Rustic Remnants

Tree of Love

2012-02-14T15:15:00.002-06:00

One last post today for Valentine's Day. After nap we had some time we needed to fill so we made a love tree for each girl.

All you need is:

Green construction paper
Hearts
A paper to glue them onto
Scissors, pen and glue

I cut all the hearts out while the girls were napping and did about 12 for each tree. You can do as many or a few as you want.

Then when they woke up we traced their hands and arms onto the green paper to make the trunk of our tree.

Glue the "tree" to the other paper. (we used legal size to give us plenty of room for the hearts)

Then glue the heart "leaves" all around the tree.

After we glued on all the hearts the girls told me all the things they love so I could write them on their hearts.

I put their names and the year at the top of each page. I plan to do this every year, Ithink it is a nice way to see what things they value at each age.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T13:06:00.003-06:00

Hope everyone is having a terrific and lovely day today. The girls and I are immersing ourselves in all things pink and lovely (and yummy). Daddy is really the one in charge of Valentine's day gifts so I take on the roll of filling our day with hearts and fun. We started the day off with some new Valentine socks inside pink mailboxes and a love themed breakfast.

I haven't done Bentos as often lately so the girls were especially surprised to see one this morning. Kaitlyn even ate her toast, which is a big deal for her. I need to remind myself to do them more often.

Just before nap Kinsley whipped up some of this 'Fudge' we found on Pinterest. It was a perfect easy recipe for Kinsley to do and doing it right before nap made the time it needed to stay in the fridge easy to handle.

Two ingredients:
White chocolate chips
Strawberry frosting

Dump the chocolate chips in a bowl and resist the urge to dive right in and eat them all. What? That's not just me right?

Melt them in the microwave and then add in the frosting and mix well.

Or if you're Kaitlyn just eat some and watch.

Doesn't this look good?

Then we spread it into a pan we coated with a bit of cooking spray and decorated the top with some heart sprinkles.

It's so cute!

Pop it in the fridge for a bit to harden and you're finished. I cut a few out with a heart shaped cookie cutter but I had a hard time getting them out of the pan in one piece. I think if we had used a smaller pan, so they would be a bit thicker, it wouldn't have been a problem.

I will warn you though, they are like eating pure sugar. Definitely a case of a little goes a long way.

We definitely won't be eating all of them with our after nap snack.

Valentine Play

2012-02-13T10:38:00.002-06:00

We're still working on some Valentine crafts today but this morning we woke to a thin layer of snow outside. The girls always really want to play in the snow but within 5 minutes are complaining of the cold and ready to come inside. This time mama was prepared and last night I put an empty plastic tub out on the back porch to catch some snow for a little inside snow play.

They had a blast playing with snow for the next hour. Building animals, making shapes and eating lots and lots of it before it finally melted.

We also had a Valentine station set up this weekend so they could make Valentines as the mood hit them. I took one of our 6 count muffin tins and filled each compartment with different papers and supplies.

It's always easy to tell which art belongs to Kinsley because everything is usually in a straight line.

Today we're going to be doing some pages from this Pre-K Valentine pack from Over the Big Moon! It is full of fun pages and there are things both girls will be able to do which is nice.

Toilet paper roll heart painting

2012-02-09T13:55:00.003-06:00

I love Deborah over at Teach Preschool and have gotten so many great ideas from her blog, like this heart stamping activity.

Easy Peasy. Gather up your supplies:

Toilet Paper Roll--I cut one roll in half since that was all I had empty
Paint (we used acrylic)
Paper

I taped the papers down to the table to keep them from slipping but mostly to keep Kaitlyn from throwing hers into the floor.

I spread a layer of the acrylic paint into a couple small glass bowls to help keep the mess contained. You could just as easly spread it on a paper plate or piece of waxed paper.

Then take your toilet paper roll and squish it into the shape of a heart. I wrapped it with scotch tape to help it hold its shape but that wouldn't be necessary for older kids.

Then you just turn them loose and let them go!

Kait quickly tired of getting paint on her fingers and opted for a brush. (not that it was any less messy)

Kinsley decided to use a brush and fill in her second page of hearts.

We ended up with some terrific Valentine art for the house and the girls had a great time painting with something just a bit different.

Boys and birds

2012-02-08T11:24:00.002-06:00

Have you made these birds yet? It is such a fun and easy pattern. Great for a last minute baby gift since they go together so quickly and easily.

I've made them for every new member of our family since Kinsley and they've been a big hit with all of them. I made a few changes, adding a bell inside and a ribbon tail and they've become a fun toy. My girls mostly use theirs like missiles now but at least they are still being played with.

I also finally made the tie applique shirts that is seems like everyone else has already made. I've had them bookmarked forever and I don't know why they kept getting bumped down the list.

Much more comfy than an actual tie and super cute too. I printed this template , from Crap I've Made, to make mine. She has a picture tutorial too if you're new to applique.

Winter week

2012-02-06T09:55:00.002-06:00

Brrr. What a cold morning to start our week. I was beginning to think that Winter was just going to skip us this year but today we are reminded that winter isn't quite over yet. I think it is one of those days to stay in warm jammies and stick close to the fire. We have a lot more cleaning out and organized ahead of us this week (neverending it seems) but we're also going to be working on some valentine projects.

Little miss Kait is finally starting to take a (very small) interest in our crafting though she still prefers to try and eat whatever supplies we may be working with. It will come in time I'm sure.

We need to get better paint brushes though, something a bit more sturdy and reliable for small hands. I'm not sure if I should just pick up some nice 'adult' brushes from the craft store or go for some of the thicker ones designed for kids. I'll likely end up doing both, a set for each girl perhaps.

Seuss Party...Part 2

2012-02-02T15:07:00.002-06:00

Everyone had such a great time at the boys' birthday party. Somehow it managed to be pretty stress free and none of the kids had any major meltdowns so it was a success. Obviously the boys didn't understand why there was a party but they liked it anyway. Especially the cupcakes!

And what good would a Seuss party be without some matching outfits. The boys, of course, needed to be Thing 1 and Thing 2 although we weren't quite sure which one should get which number but since Andrew is technically a few seconds older he got number 1.

But of course babies need bibs. Even if we didn't remember to have them wear them during the cupcake eating process. Whoops.

The Seuss fabrics were all so cute that I couldn't resist making the girls some party dresses as well. Kinsley picked the yellow fabric for hers and Kait got the Cat in the Hat. She walked around saying "hat mama! Hat!" and pointing to her dress. I made the dresses a bit bigger than their actual size thinking they could wear them some this Spring but it turns out they have grown since the last time I took their measurements and Kait may not be able to wear her dress again. She's growing way too fast.

