pair of boots have bit the bust the last two winters), that part sucks.

Here is Nora when we got home from her preschool this morning. I think you might notice something in the window...anyone?

On closer inspection, oh, yeah, now I see...it's my little daredevil. The boy will climb anything. Here he is on the back of the couch looking at mommy and sister. And yes, I'm fully aware that there is a piece of siding missing, it fell off a few weeks ago in some very strong winds.

Nora's preschool holiday concert

2009-12-15T10:23:00.001-08:00

Okay, so it wasn't exactly a concert, but it was still super cute. :) She misplaces gloves left and right and lost her new ones that I bought her the day after Thanksgiving. They were all supposed to wear gloves (not sure why the girl next to her isn't) so I whipped her up some matching gloves, scarf and hat this morning.

Fabric and my completed swap apron

2009-12-12T16:48:00.000-08:00

Nora and I headed to the JoAnn Fabrics again today. Sean thinks she makes a great shopping partner, but I'm not sure how much I believe that. :p She is cute and talks about all the things that she wants to make, but it's harder to shop with her. :) She's decided that she's asking Santa for a sewing machine for Christmas. Now, before you all worry, it's a)cheap and b)somewhat childproof. It does say for kids six and up, but I'm considering getting my 3.5 year old the machine. I know, I know, but I want to instill the love early! Despite having a step mom who sewed, I did not begin to sew until I was a senior in high school - when I took a sewing class! The lovely Mrs Stoner gets all the credit for teaching me to sew. :)

http://www.joann.com/images/00/97/7/xprd9777_z.jpg

Looking at the ad on joann's site, I now see that it says not for under three, though the box still says 6+. So, at least if I get it, we'll only be breaking one rule. ;) If I waited until she was six, I'd probably just get her a regular machine, but since she's so young, I figure this is a good start. Plus, I must admit that I'm in love with the fact that it has a cover for the needle - no oopsie accidents!

Okay, so fabric:

for a Christmas apron:

stupid shadow. this is really pretty though:

the shadows make this look more red, but it's more purples with lighter pink flowers.

And finally, an apron that I made for the latest swap that I participated in:

Christmas party

2009-12-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we had the pleasure of going to Sean's cousins annual Christmas party. I wish I'd have found enough material cheaply to make a nice wrap, but I didn't, so I tried to make a cheap ring sling work instead. It wasn't comfortable and Josh was having very little to do with it. I'd have been better off using our MT or the fleece pouch sling. Josh gets rather sleepy around 8 pm each night and although he will go to sleep, there was just far too much stimulation going on for him. I know I could have gotten him to sleep, but I'm afraid that because of the action and lack of good wrap (that would make a nice, cozy spot for him) we decided to leave around 8:45. I wish we could have stayed longer, but I know it'll get better each year with littles. Nora had an awesome time and could have stayed longer.

Here are some pictures. Nora had just eaten chocolate, can you tell?

Santa arrives!

Gifts from Santa:

White Christmas apron swap!

2009-11-19T16:54:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited to be participating in a Christmas apron swap. We're swapping based upon favorite Christmas carols, and I think I forgot to put on my form that I love almost all Christmas carols. So, if you've got me and you're here trying to find hints about me, I'll say that I love Harry Connick Jr's Christmas albums. I love Rocking Around the Christmas Tree, Silent Night, O Holy Night, Jingle Bells, White Christmas, I'll Be Home For Christmas, Silver Bells, Let it Snow, It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Joy to the World....LOL, I love almost all Christmas music. It'll be playing non stop starting the day after Thanksgiving for me. :)

Ah, I failed...

2009-11-18T04:09:00.000-08:00

Tuesdays are my busy days and I completely forgot to make a post for yesterday. Bummer. Oh well, I'll continue to try and make a post the rest of the week.

So, for the moms out there - how do you organize your kids toys? Seems like several storage solutions need employed - some smaller bins for smaller toys and then larger toy boxes for the larger items? I'm looking for ideas - preferably cheap! :)

Monday so soon?

2009-11-16T17:51:00.000-08:00

Seems like Mondays just come way too quickly!

Yesterday I did a ton of cleaning and decluttering in the kitchen. It looks so much better and I feel so much better about it. Now to conquer the toys! Doing a bit each day, hopefully by early next week I'll be able to declare victory on the toys. ;)

Off to study for my last weekly A&P lab quiz!

Sunday and I'm still going...

2009-11-15T15:53:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish my sister and her hubby a very happy and safe trip to Ireland. She just texted me a lovely picture of the two of them on the airplane, here it is:

Hope you have an awesome time and I can't wait to see some lovely pictures when you get home!

Aw, Saturday....

2009-11-14T08:45:00.000-08:00

Well, I did not get everything done on my list yesterday. Oh well, hopefully today I'll manage to cross some things off of my list.

Sean is out cutting wood right now, but when he gets home (if he gets home on time), I'll be heading to work out. Then home for studying for both of us as well as to continue cleaning and organizing in preparation of hosting Thanksgiving.

Busy, busy

2009-11-13T06:45:00.000-08:00

I've got a bunch of things to do today - volunteer stuff for the Lorain County Breastfeeding Coalition, work for a few hours and I really, really need to get to the gym today. And then there's the laundry that all needs folding and put away. Plenty more to be done around the house as well - I need to run the vacuum, change the sheets, sweep and mop everywhere that I can't vacuum and then I need to start doing some extra cleaning in leading up to Thanksgiving. Things like windows and extra dusting...you know the stuff that doesn't get done very often.

No clue how I'll get it all done, probably late in the evening I'll get to working on the cleaning stuff.

Lots of spam

2009-11-12T14:52:00.000-08:00

I'm getting a lot of spam on one post that's super old. What would you do? Delete the post? I hate to make it harder for legit people to reply on my posts, but it's getting ridiculous the last few days. Apparently elastic, thread and dress are hitting the spambot radars.

Warm Wednesday

2009-11-11T14:33:00.000-08:00

It was fairly warm today, so I took the kids to the Carlisle Reservation. We walked the trail there (I am going to post Halloween walk pics today), and right now they are converting it to a Christmas trail of lights or something like that. I'm excited to take the kids later in the season when all the displays are up. As it is, they had some cute santas and snowmen decorating the trunks of the trees.

And, as should be noted, these are all from my sister - casacaudill

Flirty Apron Swap: White Christmas Swap - Christmas Carol Creations

2009-11-10T15:55:00.000-08:00

Flirty Apron Swap: White Christmas Swap - Christmas Carol Creations

Yay! So excited for a Christmas apron swap! I'm probably crazy for signing up, as I'll have finals to work on too, but I can sew during Thanksgiving break, right? :P

Busy day today

2009-11-10T08:32:00.000-08:00

Studying, school and then more studying. Somehow I need to get the kids and myself out of the house in the next half hour. Did I mention that we need showers yet? Yeah, fun times. :P

I love when my sister comes to visit, because she always takes awesome pics (for the record, I like going to her house as well). :)

So, here she is today (and I took this picture!) with her husband. :)

Monday, Monday....

2009-11-09T04:54:00.000-08:00

Today is supposed to be 70! In November! In Ohio! The leaves that remain are quickly falling, but I consider fall to be until Thanksgiving, and then it becomes winter (who cares that there are actual dates determining these things?). In honor of my favorite holiday, I give you some of the fall scenes from when Becky and Alan were here in October.

JoAnn's

2009-11-08T16:56:00.000-08:00

I had a coupon and a gift card for Joann's so I went today. Took the kids and the husband, which meant I couldn't stay all day. I did find some more of this material, plus the same in blues. Awesome, for $2.50 per yard (plus 20% off!) I got four yards of the blue and a little over a yard of the pink. I can add a pocket to my apron now. :) I used every last bit of fabric to make this apron, and didn't have any left for a pocket. Now I can add a pocket, plus make something else. Might be a bag. Might be another cute apron.

Blogging, blogging

2009-11-07T14:36:00.001-08:00

It's been a rather tiring day for me. Sean has been outside most of the day, leaving me with a snotty Josh who is cranky today. He must be cutting a tooth. He's miserable and so am I. And, I'm trying to finish up my Algebra work. Finished the homework, and the pretest. Just need to take the test now, but I can't hear myself think, so that won't be happening any time soon.