Seuss Party...Part 1

2012-02-01T15:33:00.004-06:00

Yea! We're back in business, back home and all technology working properly. It's about time. The girls and I took a mini vacation and went to help get things ready for a very special double birthday. My nephews turned 1 last week and we were all ready to celebrate! They are quite the little miracles and even though they had such a rough start they are doing incredible now and have turned into quite the little handfuls. My sister certainly has her work cut out for her.

We did a Dr. Seuss/Thing 1 & Thing 2 party and it was fun, colorful and perfect for them. To keep from completely overloading this post with photos I'm going to keep this post to the party details and do a second post of the kiddos and party fun.

The incredible birthday banner came from The Moxie Shoppe on Etsy and we couldn't have been more pleased with it. She made the cupcake toppers too! My sister actually decided to decorate the boys' bedroom with the party supplies after it was over.

We had everyone at the party sign a book for each boy as a keepsake from the party.

My sister made each of the boys a plate too. They are so much fun and I love how decorating the ceramics seems to have taken off lately. It's a great project for just about any occasion.

Stopping Time

2012-01-14T12:17:00.002-06:00

Oh how I wish I could make time stand still. These little ones of ours are growing up so fast and I fear that one day I will forget all the things that make them so uniquely them at this very moment.

Kinsley inventing games like “Squibby and the Blue Mermaid” and teaching her sister how to jump on the bed. Kaitlyn’s cheesy grin she does when she is so proud of herself for mastering something new and for you understanding just exactly what she’s telling you. The way Kinsley wrinkles her nose when she is concentrating on her drawing or how she still doesn’t like to have her hair rinsed under the faucet. The way Kaitlyn throws herself into you when she’s giving you a big hug or the fact that when I pick her up she pats me just like I do her. Holding hands with Kinsley when she crawls into bed with me in the early morning and hearing Kaitlyn yelling “Sissy where YOU?” whenever her sister gets out of her sight for even a second.

These are the moments I want to hold onto forever. Some days I wish I could have a camera following us around all day long so that these moments are never lost.

Winter nature table

2012-01-12T14:14:00.003-06:00

Our winter nature table is finally started. We took a bit of a decorating break after taking down the Christmas decorations and our nature table sat empty. Though it became a favorite doll playing platform which was nice.

It's still a bit bare as I was having a hard time coming up with things to add. This is such a tricky age with Kait because most of the more elaborate and delicate details will have to wait until she is a bit more careful and less destructive. So for now I am sticking with items that can survive her playing with them and ultimately throwing them on the ground.

We're sticking with nice solid wood that can withstand some rough playing. I added these little wooden peg dolls last night. The girls are getting quite the collection and they are getting lots of playtime. (much to this Mama's delight)

Kaitlyn was immediately smitten with this one and refuses to let anyone else play with it declaring "mine" if she thinks we are considering it.

This one is my favorite and I want very much to create an entire family of them, and might before the season is over.

Thanks to the ideas of a friend we're going to hopefully be adding a Cardinal and maybe even an igloo to our table soon. I also have some wooden penguins sitting and waiting to be painted. The trees and penguins came from ClicketyClack on Etsy. I have bought lots of cutouts from them and have never been disappointed.

Television TIme

2012-01-11T13:18:00.000-06:00

A couple months back the girls got a television in their playroom. I wasn’t excited (to say the very least) and had always said that there would be no TV outside of the one in the living room. I had already caved and put a DVD player in the van to make traveling to visit family less of a nightmare (which I am thankful we did) but I was not ready to embrace this change. The girls loved it; they could watch their dance movies and thought they had their own little movie theatre. It didn’t really affect our daily lives and I even had to admit it was nice when I didn’t have to watch Bella Dancerella for the hundredth time. After a while I started to notice a negative influence though. Kaitlyn quickly became addicted to the television. It seemed as though all she wanted to do was sit on her little bench in front of the screen all day. She’d wake up and want to turn it on; she stopped hanging out with us in other areas of the house and would even knock on the screen when it wasn’t on. Even if we were watching a Christmas movie together as a family she’d want to go sit by herself in the playroom and watch her TV. When we got back from Christmas and it was still all she wanted to do I’d finally had enough.

One of the very first acts for the New Year was to take the television back out of the playroom. We took it out while the girls were napping and put up the teepee they got from grandma and grandpa in its place. Immediately upon waking Kaitlyn went straight to the playroom then began asking “Where go?”, but we told her it was gone and within a minute she was fine and had moved on. We both breathed a sigh of relief that there wasn’t going to be an issue adjusting and life could get back to normal. The girls haven’t missed it at all and I am happy to have a little less television in our lives.

I’m not trying to say that television is evil and bad for kids (though I know a lot of people do). The truth is we like TV, maybe not as much as the next family but for us it still has its place in our daily rhythm. The girls and I like to ease into our mornings by watching a little PBS together in the recliner. We enjoy watching Super Why and Dinosaur Train and that is perfectly okay, for us. Television time is one of the things we’ve chosen to make a non-issue in our home (which is how I was convinced to allow the television to ever be put in the playroom to begin with) but I do place a limit of sorts on how much is viewed. By only have one television in the main area of the house it is much easier to control what and how much is seen. We also don’t have cable or satellite so that means when we are watching it is on PBS. Once we have started out day the television goes off and we go on about our business. We turn it back on in the afternoon to watch Wild Kratz which Kinsley and I both enjoy watching together. We actually learn quite a bit from these shows and they have given us several topics to research and learn more about. I think, if used properly, television can be a great aid to a homeschooling (or not) family. We choose to view it as a learning opportunity in addition to a source of entertainment.

Though there are definitely times we use it just for fun. We’ll pop some popcorn and put in a favorite Disney movie and cuddle up on the couch (or a “port” in the floor) together. I’ll also admit to the screen being on a lot more during the winter when we can’t get outside nearly as much and I’m okay with that too. For us it was simply a matter of finding a balance that worked for all of us. How do you handle screen time with your children?

Winter Reading

2012-01-09T12:39:00.003-06:00

With the nasty virus that has been going around we've spent a lot of time avoiding leaving the house and a lot of time reading some of our favorite winter books. Once we packed away our Christmas books I realized our Winter reading stash wasn't as large as I had originally thought but we have some old favorites so we don't mind too much.

I keep our seasonal or themed books separate from all the other books on the bookshelf (in the girls' bedroom) so we can find them easily and they become part of our seasonal decor that way too.

We moved them off the coffee table onto the bookshelf in the front room to give us more playing space but to still have them easily accessible for lots of use.