Here are some more pictures to tide ya over. ;)

Ah, heck, they all loaded too big except for my boy laughing.

visiting family

2009-11-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

We had the great pleasure of hosting family the last few months. Becky and Alan were here most recently, she took some great photos. Here's a teaser:

Nov 5 - day 5

2009-11-05T15:05:00.000-08:00

So, I just remembered that I needed to blog today. I immediately feared that I had forgotten to blog yesterday. I thought I had failed by day 5, haha!

Alas, that is not the case. Lots of Algebra homework to do, along with a pretest and test in Algebra this weekend (you have to get 1n 80% to even take the test). Plus, I need to study for A&P since I have an exam next Thursday. So, busy weekend. In between that studying, we need to begin getting ready for hosting Thanksgiving. Hopefully, Sean will also hang my shelf and laminate the new counter in the bay window in the kitchen.

Posts are boring without pictures, huh? Here's Nora's school picture for something to look at. :) She's not one who easily smiles with the camera in front of her. She's giving stink eye to the photographer. :p

November 4th

2009-11-04T14:26:00.001-08:00

Okay, so, I think I'm out of things to write about. :P

My camera doesn't work, so I can't just do some cute pics of the kids. :( My cell broke and I am not eligible for an upgrade yet, so I hooked up my fil's old phone. His cell camera is way worse than mine was. So, the pictures are super, super blurry. I always thought my cell pictures weren't that great, but this gives a whole new meaning to blurry.

I have breastfeeding support group (I volunteer at the hospital, helping to weigh the babies and such) tonight. It should be a quick meet as the hospital canceled our support groups going further at the last minute tonight, but who knows how many people we actually got in touch with via email and facebook. We have to find a new location off site now, so hopefully, we can get that figured out ASAP. Tomorrow I have class, and I have a test this weekend in Algebra, so once I get home it'll be time for homework and studying.

Day 3 - check

2009-11-03T17:58:00.000-08:00

I voted today - did you?

Hoping that the things I voted for pass, but I'm worried about Issue 2 - needs to go NO! I worry that it's going to hurt the small farmers, even though big ag wrapped it up with a nice bow. :(

Missed two on my lab quiz. Not entirely happy, as I prefer to get 100s, but I guess I should be happy with a 94%. :P

Looking forward to hearing more election results and have been desperately searching for my popcorn pan as I'm craving some fresh popped popcorn.

DH installed a shelf by his desk and has been slacking on installing mine. MIL said that FIL would do it on Friday when they watch the kids, so I keep throwing that out there for DH. ;) I'm hopeful that it'll be done before Friday as that would go a LONG way to clearing off my desk.

Nov 2/Day 2 posting

2009-11-03T01:12:00.001-08:00

Okay, so I don't really have much to say today. I've got a quiz tomorrow in A&P lab on the nervous system, so I am busy working on that right now. I'm home with the kids tonight, as it's bowling night for Sean.

Do you ever watch HGTV House Hunter's? I do. I even have it record on my DVR. Can I just say that I find most of the people searching to be PITAs? They annoy me when they're like "this kitchen is small." And my LR/DR combo is about the size of the kitchen. Or they'll complain about a bath being too small and I'm like "but it's a BR! At least there is more than one!". It's amazing how we all have different priorities in house buying. Admittedly, I would love a huge kitchen - it sucks being stuck in the kitchen on the holidays when maybe one other person can fit with you.

Off to study the sheep's brain!

eta - well, looks like this didn't post last night, but I'm going to still hit enter and call it my Nov 2nd post. Stupid errors!

A blog a day for November

2009-11-01T12:04:00.000-08:00

I'm going to attempt to blog every day this month along with others in NaBloPoMo

I will probably only make it until the middle of this week. :P

DH is still laid off. We're both still going to school full time. The kids are doing great. Nora was Little Red Riding Hood for Halloween and Josh was a Browns fan. I made Nora's red cape a while back - it's very effective as a car seat cape, as it does not interfere with the straps of the car seat. I made her an apron the other night to go with her get up. She had a party at preschool on Friday and then went Trick Or Treating at Grandma and Grandpa's on Saturday - we didn't venture further than that, it was enough excitement for both kids.

And now it's November. We're hosting Thanksgiving as the self professed "old fogey's" decided that they are done hosting (never mind that we've been through this twice before, only to have them change their minds and get all huffy when you claim a holiday, but whatever) and that they were going out to eat (mind you, we weren't invited). We already have a turkey in the freezer, so it won't cost us too much. Not sure how many people are coming but hopefully, we'll have a nice turnout. Asked the ILs if they were still going out to eat or if they were coming here and they said they were still going out. I'll be ticked if I find out that they're going with evil sil and bil. Pissed. I already know that we'll be alone on Christmas Eve and told the ILs that we weren't attending Christmas Eve at their house this year b/c evil sil will be there. They didn't like that much, but whatever. I knew that they wouldn't not invite them, so I wanted them to know that if they were coming, we weren't. Period. Ah, holidays. Aren't they lovely? :) Seriously though, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I was very disappointed that the older generation was just going out to eat without inviting any of us. That's just sucky. Or maybe we just weren't going to be invited.

Nora's first day at preschool

2009-08-26T09:29:00.001-07:00

Nora loved preschool! She has been super excited to go for months and it's how we convinced her to pee on the potty. Which might be a little wrong, but it was the truth. Here she is after her first day.

She's definitely a leader, and did not enjoy following with the rest of the class. Can't say that I blame her - so many cool toys! Handling Nora definitely takes a bit of finesse, and not everyone has that finesse. I usually give her two choices and if she doesn't take one of those, well, she doesn't get either. That has worked great at home, keeping tantrums to a minimum. I can understand how that wouldn't work out so well with a bunch of other students. So, today, I didn't really give her a choice on what I was making for lunch. She ate it, but it's not as if she will not eat what you give her....she's a great eater.

Back to school...

2009-08-18T08:11:00.000-07:00

Fall term has started. Busy, busy, busy here.

Today is my super busy day, as I have a class, a small break and then a lab today.

I am taking a Lifetime Fitness class this term. After 13 credits, you don't pay anymore for tuition, only lab fees. For $40, I'll get to work out for the entire term....sounds good to me. Perhaps I can lose some of this baby weight and get back to my cute clothes that I wore after Nora was born. I got rid of all my fat clothes after I lost a bunch of weight after Nora was born. As a result, I now only have a handful of clothes that fit over my boobs and belly. Of those, only like two have no stains. Such is the life of a poor momma, lol. The stains are all from dirty hands and my lovely husband who does not think to check to make sure that stains have come out before he tosses things into the dryer.

I'm excited to go to college this semester. I have a combination of internet courses and on campus, but this will be my first venture to campus on a regular basis, even though I took classes over the summer. But, I feel frumpy. Today I have to go to class for A&P I and lab. I'm excited to start but scared too. Hopefully I will do well!

In other back to school news, Nora starts pre-school at the end of August. Such a big girl!

Still here....picture at the end.. :)

2009-08-09T15:56:00.001-07:00

It's been a bit since I posted last. I just wanted to update. :)

Summer session for school is over. I'm happy to report that I got a 4.0! I breezed through my Basic Algebra and Intro to College class, while really sweating over my Intro to Psych. I really thought Psych was going to be easy, but turns out it was really tough - mainly the professor. I don't think he likes internet classes. Why he teaches them, I have no idea. Anyways, I sweated it out and ended up with a 91.something % - fantastic. I did learn a LOT in that class, lest you think I was just being lazy - it wasn't the homework that bothered me, or the reading. In fact, I probably had more homework in my Basic Algebra and Intro to College class, it was the lack of teaching - we read the book, played with a CD and that was it. My Basic Algebra and Intro to College class both used online videos of the lessons, plus they encouraged (and Intro to College required) class participation. My Psych professor disabled the web forums so that we could not communicate with other class members. I'm still a bit bitter, lol, but I at least made and A, so I should just move on. :P I will - but I won't take my next Psych class with him that I have to take in the spring. ;)

Sean also took classes - an Intro to Web Design and an Operating Systems class. He too got a 4.0 for the semester. :)

We're both signed up for a full load for fall. And, we're each taking a fitness class - which enables (and requires) us to use the college gym. So, maybe I can finally work off some of this baby weight!

Nora is three tomorrow. I can not believe how big my little girl has gotten. She's so ready to start pre-school. She is only having an occasional accident. Unless she gets mad, then she'll purposely go - so not cool. She definitely has her own mind on things. She's a spitfire, and if she doesn't like something, she's not afraid to say so. She's a leader - she even tries to lead older kids around and tell them what to do.

Josh will be one next month. The year has gone by quickly! He's a momma's boy all the way - I love it. He completely lights up when I come into the room. Of course, maybe it's the milkies that come with me? :P I'm enjoying it, that's for sure.

Here's a picture of them both at the zoo last Monday (we went for World Breastfeeding Week). Nora is giving her fake smile and Josh is just giving his usual smiles. :) They're both comfy in the double jogging stroller that we borrowed. I so need to buy our own - stalking Craigslist for one now. :)

Healthcare in the US

2009-07-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

I've seen a few posts on this topic recently from other bloggers - including the "mommy blogger" bunch. This post is in response to those.

1) Do you see other governments who provide nationalized healthcare controlling them through pills? No, enough said.

2)Those that use the argument that it's not the right of the government to provide healthcare, um, you realize that we ARE already providing this service, right? Does your mom get Medicare (or maybe her mom?)? Yeah, that's nationalized healthcare. How about poor people? Ever hear of Medicaid? We as a country have already decided that people need health care, or we wouldn't be providing these vital health options for so many. Most people that I hear use this argument are people that are priviledged. Sure, maybe you think you struggle. I've got news for you, if you don't receive Medicaid as an adult, you probably don't. Hear in Ohio, you have to be 90% of the FPG in order to receive Medicaid (at least in Ohio, and I'd guess it's similar in all states) as a non-pregnant adult. The FPG for a family of four is $22,050.

3)The taxation issue. Yeah, I understand no one wants their taxes raised. But, how much are you and your employer already spending per month on your healthcare? At my husband's last job we were paying over $200 per month for our health insurance, plus a $500 deductible and $20/$40 copay. Oh, and 10% of all costs. The company was paying over $1000 per month. I understand that some are more priviledged and don't pay this amount. I remember being a county worker and paying $16 a pay for my family coverage and only having to pay 10% of my costs and never paying a copay. Yeah, that was nice. But, the cities and counties that are doing this are now struggling to keep up with the employer end because of the fact that the employees pay so little.

4)Wait times. Yes, in Canada, you'll wait longer than here to have an non-emergency surgery. If it's an emergency, you'll go straight to the top of the line. Interestingly, none of my friends in Canada complain about their healthcare (well, they might complain about a specific Dr, but not about the comprehensive care), whereas I often hear my American friends complaining about costs of health insurance, deductibles, etc.

5)National health care would not eliminate Dr/patient confidentiality. Guess what? Your Dr shares information with other people about you right now! Shocked? You shouldn't be. Do you think that the people that work at the Dr's office don't know why you're there? How about the billing office? Did you know many Dr's office are outsourcing this? Oh, and everyone at your insurance company knows your record as well. They won't pay without a diagnosis code (or sometimes codes) and a CPT code that shows what the Dr did. But, there are HIPPA laws to protect you - basically, only people involved in your care know things about you, including your insurance company, people at the doctor's office and any billing offices. It wouldn't be any different with nationalized healthcare. Oh, and did you know that your Dr is required to report certain things to the local health department? Yeah, required.

6)Nationalized healthcare would waste money? Um, yeah right. Medicare is one of the best run programs that the government has - they are cost concious, while also trying to provide the best care for the patient.

7)The only one benefiting from our current system is the insurance companies and the pharmaceutical companies. Especially the insurance companies. They make money on all ends. They cut reimbursement for doctors/pharmacies/DME companies and yet they're continually raising deductibles, copays, coinsurance and the premiums of our insurance.

8)More businesses would thrive with nationalized healthcare. Think about it. Over $1k per person working at their company per month, for healthcare, with costs rising each and every year.

9)The people would not be subjected to petty things like prior existing conditions. Guess what, even if you continue to take your medication and continue to follow your Dr's advice, heck, you may even pay out of pocket to see your Dr, if you lapse on healthcare, if you have any pre-existing condition and finally do get insurance again, you'll be unable to attain care for that pre-existing condition until a certain amount of time elapses.

10)We should want our nation to be a strong, healthy one. Preventitive care will help with this. Expecting people to use the emergency room for free care, or to wait all day at a free clinic does NOT help with preventitive care. By the way, who do you think ends up paying for the ER healthcare that the ERs have to write off? Yeah, that would be us anyways! So, instead of paying for pricey healthcare for our fellow citizens, why not provide quality, accessible healthcare to all Americans?

We are currently without healthcare. The kids are on Medicaid. It's a horrible run program, they made us choose a managed health care program and the limits on Dr's was horrible. We had to leave the pediatrician that we've used for three years, who knows my kids and knows me (I do most of the check ups, since I'm the one home). But, I'm very thankful to have anything for them. I'm terrified of my husband or myself getting sick. And there seems to be no jobs out there. Well, there are some, but with thousands of other people applying for the same job, it's hard to get your foot in the door. :(

So, did I simply decide nationalized healthcare was a good thing when we fell on hard times? No, I've always thought that we need to take care of everyone. It amazes me when Christians say that we shouldn't be involved in healthcare - I believe that God takes care of the least among us, and while yes, churches should be helping too, the fact of the matter is, a lot of them can't afford to do so either. I think the increase in taxes would be non-existent when you look at all the health insurance fees that we'd no longer be responsible for. Sometimes, and I'm guilty of this too at times, we see more taxes and become greedy. Yes, greedy. Are there times when a government (local, state or national) does not deserve to get more in taxes. Yes. But are there times, like now, where we won't really end up paying any more? Yes. And when those taxes will benefit the common good without really hurting anyone, why wouldn't we do it?

Freebies and the FTC

2009-07-15T16:00:00.000-07:00

First, I apologize for another long absence. I'm busy, busy, busy studying during my summer session, then there's the two cases of chicken pox that our house has endured, plus it's summer and we've got the garden going and all that jazz, I'm volunteering and well, I'm busy. :) I promise to be back soon, including with pictures of the kiddos. :)

Anyways, I came by because I read an article about blogging and how mommy bloggers are going to take a week off of all PR - here, I'm just going to link. Okay, so while I think it's great to take a break and maybe focus on other things, I don't understand the outrage of some mommy bloggers (and really, all bloggers in general). Look, I (and others, I'm sure) read your blog because you have something going for it - perhaps I strive to be more like you in my parenting style, maybe I like your photography, maybe I like your decorating style, etc - if you're getting free products, there's nothing wrong with being honest and upfront about it. I, as a reader won't be upset if you are honest about it. In fact, maybe I'd be posting more on my own blog all sorts of the cool things that we do if I knew just what cool swag was being passed out.

So, if you happen to read this (and I think I have like a whopping eight readers, lol) and you get free stuff for blogging about it, just tell us! Maybe only blog about the ones that you like? Your honesty is sort of on the line, if you continually steer people in the direction of products that just suck, people will know. If you tell the truth and are honest, people will appreciate that and continue to love their favorite bloggers.

I've been a slacking blogger....

2009-05-29T10:01:00.001-07:00

Of course, I don't really have a ton of projects to show off either. I think I have another apron and a nursing cover to show off. I need to make a few more nursing covers for about to pop or just popped cousins.

I'm officially a student again - I started my first class the other night. It's the generic college 101 that you might find on any college class. I've taken my first quiz and got an A! :) Go me! My other two courses, Intro to Psych and Basic Algebra start in June. I know those two will be much tougher, but hopefully I can pull out some A's in those classes as well. My fall semester is shaping up to be a busy one - I'll be taking Chem, A & P, Intermediate Algebra and Intro to Soc. Right now, I'm trying to take everything online - so all my summer courses are online. My fall courses are online, except my A&P, A&P lab and Chem lab.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to finish all my required courses so that I can apply for the nursing program after next summer. Hopefully, I'll only then have to wait a semester - which is what the wait is currently rumored to be.

The kids are great! Nora is looking forward to turning three and going to pre-school in the fall. To that end, she's been doing some potty learning (I am not so into calling it training, since I train dogs, but I teach my kids). Most days we have just one accident and she's getting really good about telling us when she needs to go. She's so proud of herself when she sees how proud we are of her. And who wouldn't be proud? And thrilled - she's been just in disposables for some time as she outgrew the cloth diapers she was in and I didn't want to have to invest in the next size up. News flash: I probably could have outfitted her in the expensive Goodmammas for how long it took to get to this point. Ooops.