In the basket right now:

Snowmen at Night by Caralyn Buehner

Grandmother Winter by Phyllis Root

First Snow in the Woods by Carl R. Sams

Stranger in the Woods by Carl R. Sams

The Star Child by J and W Grimm

Owl Moon by Jane Yolen

One Winter's Day by M. Christina Butler

Such great books and perfect for snuggling up by a cozy fire on a blustery winter day. Do you have a winter favorite that you could suggest to us?

I linked to Amazon just for the simple fact that it is easy for anyone to find them that way. I wish I had a terrific local book store I could point people (and myself) towards though.

This Moment

2012-01-06T11:11:00.001-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

New Year, New Rhythm

2012-01-02T13:27:00.003-06:00

I hope everyone had a fantastic start to this new year. I know we are looking forward to seeing what this year holds for our family but first we need to get back on track and into our rhythm. The rhythm in which we live our lives is crucial to the happiness of our family. I’ve realized that the holidays were getting in the way of our natural rhythms and could see the effects in the faces and actions of my girls. When things get too hectic and shaken up everyone gets overwhelmed and overly emotional. We’re at that stage right now and it is time to center ourselves and get back to what we know works for us as a family.

There is a natural ebb and flow to our daily lives which we embrace, but never force. That is the beauty of being a homeschooling (and unschooling) family, being able to live our lives without worrying about what the calendar or the clock is telling us. We are free to follow our hearts and imaginations wherever they may lead us. That isn’t to say that we don’t have a bit of structure to our days but simply that we aren’t on a rigid schedule dictated by the numbers on a clock or a list of tasks that we must complete to call our day a success.

Those of you that really know me know that I am a list maker and a planner so of course there is a chart. Kinsley is a bit of a list maker herself and thrives on knowing what is in store for her day and feels much more secure when she can predict what comes next in her day. That doesn’t mean we always follow the plan, in fact most days we don’t. But the chart gives us a jumping off point and serves as an inspiration for us all. I didn’t just sit down one day and pull these ideas out of my head, instead I stepped back and watched our natural rhythms as they presented themselves and went from there. I learned that the girls, though they wake early, aren’t ready to jump right into the day’s activities but prefer to gradually ease into their day and are often awake for more than an hour before they feel ready to eat breakfast. I learned that cleaning up right before nap gave us a clean slate to start with in the afternoon. I learned what worked for our family. That I the important thing to remember about establishing a rhythm in your home, what works for one house likely isn’t what works for another. You have to find out what works for you. Though there isn’t a magic printout that will bring calm and order to your house there are several excellent blog posts on rhythm like this one or this one here.

Our daily rhythm is ever changing, especially now that Kaitlyn is old enough to really participate so I anticipate doing a lot of tweaking as we start the new year and find what works for us where we are now.

We also have a general rhythm to our week that gives us sort of a “theme” for the day.

Weekly Rhythm:

Monday: Music Day
Tuesday: Baking Day
Wednesday: Painting Day
Thursday: Crafting Day
Friday: Adventure Day

That isn’t to say that we only paint on Wednesdays or if we want to bake cookies on a Friday we can’t, just that on these specific days I make a concentrated effort to focus on that daily task. It works well for us to have this activity come after nap time so that the girls are refreshed and ready to focus. It also gives me the opportunity to use naptime to get supplies out and ready beforehand.

We don’t really have a planned activity for our weekends as we never know if Daddy will be working or home with us on Saturdays so we play it by ear. They are our dedicated family days though, where we try to get outside (weather permitting) and just spend time together as a family.

I just recently found this post over at Play At Home Mom and fell immediately in love with the Daily Rhythm Charts she links to. I'm thinking we'll definitely need a lady bug or bumble bee one for this spring and summer. Such a good way to help the kids visualize their day.

Christmas Recap

2011-12-31T14:03:00.003-06:00

I can't believe we actually got them all in one picture and mostly looking the same way!

Finally! I was afraid I wasn't going to get these pictures posted before the new year started. I'd like to start with a clean slate. Thankfully we're all feeling a bit better and I got a little bit of quiet time this afternoon. Christmas this year was a blast (and a bit of a blur). It was so much fun to see all the little cousins together and reminded me so much of when my sister and I were kids. It was busy though, I'm not sure we want to open presents so many times next year (5 times once it was over). By the time Christmas morning came it was old hat and the girls weren't as excited as I had hoped they would be. Mostly they were just tired. We're going to have to do some thinking on how we want to handle the holiday next year to make it easier and less overwhelming for them. It was a great weekend though and a lot of great memories.

Yes, more dresses...

2011-12-23T00:51:00.004-06:00

I know, I know. Haven't I made enough of these dresses yet? The answer is no, no I haven't. I just can't get enough of this pattern and the dresses are so versatile and just plain fun. So you'll likely see more of them even after we start the new year. I do promise to try and add in a few others too though, I've spotted some very beautiful new spring styles.

This little dress (and matching dolly dress) was sent out to a dear friend who also happened to end up being my swap partner for a Christmas exchange. You can't get better than that. I knew her little one had gotten a beautiful doll from DebsSteinerDolls just like Kinsley (in fact she was the one that discovered Deb for our group) so of course she'd need a matching dress as well.

I also included a little something that could be shared with her brother. I added in some crocheted play food because what kid doesn't love "cooking" for their parents?

I used a pattern from CraftyAnna for some of the pieces. You have to check out her Etsy shop if you aren't familiar with her patterns, they are incredibly cute. I adore this campfire set, it is definitely on my summer/fall to-do list.

A Waldorf doll for Kait

2011-12-22T14:24:00.002-06:00

I finally got to work on Kait's doll, nothing like waiting until the last minute. Though I am done much earlier than the middle of the night Christmas Eve so that is an improvement.

My most (and least) favorite part of doing these dolls is the face.

I'm always scared to make that first stitch but it is so fun to see the dolls come to life. I still can't quite manage to get the eyes really round but I'll keep practicing. Things certainly went faster and easier than the first doll and I enjoyed the process so much more. I used another premade body from Ashtabeulah's shop to make life a little easier on myself. I would like to try my hand at making some of the pocket dolls from scratch next year though.

I hope Kait loves her as much as I do. She is just the perfect little size for her and I can't wait for both girls to get their dolls on Christmas morning.

By the way I got the doll sweater from TaffertyDesigns on Etsy. This is the second sweater we've ordered from them and I am so pleased with the quality of them. They are the perfect size for these smaller dolls.

Playing with cousins

2011-12-21T19:18:00.002-06:00

We celebrated the solstice today by baking lots of cookies and playing with a couple adorable babies. Pretty sure I have the cutest nephews ever. The girls had a great time entertaining (and draging around) the boys who got their first tastes of Christmas cookies while they were here. Oops...

Braeden especially loved playing with the little wooden blocks. He'll have to put some on his birthday wish list.

This one is my favorite.

You'll have to forgive the ridiculous amount of pictures, they don't get to come visit often enough so I have to take them when I can.

Personalized Beanbags

2011-12-20T11:15:00.002-06:00

Without posting a million pictures of us in our jammies reading Christmas books I was running out of things to blog about. Thankfully, this gift was finally delivered so I can share it with you. Definitely one of my favorite projects this season.

I adore these beanbags. They are so fun to make and I love that you can personalize them with anything you want. I am planning on making a number set for the girls after the first of the year. And they are definitely going to the top of my gift ideas list. I got the idea from this post over at Lil Blue Boo. I followed her sewing instruction (it was so easy that way) but used applique instead of ironing on the letters. Have you noticed I use a lot of Ashley's tutorials? I adore her and her work, you really need to follow her blog if you aren't already. She's an amazing seamstress and an incredible person.

See the little hand snatching just as I'm taking the picture? The girls were so disappointed that they didn't get to keep the beanbags, always a sign of a good gift. I hope he loves them as much as my girls did.

Sweet and Simple

2011-12-19T12:37:00.002-06:00

I seem to be missing a lot of my Christmas spirit this year or rather as the season has gone on my cheer has seemed to dwindle. I was lamenting about my lack of holiday happiness just the other night and trying to figure out what the cause might me. For a multitude of reasons I find myself with just a handful of days left until Christmas and an enormous number of things left on my to-do list (which isn’t unusual). We’ve had more commitments this year and I’ve spent too many nights staying up late and dragging myself through the mornings. I took a moment to do some blog reading this morning and this post over at Soulemama really resonated with me. I think we’ll follow her lead and just step back and relax, pull out our favorite blankets and settle in.

Sure I could stress over the fact that I haven’t completed one single handmade gift for my loved ones this year or that we won’t have our new stockings in time for Santa’s visit. I could worry about how we haven’t baked any cookies or goodies yet or the fact that (once again) we didn’t get Christmas cards in the mail. Instead I am going to stop and just enjoy the rest of the (very short) holiday season with my girls, following their lead and loving every minute of it. That is truly what is most important.

Countdown with Jingle

2011-12-18T11:42:00.002-06:00

We had a busy weekend of Christmas parties in which lots of fun was had and no pictures were taken. Sometimes it just works out that way. We're in the final countdown to Christmas and trying to decide what we think we'll try to finish and what we'll simply put onto the list for next year. (the list for next year is growing quickly) It also means only a few days left of our elf Jingle hanging out with us. We've had some great fun with him and can't wait to see what he has in store for the last few days until Christmas.

This Moment...

2011-12-16T00:37:00.002-06:00

Christmas Cards

2011-12-15T13:39:00.003-06:00

Well, I know I said I was going to try and actually get cards out this year but I've changed my mind. We did make our cards (two different versions) and we'll hand deliver a few at Christmas but these will likely be turned into our gift tags for the year.

I've had these cards in mind since I first spotted them last year. It's such a cute way to keep a little reminder of those tiny fingerprints that I'm always cleaning off of everything.

The girls loved stamping their fingerprints over and over again and surprisingly it only took 4 tries to get a good card. I'm impressed.

Kait was especially happy with stamping and walked around for the rest of the afternoon pretending to stamp her finger print on everything (and everyone).

Kinsley decided to make her whole family in reindeer form. I love the way they turned out.

I've started scanning all her artwork into the computer so that eventually I can make it into a book for her. I have always intended to do this and never quite got the motivation to start. We've already lost a few of my favorite pieces to an overly helpful little sister so I thought I better get started. It will be a great way to keep a record of all her art without having to keep a ton of paper over the years. This way we can turn some of the actual artwork into cards, tags and presents for family and still keep some for ourselves.

Sewing to share

2011-12-14T16:21:00.002-06:00

(ready to be sent out to a sweet friend)

I started out making a Christmas dress for our new Waldorf baby and it snowballed from there. These little dresses are so quick to make and a great way to use up scrap fabrics. They are just miniature versions of the apron knot dresses I've been making but I switched to using velcro on them to make them a bit easier for the kids to dress their dolls by themselves.

I think the baseball one is actually my favorite. I've always loved that fabric. (and ignore the smudge on the lower left of the pictures, I didn't realize there were little fingerprints on my lens until I uploaded.)

Ceramic Drawing

2011-12-11T10:42:00.003-06:00

One of the bad things about blogging during the holidays is that there is so much that you can't share. I've been trying to work on some Christmas gifts but I can't post pictures of them because they would be easily identified. When I saw this post over at Soulemama I thought I would go ahead and share our project. It's fun to see one of your favorite people doing the same type of project you are.

She took her ceramic markers and embellished coffee cups and we used ours to make Christmas plates to deliver baked treats on. These markers have become one of my favorite additions to our craft supplies. I bought them when I was going to make Kinsley's birthday plate and fell in love.

She's so serious when she draws.

But she really was having fun.

We bought some small plates from the dollar tree and just freehanded our designs right onto the plates with our markers. Then let them sit for 24 hours and bake according to the directions on the pen. So easy and such a great way to do a personalized gift. We bought our markers at Michaels (about $4), they were the only local place we could find them.

Aren't they cute? I'll be keeping the tree plate for myself so we might have to go pick up some more plates.

Warm Knits

2011-12-11T10:00:00.002-06:00

I love getting mail and so do the girls, it's one of our all time favorite things. This week we got a terrific package in the mail from a very sweet friend and inside was this beautiful handmade hat.

Isn't it beautiful? She also sent a gorgeous orange pilot style cap but I haven't been able to get a good picture of it yet.

It's such a sweet little style and perfect to keep her toasty. Thanks so much Christine, you're amazing!

Giving is better

2011-12-10T01:22:00.007-06:00

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can”
-Arthur Ashe

With Christmas approaching I hear more and more “I want that!” “Can I have this?” and the toy commercials and catalogs are appearing everywhere. I am lucky because my girls have been pretty good about not asking for everything they see and are generally content to simply browse the toy aisles and leave without issue. And with everyone we encounter asking them “what do you want for Christmas?” “Have you made your list yet?” “Do you have our toy catalog?” and rambling off a list of things my girls had never even considered asking for I can feel myself cringe. Some days are better than others however and this year I felt especially sensitive to the amount of greed and self centeredness in our country in general. I was feeling really frustrated about it one night and started thinking about how to redirect the girls’ focus to giving instead of receiving and decided right there we would start to shift our perspective as a family.