Along the way, we have learned that diapers are expensive! We therefore, do not buy name brand. Walmart generic diapers are not good for movers. They're okay for little babies that do not move though. Walmart then had a brand called White Cloud that were good and cheap. Only, they discontinued them. :( One week I noticed Walgreen's had a sale on their diapers - BOGO, which was 2/$9! Holy moly, that was a good price, way under Walmart's cheapies that suck. So, we bought some, and we like them! We now stock up on them whenever they're on sale. :) Which is often - so that's another bonus to them. We also tried Target's new generics in there - they're awful. First, we bought them for Josh (we do have cloth for him but we use disposibles for nighttime, and when we just can't keep up with the laundry). So, we bought him some size 3's. He's a perfect fit in size 3's in every diaper, except Target's. They're HUGE. And they have no elastic in the back, so I'm sure you can imagine how blowouts happen with my mostly BF (we've introduced some solids) little baby? Yeah, not good. Anyways, they're so huge that we noticed that they were as big as Nora's Walgreen's diapers. So, yes, they were both wearing the size 3s (though, admittedly, they were a little snug on Nora). I hate diaper shopping at Target - no matter which kid I'm shopping for, they don't have that size diapers. Seriously, they only had the size 3 in a BOX (I buy the smaller packs as they're usually cheaper). They didn't even have luvs (though, who likes those that smell like baby powder? NOT us.).

As for Josh, he's close to twenty pounds now and has begun to enjoy some fine foods. He's had several mommy approved foods and I'm sure some Nora approved as well. Bananas seem to bother him, so we're holding out on those for now. He's been crawling like a professional for about a month or so now, probably closer to two. He's pulls himself up with ease along anything with an edge and couch cruises. He finally, finally cut his first two teeth - bottoms. He's been drooling and chewing on anything since three months, so we thought he'd cut them early like his sister (she cut her first one around five months). Nope, 8.5 months for him!

Sean has a second interview next week, so wish him luck! :)

National Wear Y our Apron Day

2009-05-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

This is the apron that I wore today. I really like it - the print is great. :)

I'm leaning on the door because the sun was shining brightly through the three little windows and was washing everything out otherwise.

a tale of two aprons

2009-05-07T21:26:00.001-07:00

This first apron was made with some scraps that I have on hand. I love, love, love the print. One of the local JA's still has it and I should think about gobbling it up before it's all gone.

The next apron is a swap that I participated in. I found this great sheet that was screaming to be made into an apron, so here it is:

This is a close up of the sheet, before I cut into it....

I really need a new camera - these cell phone pictures just don't do justice to these fabrics and aprons!

Fun at the park

2009-05-05T13:00:00.000-07:00

Spring is finally here and we were able to use some of our tax return to get a new (to me) van. It's actually a 2001, which I know most people don't think of as new these days, but I'm thrilled to have transportation again. :)

So, in honor of it being nice (it's 64 today), I took the kids to the park. Josh slept - which isn't unusual for him, he is a great napper and sleeper! Here's Nora on the swings - she loves the swings:

Another long absence

2009-05-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the long absence....I really need to update my blog more often. :)

I'm working on kitchen curtains, here's one all done and hung:

And, a closeup of the material:

Sorry too for the crappy cell phone pictures.

The zoo

2009-03-21T10:18:00.000-07:00

The kids and I went to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo on St Patrick's Day. It was half price (off winter rates!) day if you wore green - so Nora and I only had to pay $6 for our admission and Josh was free. :)

Oh, and it was a beautiful day out - high 60s! 60s, in mid march, in Cleveland. Hello, spring! :D Of course, now that spring is actually here, the temperature dropped, but apparently, it's supposed to go back up. Yay!

So, here are some crappy cell phone pictures from our day at the zoo. I totally forgot my camera, and since it can't hold a charge anyways, it's not like I would have been able to capture a ton of shots anyways.

Nora wasn't all that happy about smiling with the fake monkey on the bench.

Nora called these the pink birds on sticks.

Finally, can you believe how close this is? Remember, this is a cell phone, no zoom. The zebra was right next to us. Very cool. :)

The giraffes were way far away though. Oh, and major bummer is that the elephants are gone. GONE! Until they finish redoing their area, I heard some girl say 2010 or 2011. Boo, we like the elephants. :( We also couldn't see the wolves and bears - the area was closed off due to some construction. Actually, it makes sense that they have winter rates because there are a lot of exhibits that aren't open. Still, it was a fun day and great exercise pushing Nora and carrying Josh in the MT!

Finally, here's my drooling little guy (he's totally teething, but none have popped through yet) and my adorable husband.

My poor little blog

2009-03-02T17:10:00.000-08:00

Has been neglected! Almost a month since I posted last. Let's see, how about a little update? :)

Let me show off a project or two that I have finished lately.

First an apron that I made for my doula as a thank you gift:

A mommy and me apron set. I decide to use my new snap pliers on the child's apron (really pre-schoolish age, more than child). Anyways, I put them on the neck strap and waist strap so that it could be a good fit depending upon the size of the child.

That's all I have right now. My aunt did remind me that I have an apron that I'm finishing for her, so I do need to finish that one up and mail it out for her soon. Just need to change my thread color - why is it that sometimes the little things that take just a few minutes prevent us from finishing things? I think for me I think, oh one of the kids will need me and I won't even get to sew by the time that I finish threading the machine. Although possible, how long does it really take to thread a machine? Even though I have to make a new bobbin for it, it's still probably only a few minutes.

DH is still looking for work. No bites on his resume yet. Here's to hoping the stimulus package helps soon. Already, I think it will for COBRA. COBRA would cost us $1200 per month for family coverage, but with the stimulus it would take care of 60 (or was it 65)% of the cost. Unfortunately, no one seems to know exactly when we might get some answers on this. Even still, we would not be able to pay for family coverage, but I'm healthy and the kids would qualify for coverage the the state, but DH has some pre-existing conditions that I'd rather be continually covered under a health care plan. The COBRA amount for just him is still too costly, until you add in the stimulus amount, then somehow, some way, we'll make that work out for us. Because, in the longer run, it'll be worth it I think.

I had a food stamp and medicaid (just for the littles) today. I think I'll refrain from typing up my opinions on that for another day - suffice it to say that when a friend (whose husband is also laid off right now) told me that you have to jump through hoops for help, she was certainly right. She said that WIC is definitely an easier process to go through. Of course, you only have to wait a few WEEKS to even be seen by those folks. I waited until we found out how much DH was going to qualify for before I called those folks, and turns out I should have made the appointment much earlier. Eh, maybe DH will get a job before then and I won't have to worry about that after all? One can hope! :)

Run on over for a chance to win a free apron

2009-02-04T18:46:00.000-08:00

From notquitejunecleaver.

Sewing and jobs

2009-02-03T17:57:00.000-08:00

I've lost my sewing mojo, lol....someone, quick, send it back! I have an apron pretty much done, and then I realized that I didn't cut any neck straps. And, I don't have any extra material. So, off it goes as a UFO (that's unfinished object for you that don't know) for now. I'll take a scrap of the material and try to find something that will compliment it well.

I've also decided that I need more bias tape for more aprons, but the cost really adds up quickly! Instead, I think I'm going to buy a bias tape maker. Fairly cheap, but a lot more work on my part.

Sean's been looking for jobs. He actually has found a few in the area that interest him - most about 40 minutes to an hour away (sometimes worse with traffic/snow conditions). His last job was five minutes from home. It was nice, he came home for lunch almost every day. Having a long commute again would be a bummer, but, a job is a job, eh? Especially in this economy.

Snap pliers and the kids

2009-02-02T19:47:00.000-08:00

The week before Sean got laid off, I ordered a pair of snap pliers - lookee the package that I got! Looks like I'll be a snapping fool soon. :)

Josh got his first hair cut this weekend - and, yes, I did it. I took a little off the back and around his ears.

Finally, Nora. LOL, Josh and I were out and about most of the day. When I got home, she was napping. I got her out of bed and this is what she was wearing. Guess this is what happens when you spend the day with Daddy. And, while you might not think this is such an odd look if you live in say, California or Texas, this is quite the outfit today in the Cleveland area since Buckeye Chuck saw his shadow today. ;) Doesn't she look cute, lol, with her wild hair and all. ;) Ignore the fact that the baseboards are missing. They another incomplete, er work in progress out in the garage. I think they've been completely sanded and primed - I should add those to the honeydo list that I have posted on the fridge. All items are things that Sean can do while he's laid off that do not require any materials - since we've already bought the materials for these projects.

The Craptastic Economy

2009-02-01T09:28:00.000-08:00

My husband was laid off on Thursday. I spent a lot of time crying on Thursday. Fear, mainly. How will we make it? How will we manage to pay our bills if we are not fortunate enough for him to find another job before his one severance pay comes along? The job market in NE Ohio has not been great for some time, especially in the area of IT. He was laid off after 9/11 and it took him 10 months to find a job. He had known of the impending layoff, so he had stashed up a decent sized emergency fund. That, combined with the fact that as his emergency fund was being depleted, I was fortunate to find a great job. So, those ten months weren't all that bad - in fact, I don't think our lifestyles changed much at all.

This time, though, things are different. I'm basically a stay at home mom. I mean, I work one day per week, for just a few hours (2-3) for my mother in law's business, filing insurance claims and billing people for things like their copays and deductibles. Still, it's not like I can just increase my hours there - her business is hurting right now too. She shared with me yesterday that she wasn't able to pay herself for about four months in 2008. Wow. So, I basically stay home. And, we have two young children.

We've been following Dave Ramsey since last year, so we do have a very small baby emergency fund. Still, it's not enough to keep us going for any length of time - the whole point of that BEF was not to prepare us if Sean lost his job, rather it was our barrier against Murphy (Murphy's law) in case the truck broke, an emergency repair of some sort was needed, etc.

So, here we are, with my husband out of work. Scary times. And, yet, I have a peace about it all. No matter what - we'll make it. I'll be organizing my coupons and really starting to make those work. I'll be doing a lot of cooking from scratch - which we do often enough that it's not a horrible endeavor anyways. We have one more pay coming, on the 15th. We'll get our regular grocery amount for our envelopes, but we'll be paying way more mind to where the money is going - and stocking up on essentials. We've already implemented this during our weekly grocery trip this weekend. Butter was fairly cheap (under $2 for four sticks) so we bought enough to stick in the freezer plus get us through the week. Even though we had half a container of oatmeal, we went ahead and bought two more. Why? Because it's a really, really cheap breakfast - and it's super nice on cold mornings too.

The thing that was most worrisome to me are having enough to feed our family, have health insurance of some kind and keeping a roof over our head with utilities on. Beyond that, well, that's all just a bonus. Thankfully, we live in a country that does have some help for those that are going through a rough time. DH will file for unemployment right after he receives his last check (at least, that's when we think he's allowed to follow, which he'll be clarifying this week). We have health insurance through the end of February. Which, admittedly, still rather sucks - we haven't had any claims filed for 2009, so we'll have to meet our entire deductible if we go for anything other than a yearly (or wbv for Josh) visit. So, yeah, we're not exactly planning on trips to the Dr for everyone. Josh will go tomorrow for his WBV and get those shots that we were planning on anyways. DH and I will make appointments for eye exams. Hopefully, his eyes will continue to be good. Mine suck, but we already knew that. ;) I simply need a new prescription so that I can order some $8 glasses. And, if he doesn't get a job, we'll have to look into some state aid for health benefits. Food stamps might be in order as well.

Somehow, we'll make it.

CPSIA - revisited

2009-01-31T08:05:00.000-08:00

Well, it's not a perfect solution, but at least it gives a year for them to change it again!

So, yay, we can still sell things that we make for kiddos, so long as we know and take caution that our items are lead free - so we can hold the manufacturer responsible for this.

Linky, linky to the CPSIA.

A new apron

2009-01-28T13:54:00.001-08:00

A new apron:

and the view from my front window:

CPSIA

2009-01-28T07:09:00.000-08:00

So, for those of you who have not heard the news, Congress passed a piece of legislation last summer. It goes into effect on February 10th.

It's bad news for parents and grandparents who love sites like etsy. Why is it bad news? Because the law is requiring testing on items to make sure they don't have any lead or some other stuff that most of us can't even pronounce. And it's expensive. And it's on each piece that is used to construct the toy or garment, actually anything intended for those under 12. That's thread, buttons, snap, fabrics, etc. Reach the end of the spool? Time for more testing.

In a law that was intended to keep our kids safe from the big name toy manufacturers like Fisher Price and Mattel, it's actually rewarded them. No longer will mom and pop type places be able to compete with the money that the big fish have. It's a sad. sad day.

In somewhat hopeful news, originally, this was going to effect even resale of used items. Thankfully, the letter writing that many have done to the Senators and Congressional Representatives did not fall on deaf ears and they have clarified part of the law to say that we can still buy and sell used goods. They also said that if the items were made from natural, undyed materials you can use that. Great, here's a ball of undyed wool - have fun with it. But, the hopeful news is that the flood of emails and calls to our Senators and Representatives spurred them into some kind of action.

Please, join me today in contacting your Senators and Congressional Representatives - perhaps a flood of emails and phone calls will enable us to get the change that we need so that we can still keep selling products intended for children under the age of 12, products that are made in America. After all, this is goign to effect everything - towels, bedding, etc.

For my local readers, only Senator Sherrod Brown responded to me. Senator Voinovich and Representative Marcy Kaptur, shame on you for not responding to your constituents!

As for me, if this law goes on, I'll know longer be able to make mommy and me apron sets, crayon rolls, etc. I'll just have to concentrate on my aprons for adults.

Oh, and this also effects schools and libraries - they'll need to have their products tested. Wonder how that's going to go over?

Please check out this blog for more information. Thanks for doing your part!

Just a quick update

2009-01-17T18:08:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted since shortly before I left for CA and now it's been well over a month. There are a bunch of pictures at the end of this long winded post, if you want to just skip to the pictures. ;) We stayed in CA for a month - well the kids and I did. DH came out for 10 days over Christmas and then came home. Someone has to work afterall. ;)

I've been sewing still - in fact, I got a serger for Christmas from my DH. It was bartered - so it's mil's old machine. It's beautiful. I've been playing with it for the last few days though I haven't really made much with it yet.

It's been super cold here - which is a shock to the system when you spend a month in CA. Especially when the last two or so weeks were warm there. Warm, as in, I was wearing flip flops. Sure, they all thought I was crazy, but I really wasn't! Especially when you consider that when I came home I returned to about a foot of snow. And, it just keeps coming. And then, the blustery 20 some degrees turned to negative temperatures. Yesterday it was like negative 12, with a negative 36 wind chill factor - that's just craziness!

I'm starting to get a bit of cabin fever. Right before I left, my car broke. Again. With a full tank of gas. I should never put a full tank in, that's like giving it an excuse to break. And, what can you ask of a 15 year old car....I guess? The plan is to hopefully get a return this year in our taxes and put that towards a newer vehicle for me. Oh, and the truck will be paid off, so that will be an extra $350 we can save towards a newer vehicle. I'm looking at mini vans. Of course, the Focus gets excellent gas mileage, so perhaps I should stick with a wagon? Of course, I think a mini van is essential - especially if, at some point (like when I can convince DH and Josh is about 2) we think about having another baby. But, I need something that is reliable, that's for sure. Afterall, I could at least be going to the mall play area - the one a bit farther (but way nicer) from our house has a Starbuck's right next to the play area and I have a gift card!

Oh, and my camera is acting up. It won't even turn on, so no pictures for you right now (of my own, I shall steal some from my sister for your viewing pleasure.

My mom and Josh:

Nora passing out gifts on Christmas morning:

Lookee what I got for Christmas!

Nora and I on Christmas morning:

Josh and Daddy:

Aunt Becky and Nora:

Josh:

Nora at the playground, with appearances by Uncle Alan and Grandma Laura:

Taking pictures of two kids is not as easy as it looks

2008-12-09T15:43:00.000-08:00

It starts with this one, and I'm not happy with Nora's smile:

So, we try again. She's going...

gone...

Let's try this again. YES, I did it!

Well, not quite, so let's try one more time. Again, not exactly the smile I was hoping for.

And, she's gone again...

This is getting a little better. If only I did a better job centering the photo.

And, I call this one "enough mom, I'm done".

"Please, Nora, one more?" I ask. And she obliges.

A note about the clothing - yes, my daughter is wearing a holiday sweater. For the record, I find these to only be appropriate for children. And yes, she is not wearing any pants, we're trying to potty learn over here, mmkay?

There is sanding and painting in my future.

2008-12-01T13:01:00.000-08:00

Oy vey. File this one under two year old's are smart! Like, smart enough to do this kind of damage:

Thankfully, I caught it before it caught on fire, but it's stuck pretty much in place, I'm going to attempt to remove it without destroying the table! Good thing I have another iron and I'll be headed back to the basement with irons.