I sat down and started making a list of people I knew that could use a little cheering up and local organizations I knew could use our help. I’ve put together a few packages to send out and it truly does feel better to give than to receive. It feels so nice to step back from the holiday madness and focus on people outside of ourselves. I knew I needed a better way to get Kinsley involved though now that she is finally old enough to understand some. I explained Toys for Tots to her and what it was that they did and now when we are shopping she always asks to pick something up for the “salivation Army”. She even used part of her birthday money (completely unprompted by me) to buy a Barbie to donate, so I think maybe the message is starting to sink in. By starting early we were able to pick up a little something each time we were out and make an even bigger contribution. We have quite a little collection going already and it makes me smile every time I see it.

Then I started seeing pins (Because everything you need is on Pinterest, you know) about people doing big random acts of kindness days. I adore this idea. Robyn over at Mix Mingle Glow did just that to celebrate her birthday and has some great ideas and a facebook page as well. There are some great ideas and I can not wait to have a RAOK day with Kinsley very soon. I’ll be sure to let you all know how it goes.

Kinsley was beyond excited to take in her angel tree donations today and all day long kept talking about "that sweet tiny girl" and how happy she hoped she'd be happy with her new toys. Though she didn't understand why she couldn't go visit her. She wanted to show her all her new stuff and help her learn how to do everything. It is so sweet to see her be so happy about doing something for someone else.

Since we’ve started this we’ve also been presented with a few other ways we can help out in our area and I can not even begin to tell you how happy it makes me to hear my little girl get so excited about helping someone. This mama’s heart is full.

This Moment...

2011-12-09T21:18:00.001-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Birds

2011-12-08T13:13:00.002-06:00

We haven't had as many birds around this year but we're hoping that they will start to find our feeder and make it part of their routine. The girls work very hard at making sure there is plenty of birdseed to go around.

Mama gets the task of making sure the water in the bird bath isn't frozen in the mornings. Lucky me right? But it'll be worth it when we can sit and watch out the window to see all our birdie friends.

Adventures of Jingle

2011-12-07T18:38:00.002-06:00

Our elf Jingle has been busy lately. Gotta get those presents finished before Christmas.

Saint Nicholas

2011-12-06T10:58:00.003-06:00

The slippers were placed at the foot of the tree last night in anticipation of our first ever celebration of Saint Nicholas Day.

The girls woke this morning to find a candy cane, some gold coins and a new St. Nicholas figure filling their slippers.

(sorry for the dark pictures, there is no natural light as early as we start our day)

The rest of the day has been filled with stories, coloring pages and activities centered around Saint Nicholas. Hopefully this afternoon we will be braving the cold to deliver the toys we collected for the local toy drive. A perfect day to remember to think of others before ourselves and help in any way we can.

(If you need a little help with some ideas the St. Nicholas Center is definitely the place to look, thank heavens for the internet.)

Santa and the Carousel

2011-12-02T10:38:00.004-06:00

We took the girls to see Santa about a week ago. We had a great day out but I'm not sure Kaitlyn will ever forgive us. Ever. I really wasn't expecting her to have a problem since she generally loves strangers and loved Santa last year. Really Kinsley was the one I was more worried about since she's so timid. I was wrong.

The best photo we could get. Obviously she wasn't happy, but she did calm down.

The other girls loved him.

What?!? A candy cane? You think THIS is supposed to help me?

And let me just say, for the record, that I am not one of those people that takes my kid to Santa just to get a picture of them being miserable and screaming. In fact if I had really thought she'd hate him I would never have taken her. This whole process lasted a minute, maybe two and then I rescued her.

The big girls went with us too but I didn't figure they wanted their Santa picture online. Maybe I'll save that for blackmail...

They were much happier about having their pictures taken outside. Kinsley is getting to be quite the little ham. None of the pictures were posed, I just snapped away as quickly as I could before Kait could get a chance to jump off.

See the candycane all over her face? ha!

This face is what kills me though. This girl, oh goodness. Can you even stand how beautiful she is?

They also got to do some mall shopping and ride the carousel which is always a big deal.

Especially for this little one. This was the first time she has ever stayed on the carousel long enough to ride. It was a little iffy at first but I cheered and waved (and made a complete fool of myself) to try and show her how fun it was. By the time it was over she was so happy and waved bye to all the horses.

This Moment: A year and a half

2011-12-02T09:30:00.005-06:00

{this moment inspired by Soulemama} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

I'm breaking the rules for this week's moment because it is a special day. My baby is 18 months old today. It still feels like she should be a tiny baby and not some big kid running around, playing and talking with her sister.

This little personality has really thrown us for a loop around here. She came right into the world with her own plans and her own style and we've all been scrambling to keep up. She is so energetic and enthusiastic about everything.

I'm not sure energetic is even a strong enough word for her (a lot of the time it's crazy). She is just non stop from the moment she wakes until she finally crashes at night. (after some jumping on the bed and giggling with her sister)

She has a love for all things furry and lord help them if they don't run faster than she does. Though her all time favorite in the whole world is her "sissy". Oh how they love each other. If Kinsley is gone for more than 30 seconds we hear "Sissy! Where you?" over and over again until she reappears. At which point there is lots of squealing and hugging. Kait has a way of making everyone feel loved because she is always so excited to see you. She is very stingy with her kisses though and you should consider yourself quite lucky if she gives you one unprompted. Quite lucky indeed.

It's been an amazing ride and I can't wait to see what the next 6 months holds for this silly girl. I'm so blessed to be able to watch the magic unfold.

Thrifting and a win!

2011-12-01T16:52:00.004-06:00

Happy December everyone!

A trip to the dentist is not the way I wanted to start this month but my toothache could be ignored no longer and now I have some lovely antibiotics and an appointment with an oral surgeon for the first of the year. Fun times. But I did manage to sneak in some thrifting after my appointment today. (I think I deserved a special treat, right?)

I picked up these adorable smiling sunshine placemats. Aren't they the cutest? I think we're going to hang them on the wall in the playroom or maybe the girls' room. They're too fun not to display.

They came with these adorable matching napkins too. They'll be going into Kinsley's play kitchen. Though they would make really cute doll blankets too. Hmmm...

I also got some fabulous news in an email this week. I won a giveaway over at Rhythm of the Home! I was so shocked when I saw my name as the winner, I never win anything. Seriously I can't think of one single other thing I've ever won. No raffles, giveaways, drawings, etc. Eeek! It's even more exciting because it means I will be starting the Thinking Feeling Willing: Bringing the Rhythm Home curriculum from A Little Garden Flower. I can not wait to get my hands on all this information and have some incredible support for our Waldorf schooling journey. It couldn't have happened at a better time since I've spent the past couple days thinking ahead to how will approach schooling next year. This 12 month curriculum is going to be a lifesaver and so great for all of us. And I am so excited about the one on one help available while we're doing the program, that is going to be wonderful.

I am so thankful to have this opportunity just when we needed it most.

Alone Time...

2011-11-30T18:08:00.004-06:00

The girls are off on a vacation at their grandma's house for a few days (thanks mom). It feels so strange to be home alone and I already miss my babies but I know they are having a great time. I'm trying to be as productive as I can be while I have the chance to work uninterrupted. Tonight I'm working on some surprise holiday decorations for their bedroom and have lots more holiday decor waiting in the wings. Hopefully I can make a pretty good dent in it and still have time to catch up on some much needed sleep. Hope you all are having a great week too.

Shelf Elf

2011-11-26T09:57:00.003-06:00

This year we adopted our very own elf from the North Pole. If you haven't heard of The Elf on the Shelf you really need to check it out. Santa sends a scout elf to your home to help keep and eye on things and at the end of each day the elf flies back to the North Pole to report to Santa. The kids get to pick a name for their elf and we finally settled on "Jingle Bell" for ours. Kinsley started off naming him "America" and throughout the course of the day (and watching the Elf on the Shelf movie last night) his name changed close to thirty times including pickle, ruffles, snowflake, jeff, sticker, baby and elfie. I think Jingle is a terrific name.

Our elf arrived Friday morning brining with him our first ever North Pole Breakfast, an idea I got from Jessica at Little Pumpkin Grace. It's such a sweet way to kick off the holiday season and to introduce the littles to their new friend.

We did our breakfast in the living room because it was the only room decorated for Christmas already (courtesy of our elf). We put up and decorated the Christmas tree together on Thursday evening and after the girls were in bed the elf came and decorated the rest of the room and set up breakfast. Wasn't that nice of him? He even left us his book and a little letter introducing himself. The girls were beside themselves with excitement and I'll admit mama was pretty excited too.

It was such a perfect way to kick off our holiday season and I hope we can continue this tradition every year. And I can't wait to see all the places our elf pops up, this morning he was sitting on top of the playroom shelves playing with some puppies.

Thankful

2011-11-25T09:59:00.003-06:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We had a great time with lots of food (lots) and so much to be thankful for. Especially these girls, they've added so much to our holidays and to our lives.

I am thankful every day I get to wake up and see those smiling faces.

And I love how well Kait's Thanksgiving dress turned out. Can you tell I am in love with these knot dresses? I've only made about 30 of them (not counting the doll dress spree I'm currently on). Unfortunately with all our running around this week I ran out of time to make one for both girls but it's about time Kait got something first and something that wasn't handed down from her big sister. It's only fair.

This Moment...

2011-11-18T09:50:00.001-06:00

November

2011-11-15T14:22:00.002-06:00

November is notorious for bringing with it a flurry of activity and sense of “busy”. This year I am making a concentrated effort to slow things down and enjoy the upcoming holiday season rather than rushing through it. I’m trying to step back and really enjoy fall rather than rush through in anticipation of Christmas. This season seems to disappear so quickly around here and I don’t want to miss a single moment of it. Somehow half of the month has already flown by and I find myself reminded that no matter how much we slow down, time will always continue on. A good reminder to savor every moment as it comes and to fully live in the present. Something I am proud to say that I am finally getting better at.

We're spending more time playing with our nature table and just being outside enjoying all that fall has to offer us. I don’t feel the normal stress and urgency to get so many things done this season (ask me again the week before Christmas) and am keeping our to-do list as short as humanly possible. It feels somewhat strange to have such a short holiday crafting list and I’ll be the first to admit that at times I feel just a tad guilty for not doing more. Almost as if I’m not quite sure what to do with all this extra time I have given myself. I am sure, however, that the girls will be more than willing to help fill that time.

Veterans Weekend

2011-11-14T15:22:00.002-06:00

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend, I know we did. We had a playdate with some great friends, made it to two of the local Veteran's Day parades and spent a lot of time together as a family.

One of the local parades had veterans drive all the fire trucks in their parade and we got to see two of our favorite vets. Definitely the highlight of the parade (though the girls would say the candy was a close second).

Sweet Snuggles

2011-11-08T23:58:00.002-06:00

Listening to the wind blowing outside and the quiet inside and thinking how last night was quite a different story. We had some pretty fierce thunderstorms roll through last night and both girls were jolted awake by the thunder. Kinsley, who normally isn’t afraid of storms yelled out and proclaimed that “it isn’t fair that storms wake you up when you’re sleeping. It isn’t nice or fair.” to which I fully agreed. She crawled into bed with daddy and me and it was about that moment that Kaitlyn woke up crying.

I stood there in the dark rocking my baby girl and thinking about how quickly time has passed. I haven’t actually rocked her to sleep in ages and she has gotten so very tall and most days seems like such a big girl. But last night, with her snuggled into my arms she seemed so very much like my baby still. While I was rocking and singing and trying to console my sleepy baby Kinsley came sneaking into the room. Overcoming her own fears about the storm she came to the rescue of her baby sister to bring her favorite baby doll in “to help her sleep better”. This was one of those moments that makes your heart sing as a mother, to watch your children act with such unprompted love and caring for one another. Kinsley was willing to give up her favorite baby and leave herself with nothing to sleep with simply to comfort her baby sissy.

The doll did the trick and I was able to sleepily crawl back into bed. No sooner than my head hit the pillow two little hands reached out and held my hand between them. Night mama, she said as she snuggled in and drifted off to dream land.

Last night I drifted off to sleep holding hands with my girl, listening to the sound of her breathing and thinking how blessed I am to be a mama.

This Moment...

2011-11-04T13:56:00.001-05:00

Play Ball!

2011-11-03T09:57:00.001-05:00

Kinsley got a new t-ball set for her birthday and it is a bit hit. (pun completely intended) The girls have loved playing with it and daddy and I have loved the break from throwing the ball ten thousand times a day.

Even sister got in on the action for a few minutes.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T21:57:00.002-05:00

I hope everyone had as much fun today as my little superheroes did. And if you came home with half as much candy as we did, I'm sure you are wondering what to do with it all. I may or may not be sneaking some now that the girls are in bed. Happy Halloween...

Have I mentioned lately how much I love these silly girls?

A Day to Relax

2011-10-28T19:24:00.003-05:00

Today was another great and lazy day. The weather was chilly and we spent the day cozied up around the fire. The great thing about days like this is the time to just be, to learn more about each other and to enjoy. Kinsley spent her day crafting and creating for some very special people. I love the opportunity to craft alongside her and just chat with one another, such a precious moment in a normally loud and busy life.

I was so surprised by how well she was doing with her writing today. Just yesterday I was lamenting how I wasn't quite sure that she was learning enough with me (typical mama worrying you know?) and today she decides to put it all out there for me. Almost as if she knew I needed the reassurance. And all those extra loops in my name, they are there because "it just looks prettier that way". Of course it does.