Received my apron from the Flirty Apron Swap

2008-12-01T11:05:00.000-08:00

I received my cute apron today from my partner, along with the glittery red headband from Penny. Thanks so much!

Recent fabric purchases

2008-11-28T20:16:00.000-08:00

All washed, dryed, ironed and ready to sew!

$1.49 flannel from JAs Black Friday sale - planning on dresses for Nora, as well as little pants for Josh out of the owl fabric. I had one yard cut and then changed my mind and got another yard cut because it's just too stinking cute.

$1-$3 Red Tag Fabrics - some of which I even got for 1/2 off a few weeks ago at a sale.

These are from the remnant bin. All of them were close to a yard of fabric. Two are cute, cute, cute, and the others are good for contrasting fabrics.

The fabric on the left - I thought was adorable, and only $2 per yard! The middle two fabrics are more Red Tag fabric - maybe a reversible apron? Lastly, you've seen the fabric on the right before - in the apron that I kept for myself. My friend Carrie commented that she thought it was cute fabric and I'm making up a mommy and me apron set for her and her DD, so I bought some more of this today. It's $4 per yard in the Red Tag fabric. I got the original round for my apron for 1/2 off - wish I would have bought more that day! It was almost a solid bolt before, but apparently, more than just myself liked it. :)

Apron swap

2008-11-24T14:04:00.000-08:00

True to my nature, my swap package is going into the mail, today, the last day. I'm waiting for my husband to get home so that I can run to the post office. I'd have gone earlier, but I'm afraid that after a trip to the breastfeeding support group and then to Walmart (I know, I know, but it's the closest store to me and there's that whole I'm pissed at Target thing too) Nora was done. Finished. So, home we came. Of course, we still had to eat, so after eating I told her she could lay in my bed or her crib (I'm trying to get her used to a big girl bed because she's going to need to transition to one soon enough) or in her crib. After several false starts on going to sleep I finally put her in her crib, where she's sleeping now. So, now I wait for my husband. He's not bowling tonight in order to finish up some work so I'm sure he'll be thrilled to know that I need to take 10 minutes to go to the post office!

I read on another blog that you're supposed to package your swap package nice AND you're supposed to include a little note. So, I made this up, the apron, as well as cute little bell earings are inside:

It's a placemat! I just sewed two straight lines, added a magnetic snap and then made that little ribbon thing to cover the snap. I think it's adorable - it's a cute little clutch that I'd use for a holiday party. :)

Please excuse the Tiffany's vase it's propped up on it - which makes the purse look a little wonky - it's really not. And, yes, I did name drop, thank you very much. :p The vase is huge and very heavy. I love it.

More apron sewing

2008-11-19T07:04:00.000-08:00

I used this pattern, view B.

I wish I could say it was as easy to make as they claim. In fact, the instructions were just bad. Or maybe they weren't - maybe it's just because I have a two year old and an 8 week old and well, I'm tired. In any case, I still think the apron is too long - and because the apron pocket is essentially the same size, it makes for a very deep pocket. I think it would be a great house cleaning apron. You know, for when you're picking things up in the living room that belong in the bathroom, kitchen, and various bedrooms? Right, just put it all in there instead of running back and forth between the rooms over and over.

I did do a few alterations to it. First, I'm not sure who in their right mind thought that you could sew the pieces together - as in, lay the pieces out the way they'll be seen and sew them up. Then turn and fold to create a hem. Um, on the round? Not as easy to do as on a square. On the round and I would have been cursing for hours - the time it would have taken me to sew the hem. So, I did what any lazy lady would do. I pulled out the bias tape and used that. :)

Once it was all put together, those pockets just sort of flopped out and did not look like the picture. Since they're the same size, once you gather the top, well, floppiness ensues. So, I did a little pleat in each pocket.

On the waistband, I used a decorative stitch. Mainly, because I wanted to make sure that the folded over part of the waistband (per the instructions) that had the unfinished edge would catch underneath, so that it wouldn't unfold and start to unravel the fabric. It did not match up where I would have put a straight line - either slightly above the seam or on the seam of the waistband, but rather below it. Which makes sense in a way, since the idea was to make sure that the seam of the waistband was also within the waistband so that that fabric would not unravel and it would not need to be zig zagged. If I had a serger, I'd probably serge all the edges and worry about this less. Even still, the decorative stitch makes it look rather vintage, IMO.

Finally, I left out the lace. I'm more of a no fuss, no muss girl. Plus, if I don't sell this? It'll become a gift, and well, most of the women I know? They're the same way.

Without further ado, here is my version (sorry for the blurry picture - I need a form so that I do not have to take pictures of myself in the mirror):

Flirty Apron Swap - finished apron!

2008-11-18T09:56:00.001-08:00

I finally finished the flirty apron swap apron. It's gone through several different design changes, yes, I've been using my seam ripper. But, I'm finally happy with the outcome. In the end, I don't think it needed bling so much as it was screaming to be a full apron.

So, what do you think?

Amy Butler's In Stitches - apron & a big name pattern

2008-11-18T09:42:00.000-08:00

I decided, after repeatedly looking through the In Stitches book over and over again that I would make the apron. I was excited because I usually just cut freehand for my aprons and often times spend extra time in the end because the fabric is not straight. I went into the pocket of patterns and started looking. Not there. Hmmm. Flip to the page of directions. Oy vey - measure and trace? So, I started it. Despite spending several hours working on it, I didn't get too far.

I didn't get much further before I went to JoAnn's and bought more fabric (hey, it was on sale and I had a coupon) and a big name apron pattern. Later that night I went to my craft room in the basement to see what I was going to start on. I looked at the Amy Butler book. And then I looked at my pattern I'd bought. I cut the pattern and started on that. I must say that I didn't really follow the instructions for the apron, but I used the pattern pieces (though, next time it's going to be shortened a bit).

The next day, at nap time, I again ventured to the basement. I looked again at the In Stitches book and my half cut fabric and at the big name pattern. I went with the big name pattern. Cut it out. Read the instructions - oy vey, were they complicated. Changed them up a bit and got to work. Okay, so I pretty much have not followed any of the instructions on this apron - but I'll likely use the pattern for several different types of aprons - it's nice to have the printed piece. On this particular apron, it calls for gathering, but I might go ahead and make some boxy pleats instead.

And, the In Stitches apron that I started? Still sitting there and likely will for some time. Why? It's hard for me to draw a straight line, that's why. I think I'll stick with my free hand, but use the apron ties from the big name pattern.

That said, the other patterns look great and the instructions seem so much simpler than the big name patterns. I wish she had just included the squares - I can't draw a straight line - even with a ruler! I am going to be trying the checkbook cluthch soon - though, it seems a bit daunting to me I think it would be a great accessory for me. Although, I probably have to draw a few straight lines for that one too.

A rant on Target

2008-11-17T18:50:00.000-08:00

Sunday night as I was using google reader to read my blogs, I came across an awesome deal. A Britax Marathon for $42 in Granite. There was another, cow print which was priced at just under $60. Speculation was that this was a clearance on these two colors, likely to make way for new prints. For the price, I wouldn't have even been upset had the seat been slightly older. If you don't have a child, you might wonder what that matters, but it does, most car seats have an expiration date of six years from the date of manufacture. If you're paying full price, that's obviously an important consideration. If you're getting an awesome deal, you can oversee this.

There has been speculation all day today about whether or not this deal was legit. Some online reported their orders were canceled. Early this evening, I decided to check my order status. My order was gone, no explanation. A few hours later, I received an email:

Due to an unexpected error, the following item(s) you have ordered
were incorrectly priced at the time of your order.

Britax Marathon Convertible Car Seat - Granite

We're sorry, but we are unable to offer this item for the incorrect
price. The correct price is $279.99. We have canceled your order for
this item. If you would like to order this item at the correct price,
please visit Target.com to check for availability.

Despite our best efforts, a small number of items on our site are
occasionally mis-priced. We do, however, verify prices as part of our
shipping procedures. If we discover that an item's correct price is
higher than our stated price, we will either contact you for
instructions before shipping or cancel your order and notify you of
the cancellation. This pricing policy is posted in the Help section
on Target.com.

Again, we're sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused
you. Thank you for being our valued guest.

Sincerely,

Guest Service Department
Target.com
http://www.target.com

Well, I for one, think this is crap! Retailers have been complaining about the economy and how they were afraid that sales were going to slip this holiday season. There has been talk of early Black Friday sales. As a consumer, why would this error really matter in the grand scheme of things? Because, it sends a bad precident: we'll advertise something really low, get a bunch of people to order that and hopefully other things and then say oops. The old bait and switch.