Kaitlyn mostly spent her day floating from one comfy spot to the next, still not quite feeling like her normal energetic self but full of cuddles for those around her.

The Birthday

2011-10-27T19:44:00.004-05:00

Today's post was a bit (okay a lot) delayed because I've been cuddling a sick baby all day. Poor thing partied a bit too hard yesterday I suppose. Hoping it doesn't pass on to the rest of us.

(Edit: I managed to recover a few pictures from earlier in the day. Woo! Technology is still not my friend, however.)

This is the smile I have come to expect from her. I love her face. Love her.

It was a great day filled with family, fun and lots of special treats. And cake. Lots and lots of cake, and ice cream. Probably a little too much cake honestly. Regardless the birthday girl proclaimed it was the happiest she had ever been and the best day ever so I'll let the ridiculous amount of sugar slide.

Goodbye Three

2011-10-25T20:29:00.004-05:00

I just put this little girl to bed for the last time as a 3 year old. Tomorrow when we wake up she'll be 4 and very excited about it. We have a low key day planned with all her favorite foods and of course lots of family and birthday cake.

I know I keep saying how sad I am that she is growing so quickly but really it is more of a bittersweet moment. While I'm sad to be losing my little girl I am so in love with the person she is becoming. She is one of the most thoughtful, funny and compassionate people that I know. She is my little caretaker and is always doing sweet little things for everyone around her. We are constantly smiling with all of her funny jokes and theories on life. Yet she is often insightful and wise well beyond her years.

When she grows up she says she wants to be a mama, a ballerina, a firefighter and maybe a veterinarian. She still prefers chocolate milk to anything else and would eat bread and butter for every meal if we'd let her. Being a ballerina is her current passion and looks forward to class every week. We still read numerous books every day and she is loving being a scientist. Naptime has become optional and she is convinced that four is big enough to stay up late like the grown ups. She would rather be outside and would likely live in the backyard if she could. She insists on taking her vitamin every morning but resists having to have her hair brused. Tomatoes are only eaten while standing in the garden but carrots (raw) are to be eaten any time.

I am looking forward to seeing what the next year brings with this beautiful little little girl.

Super Kinsley

2011-10-24T19:23:00.002-05:00

The ballerinas got to wear their Halloween costumes to dance class tonight (which meant a late night sewing fest last night). Kinsley was beyond excited by her costume and I was happy with how easily it came together. She's ran around all afternoon yelling "Super Kinsley!" and twirling so I will call this another costume success. Thankfully I have a few more days to finish Kait's costume.

super fast twirling...

You can't see in the pictures but all of the felt is covered in glitter which, to a little girl, makes the costume.

This Moment...

2011-10-21T12:52:00.005-05:00

{this moment inspired by Soulemama} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Beginning Handwork

2011-10-20T13:01:00.005-05:00

This summer Kinsley decided she wanted to learn how to sew "for real, mama" so I thought it was time to start her on some handwork of her very own. I always try to make sure the girls have supplies out where they can easily get to them whenever they feel like working on something. Kinsley kept her sewing in a basket on my sewing table so the needle would be out of sister's reach but it was still available to her at any time. It is so important to me that the girls get involved in creating with their hands for so many reasons. I think it is very important for them to have that connection to handmade items and to really understand the work that goes into the things we have. Handwork like embroidery is also great for their fine motor skills and coordination.

With Kinsley just beginning to really show interest I didn't get too technical with her instructions. I simply hooped a lightweight cotton that would be easy to push a needle through and gave her a needle sharp enough to easily work with but still dull enough to not really hurt if she pricked her fingers, which easily happens. A burlap material and a blunt tip needle would work really well, we simply didn't have any on hand and I wanted to get her started while she was still enthusiastic about it. She knew how to make a basic stitch from the cardboard lacing boards she has had for quite some time so there wasn't much involvement on my part, I simply sat nearby to answer any questions and help her along if she needed it.

Some days she would sit and work on it for a long time, other days she wouldn't touch it at all. Finally one day she declared that she was finished sewing. She thought about what she wanted to do with it and though I suggested a wallhanging or doll blanket she settled on "A pillow for sissy" and got right to work.

She did a really good job keeping her lines straight too.

I stepped back and let her take the reins on her project only helping to turn the pillow and pull out the corners. She was so proud of herself for getting to use the real tools and do everything just like mama does. I think that is a good lesson for us as parents, that just because they are small doesn't mean that their work is not as important. To them, their pursuits are just as important as anything we may be doing and even if we think it may be silly it isn't to them. I try very hard to make sure I remember that with the girls and give them the freedom, respect and materials to ensure whatever they are attempting has the opportunity to develop. Whether that is letting them stay up a bit later to finish a project, making sure they have high quality art materials to work with or just saying "Yes" when they want to take on a project I am not quite sure of, I try to let them know I value their work as much as they do.

Next I think we will work on learning a few embroidery stitches and maybe do some finger knitting, when she is ready again.

Bandana dress, the sequel

2011-10-17T14:50:00.004-05:00

Remember this dress from last year? (and omg how tiny does Kinsley look? Ugh) I find it so funny that many of the things that Kaitlyn has been wearing this summer are things that Kinsley wore only last summer. Things like this dress that I had left in Kinsley's closet thinking she might be able to wear it this spring again only to find that she had more than outgrown it. Why is it that even though I see them growing each and every day I don't realize how quickly they are changing?

Kaitlyn is changing dramatically these days it seems. The difference from week to week is astonishing, even day to day. It seems that she wakes up every day with some new bit of knowledge she has picked up along the way. Her vocabulary is rapidly expanding and her sentences are getting longer. I love that we are all able to have a conversation with each other now and even when we don't quite understand her language she seems to grasp ours quite well.

She is just as fascinated with animals and outdoors as she has been though she seems to be especially enamored with cows as of late. Thankfully living out here cows are easy to come by. Unfortunately it is hard to get anywhere without passing the cows. Immediately she points to them and shrieks "Mooooooooo!" but as soon as they are out of view she cries and is quite pitiful until the next cow sighting. The entire scene is almost too much for her daddy who has uttered the phrase "Maybe we should get her a cow." a bit too often for this mamas liking. Maybe next year honey. Maybe.

And yes, I realize the pockets are designed to be in the front. Big sister helped her to get dressed and they were both so pleased with themselves that we didn't feel the need to correct it. I kind of like the pockets in the back anyway...

Crayon Art

2011-10-16T15:21:00.004-05:00

I realized I had forgotten to blog this activity (along with several others) from our summer fun, oops. Since the weather man is telling me the temps are going to be near (and below) freezing next week I thought I might ought to get the last summer posts completed.