If I were to have bought this in store, I would have had the price honored at check out. If I check out from the target.com website, why is this any different? I got an email confirmation and an order number - and it should be honored. Why? So that we have faith in Target's website. As it stands now, we'll all wonder - is this just a good deal or is this another ooops? Better to shop somewhere else.

As I wrote to Target in an email, they should understand that this made the rounds. Around the mommy blogosphere, this deal circulated. How many of us bought this and had our orders not fulfilled? Target should take note about the recent Motrin ad that targeted baby wearing moms - we moms talk. And, do they really want to be the subject of a negative discussion amongts moms on blogs, message boards and through email?

Still sewing

2008-11-15T22:42:00.003-08:00

I think I have missed a day or two of sewing this month, but overall, it's going great. :)

Here's what I whipped up tonight. I think I'm keeping it for myself....maybe. ;)

I made a trip to JoAnn's and spent way too much money there! I love that place, so it's a good thing everything I bought was on sale. I'm afraid that I didn't buy enough extra of this fabric - though, it's in the $4 red tag fabric (and was 1/2 off tonight!) so I might need to go back for more. I have a bunch more cute fabrics that I'll be showing off soon.

Pictures are wonky tonight - sorry!

Tweet tweet....

2008-11-13T21:31:00.001-08:00

I stumbled upon a tutorial for birds today. Birds you ask? Yes, and they were totally cute. Needless to say, I took some time to make some tonight. There are still a few more tweaks I'll end up making to them, but they go together fairly quickly - the stuffing takes the longest time. Oh, and you can use some of the scraps from your other projects. I always like projects where I don't need to buy more fabric! Not that I don't like to buy fabric, it's just, fabric costs money and well, I'm cheap. ;)

More sewing

2008-11-09T21:09:00.000-08:00

I've been really good about sewing! Here are some completed projects.

If anyone is interested in anything, please let me know. :) I have not put them up on etsy yet, but can!

Also, I'll be headed to the post office on Tuesday to get my swap apron sent off, so I could easily ship any of the lovelies that I've made the last few days.

I also finished making Nora a car seat coat - which is really nothing more than a poncho that has a front opening. It's red fleece and ties with a ribbon. It was a three piece pattern - though, I cut the front up for my car seat purposes, so we could call it a four piece pattern. Still, super easy and went together pretty quick. I made this one out of fleece but I plan on making more of these for her, I especially want to make her a nicer one for the upcoming holidays. I used this pattern.

Sewing after dark

2008-11-05T22:16:00.000-08:00

After Nora went to bed I took Josh to the basement (he hangs out in his swing in my sewing room) and whipped up this:

I might list it in my etsy shop (that has like nothing in it) or else I will see if my mil will put it up in her shoppe since it fits in so well with her shoppe.

November sewing

2008-11-05T11:27:00.000-08:00

Yes, I have been sewing. I usually sew during naps and after bed time. I did not sew on Sunday, I was too exhausted from the rally.

I got back to work though. :)

I have finished two of three crayon roll ups for Becky:
And then I got started on my fancy holiday hostess apron swap. The swap host had encouraged using old prom dresses. I had two fabrics (re-using fancy clothes) that were fancy and could fit the holiday criteria, a beautiful brown (Thanksgiving) and maroon (Christmas). But, I was waiting to see what my swap partner listed on her likes. Turns out, she's a Thanksgiving lover. Now, we don't have to mail until almost Thanksgiving, but since she likes it so much and since I was going with that in my color choices, I thought that I should get busy so that I could send it in time to use for Thanksgiving. Since it's a fancy swap, I didn't use fabrics that were themed - those seem more casual to me. Anyways, here's what I came up with:
It doesn't really pop on camera. It ties on the side, as you can tell. It has two ruffles on the bottom and it has a pocket. Here's a close up of the pocket and the pinwheels that are on either side:

It seems rather blah in the picture and I certainly don't want to send out a blah apron. But, it's a fancy holiday apron swap - I was thinking simple was more fancy. So, what do you think? Does it need more bling? Lace? Accessories? Color?

See Katie Sew: A giveaway for two

2008-11-03T08:50:00.000-08:00

See Katie Sew: A giveaway for two

Katie is giving away lots of great fabric (even some great Amy Butler fabric). Go check it out! If you enter to win and mention my name, I'll get even more entries into the contest.

Speaking politics for a moment...

2008-11-03T07:26:00.000-08:00

I haven't really talked politics on this blog, but I'm going to for a minute today. Primarily because tomorrow is voting day and partly because yesterday, I had the privilege to see Bruce Springstein yesterday - oh, and Barack Obama, in Cleveland.

I guess the estimates have the crowd at around 80,000 people. It was massive, I can tell you that. Despite getting there at around 1:45 pm, I ended up in the overflow area. Here's a picture I took shortly before the rally started of the overflow area. I simply stuck my cell phone up high and pointed it backwards. It's important to note that behind us is the lake (as in Erie, it's a big enough one to just call the lake), so there was pretty much no more room in the overflow area.

It was awesome and inspiring. Barack Obama is an awesome speech. Halfway through his speech, it started to sprinkle. Everyone stayed. I did too, though I had a moment of oh, gosh, is it bad to keep my seven week old out in this? But, my quick thought was - I was wearing him, his legs and arms were tucked in and he had a hood on his outfit, so I put his hood over his head and he stayed dry and toasty. :) And, um, how was I supposed to get out of that crowd? Better, in my opinion to wait.

The diversity was great. There were old, young, black, white, asian - well, just about everyone. Awesome that so many people are getting out this year. I saw many parents with children. The ones with strollers I felt bad - it certainly wasn't easy to navigate a stroller with that many people down there. I was glad that I was wearing my baby.

I rode the Rapid into Cleveland, on my way back, I needed change, so I stood in line to get change for my $10 bill. A mom behind me and her son commented on little Josh and were making small talk - guess what the son's name was? Joshua. :) It was his first Presidential election at 19 and he was very excited to tell me that he had early voted for Barack Obama. :)

People were very nice to me - mainly because of Josh, I'm sure. :) There were a group of ladies, probably in their early 50's who were near me in the crowd, when people were trying to barge through, like the drunken Browns fans who were clearly trying to stir up trouble, were trying to shove through, they were very mother hen over us to make sure that we didn't get shoved.

Handmade Holidays

2008-10-31T09:21:00.000-07:00

November is the second annual Handmade Holidays for Sew Mama Sews blog - http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/?p=636 (as a side note, I need to learn to embed links).

So, I'm going to attempt to sew every single day in November (minus maybe Thanksgiving?), which will hopefully give me a great jump on my personal presents, plus an apron swap I'm in right now for a fancy smancy apron - http://flirtyapronswap.blogspot.com/ as well as making some things for sale. Last night, I kicked it all off by buying some supplies, like bias tape. I also finished up a crayon roll up for my sister - for her nephew. I have two more of those for my first official sales - yay! :)

Must fix my camera or figure out why the batteries keep dying so that I can take better pictures than with my phone....

A christmas apron

2008-10-29T22:13:00.000-07:00

I was able to whip this up tonight:

Crappy cell phone picture, but you get the idea. It's similar to the one that I made a before, though I did do some things differently. For starters, I had no bias tape, so I had to modify for that. And, I didn't think it all the way through because I ended up with part of the apron with unfinished edges. Enter ribbon. That solved that. Overall, I'm happy with it. It's not perfect, but it's okay. The fabric is a red backround with green and white swirly dots. So descriptive, eh? I'll try to take better photos later....

I think my camera is toast

2008-10-29T16:03:00.000-07:00

So, I was going to come on and show that my house isn't completely ugly by showing you my dining room, but I think my camera is toast. :( I picked the dining room to take pictures of since, although the dining set was free from family, it's nice and all matches. ;) I even dusted and vacuumed for you. I think pretty much everything else in my house is mis-matchy (and not necessarily in a good way) and was free (except for the crib that was way too much cash looking back and our mattress set, which was bought seven years ago and I lurve it, but could probably be replaced in a few more years). Not that I'm opposed to free stuff, it's just that some of it was free for a good reason. And, now, I'm trying to either paint/recover or get rid of those sorry pieces so that it can be a more cohesive look, instead of the college dorm room look.

Fall cleaning

2008-10-21T11:59:00.000-07:00

So, I've been doing some fall cleaning. Our bedroom has been my first completion. I didn't take a before, sorry. But, here is the room all cleaned up - heck, even the bed is made. I rearranged the room all by myself last night while my husband was bowling - he was quite surprised that I moved all the furniture by myself.

Our room tends to be the catch all room. AKA, "oh no, we have company coming, quick move this pile to....um, our room!". We keep moving the same junk from room to room. That's probably a hint that I need to just pitch it, eh? I did come up with a kitchen garbage bag full of clothes to get rid of. Flylady would be proud of me....at least yesterday. Speaking of clothes, clearly, one bag is not enough to have gotten rid of. I have eight more baskets to put away. Only, where to put it? The dressers and armiore are full, as is the closet. Of course, saying the closet is full is not a feat or anything. After all, we're talking about a house built in 1945. Yes, that means the closets suck. I think I have DH talked into raising the closet rod and then installing another lower. Then we can each have a closet rod, which would double our space. Of course, the few dresses that I own will have to be relegated to the hall closet. There could be worse fates, eh?

We need a headboard, but I think Dave Ramsey would call it a want. And, since it has been seven years without one, I guess it really isn't a need. More of a big want.

The two tall dressers (side by side) I should probably paint
and add new hardware. Thoughts on paint color and hardware? The armoire will have to stay the same. It's an antique of some sort and my DHs parents have the rest of the BR set, in their bedroom. So, I'm not sure I'm ready to paint that piece just yet since we know where the matching pieces are at. Here's a picture of that piece (that's DDs Christmas dress).

I really like the wall color in there - it's an icy blue sort of color. It's rather calm and soothing. It does, however, need some touching up in spots. I guess I'll need to look for the color, it's probably in the basement somewhere.

I'd like to get a large rag rug for the floor in our room as well. It's hardwoods in there and I think it would just make it feel a bit warmer in the room.

The bedding is also something that doesn't have to stay. Unfortunately, I've not seen anything that I like in King size that is on super low clearance, so I suppose, for now, it will stay. The crocheted afghan is one that I made for my Grandmother one year for Christmas. My Gramps took it over after she died. When he died last October, I took it home with me. The colors are very country, but I keep it mainly for the sentimental value behind it. You can also see my kids in the following picture. DD had just gotten a diaper on after her bath (that's a towel over her legs). She was the one watching Barney, which, you got a glimpse of earlier in this post.

Finally, there is no artwork in the room. At one point I slapped up a blue picture frame with vases of flowers (Becky, do you remember this print? It came from you.) but the frame fell off the wall and fell behind the bed and broke. Now before you go thinking how in the world did a picture fall off the wall, it was our daughter. She was playing on our bed while I was in the room. Unfortunately, I wasn't quick enough and the picture suffered it's fate of death. I've seen some fabric colored pieces of wood that look like cheap and interesting art work, so I'll have to try something like that.

More sewing

2008-10-15T14:25:00.000-07:00

This time, an apron. I stumbled across this great tutorial over at the Byrd House (http://mybyrdhouse.blogspot.com/2007/06/june-clothspin-apron.html).

Here is my interpretation of the pocket apron. I'll likely change a few things next time I make one (which will be soon), but this was good for a first try, me thinks. :)

I need to find a better area to take pictures of my projects.

It's been awhile...

2008-10-10T13:42:00.000-07:00

On September 13, we welcomed a baby boy into our family. Joshua Edward is a pretty easy going baby. In comparing him to Nora, they are night and day different so far - Nora was quite colicky. Nora is adjusting to being a big sister and having to share her brother with mommy and daddy.

So, that likely explains my absence to you. Here's a little crayon roll for a special little girl who just turned four. Please note that the reason there are crayons missing is because I ran out of them. Rather than risk forgetting to take a picture after they are filled in, I took a picture before hand. The little girl will also get a few coloring books to go along with the crayon roll.

This was scrap fabric - Becky may take notice of the contrasting fabric on the inside - after all, I believe that came from a shirt (or was it a dress) that I made for her. :)

More nesting

2008-09-07T11:53:00.001-07:00

I'm 39 weeks and 1 day pregnant. For those of you who haven't delivered a baby recently, I'll break it down a bit for you.

At 37 weeks you're considered full term, any baby born during this week is expected to be healthy and ready.

At 40 weeks, this is your EDD (estimated due date), mine happens to be 9/13.

Any thing past and people are going to say that you're late, and you might be, or you might have slightly wacky cycles and just not have a good EDD.

At 42 weeks, you're considered overdue, by anyone's standards and most would agree that the baby needs to come out at that point.

So, I'm at 39 weeks and 1 day right now - some minor stuff happening, but nothing major.

Still, maybe I'm nesting? I've gone through baby clothes today and pulled out all the newborn and 0-3 month gender neutral clothes (remember, we're having a surprise this go around). Can I just tell you how cute DDs little bitty clothes are? Oh my, I so want to be able to use these little clothes again! So, if this is a boy, I'm gonna want another girl at some point. ;) And if this is a girl, I'm sure I'm going to want the pleasure of dressing a boy at some point too. DH says this is it, but, well, maybe this one won't be so colicky and he'll agree to at least one more? :)

Oh, back to nesting, went through all the clothes, have them washing. Went through all the newborn and small diapers and have those washing as well. All the prefolds are already washed, except the new ones which are in the closet - but those are unbleached and will need prepped as well. Wash diapers? Why yes, if they're cloth. :) I also found some disposable diapers, which undoubtedly, we will at some point use - sometimes it's easier, though, I do try not to use too many because of the environment.

I've also washed the swing cover, bouncy seat cover and all the car seat cover and visor. Once the car seat cover is dry (it's hang drying now), we'll put it back together and install a base in my car and a base in DHs truck.

Oh, and I'm making home made peanut butter cups. Will report back on how these taste. :)

Crocheted baby blanket

2008-08-30T14:12:00.000-07:00

I wanted to drop off this little crocheted baby blanket. It's for a virtual shower for a friend having a surprise baby in October.

The Magic of spray paint

2008-08-28T15:52:00.000-07:00

We did a bathroom remodel back in May. Well, we've been working on this bathroom for awhile, but the final few things finally got done - new sink/vanity, new toilet, tile for the floor. My dear SIL gave us a $200 Home Depot gift card for Christmas, which helped fund much of the project (we had the tile already). Anyways, at the end, I was still stuck with this ugly:

Pretty bad, eh? The lamps don't work, but are there. My DH broke one of the shades when he was ripping out the old flooring. So, a can of white spray can later and we now have this:

A great improvement for sure! I will need to buy two new shades for the lights, but I'm pretty happy with the outcome - all for under $2! As a bonus, you can see (in the mirror) the lovely tile shower surround that my DH installed nearly two years ago. The floors match that tile. What you can't see is the pink tub, lol. It's a garden tub, so it will be going no where, but the whole bathroom is such an improvement I pretty much don't even notice the pink tub anymore. And let's face it, the pink sink was much, much worse.

Picture!

2008-08-25T11:44:00.001-07:00

So, it doesn't look like much, but here it is - my canning from yesterday. :)

I have another jar of salsa in the fridge - but I didn't can it - just made it and stuck it in the fridge. :)

Have a few projects on the mind for today - now off to get started on those!

Um, yeah

2008-08-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

I decided to get up and actually do something. So, maybe call it nesting. :)

I boiled up some canning supplies first. Then I made some fresh from the garden salsa.

I cut the cucumbers and put them in their jars. Then I went to get the vinegar to make up the mixture of that. And that's when I discovered that the full jar I thought I had was less than a cup in reality. Oy vey.

So, Sean is at work - I called him and he tells me he'll get some when he leaves work. He's got a 5 pm wrap up meeting that he says shouldn't even take an hour. Let's hope, because I want to finish up the pickles!

It's official - I'm addicted

2008-08-24T10:33:00.000-07:00

To what, you ask? Google Reader. If you haven't tried it, you need to. I love looking at all the blogs out there but could never remember to check on certain ones. Now, I'm up to date on all my favorite blogs (and finding more daily).

I love all the craftiness that I'm seeing. You'd think it would inspire me, yet, um, no.

So, in honor of me being 37 weeks and 1 day pregnant, I'm going to do something today. Nesting or some crap like that. lol, okay, so I HAVE to do something with the tomatoes and cucumbers before they all go bad, so I think some salsa and some pickles are in order for the day.

Maybe I'll show you the finished product. :)