I know we've all seen this project all over the net and as soon as I saw it on Pinterest I knew it was a must for us. We have a TON of crayons thanks to all the school supply sales and the canvas was left over from another project so we were all set.

Its ridiculously easy to do and the result is a lot of fun. We get compliments on it all the time and even a few requests for custom colors from family. Kinsley is very proud.

Gather up your supplies and decide how you want to arrange your colors:

Then bust out your hot glue gun and get going. Just glue them to the top edge of the canvas in any order you want.

Kinsley went with whatever she was feeling and I tried for more of a rainbow look. I love the ones done in single colors too. The possibilities are endless.

We wanted to test a theory and see if the sun would melt them for us. The temp was set to reach 115* that day so we thought we had a chance. Turns out it didn't work so we had to bring them inside and melt them with the blow dryer. It was still really fun. We found that it worked best to point the hair dryer down from the top of the canvas (as in at the blunt end of the crayon).

Just make sure if you are using the hair dryer inside that you cover a pretty good area around your artwork to protect it from flying wax. Ask me how I know this...

Then find a pretty place to hang your artwork and enjoy. We hung ours above the girls' arts and craft station. (clever huh?)

Shepherd's Cross Festival

2011-10-15T16:13:00.002-05:00

We had a great morning at Shepherd's Cross for their Pumpkin Festival today. I simply adore this place and all the wonderful things they have to offer throughout the year, if you are local you should definitely go by. Kinsley and I are already planning our next big girl date to be taking one of their classes, I'm thinking drop spindle maybe. I was proud that I resisted bringing home any yarn with me today though I did pick up a small wet felted pumpkin for our nature table.

Feeling Fall

2011-10-04T12:02:00.001-05:00

I realize there hasn’t been a lot of blog activity lately, there just hasn’t been a lot of activity here lately. We’ve been staying pretty low key and having some lovely lazy days. It has been nice to not carry around the camera and to sort of hibernate as a family. But there has been a lot of mental activity lately, on my part at least. My mind has been going at top speed as of late and I can just feel big things ahead for our family. Have you ever felt like that? Just that something is looming just beyond the horizon and even though you don’t know what it is you feel the need to be prepared. I’m anxious to see what the end of this year has in store for us, if anything at all. It may simply be the pull of the changing seasons as everything seems to be pulled closer to the Earth. Everything around us is preparing for the new season; you can almost feel it buzzing in the air.

Everyone and everything seems to have breathed a huge sigh of relief at the cooling temperatures that have finally arrived. After a summer like we just experienced it is not at all surprising. It seems to have come on suddenly without the usual graceful and slow transition into fall making it a bit hard on some of us to make that switch, no matter how much we have looked forward to it. While the girls have been overjoyed with the increased amount of time outdoors they have resisted the change to longer pants and are not quite ready to let go of the sandals that have adorned their little feet all summer. Meanwhile this mama is happily pulling out sweaters and extra blankets. I’ve started (perhaps a bit late) to dream up some fall clothing and hats to keep little heads warm and perhaps a few items for myself as well. Daddy is dreaming of cooler nights and hunting season opening soon and perhaps dreading the work of chopping wood to keep us warm this winter.

Fall is such a strange time in that even with all the things that need to be completed before the cold weather truly sets in it is still such a relaxed and slow moving time of year; a time for quiet contemplation and certainly, a time for change.

Summer Series: Parade

2011-09-25T12:50:00.002-05:00

It is hard to believe that fall is already here though we are definitely ready for the cooler weather. We're wrapping up some of the summer activities around here and I'm finally getting around to posting some of the things that have gone forgotten.

The girls decided to have a parade through town to mark the end of summer. It was such a cute idea and I couldn't help but smile as I watched their excitement building as they came up with new ideas. I really wasn't sure Kinsley would feel up to the parade but she was so excited that I couldn't ruin their fun. It ended up being a pretty short parade with Kinsley's fever coming back up and the car battery running down, but they still had a great time. I do think I could have just convinced them to stop at getting their faces painted, that was their favorite part.

Hope your summer wrapped up nicely and you are easing your way into a wonderful fall season. We'll be starting an Autumn Harvest curriculum next week and gearing up for some great fall festivities.

Have you thanked a firefighter lately?

2011-09-10T12:23:00.003-05:00

I feel like I have been sitting in front of my embroidery machine for ages, likely because I really have. This past week was spent working on some new shirts for our local volunteer firefighers. Most of the fire departments in our immediate area are at least partially volunteer and those located in our rural area are completely volunteer. These men and women volunteer their time to help protect their neighbors and community and ask nothing in return. I was more than happy to be able to put my craftiness to work to benefit them.

This is his happy face. No, seriously. It really is.

I'm really happy with the way the embroidery turned out and the guys all thought they were pretty neat too so I'd call it a success. (Though I'm pretty sure none of them actually said "neat") I have a couple more projects in the works that involve our local fire departments but I'll save those for another day.

In the meantime maybe you can find a way to show some love to your local firefighters. There are tons of ways that you can help out whether you are crafty or not. You could bake them a special treat(or pick one up at your local bakery), I know these guys would never turn down some good food. Give them a call and see if there is anything they are in need of if you are willing to volunteer your time or talents. You can even just stop by with a note or a word of thanks for everything they do. Trust me, it is appreciated.

Baby Kittens

2011-09-08T23:44:00.002-05:00

The girls discovered our neighbor's baby kittens and are completely and totally in love. These poor little tiny babies don't have a mommy and our neighbor has been bottle feeding them. My girls have happily accepted the role of surrogate mommy and are doing a wonderful job loving on them. Kaitlyn is especially enamored with them, as she's never really seen tiny kittens before. She cuddles them and talks to them in a baby-talk voice and just adores them. It is really the cutest thing.

The only problem with them loving the kittens so is that when it is time to go home and put the kittens down Kaitlyn is heartbroken. She really tries to bring them home with her and her face when we take them away is beyond pitiful.

See what I mean? Oh that face, it is almost enough to get to keep a kitten. Almost.

Ballerina

2011-09-06T01:13:00.002-05:00

My big girl had her very first ballet class last night. She was over the moon excited to go, though I could tell she was a little bit nervous. She kept asking me if I was sure I was going to be right there the whole time, which I assured her I would. As we pulled up outside the studio I was a little nervous for her. She has always been apprehensive with new experiences and people and I so wanted her to enjoy herself in class because she loves to dance so much. I'm proud to say that she did very well and was really excited to show me what she learned (the parents are in a waiting room just outside the dance area). But as soon as class was over she came running up to me and jumped in my lap for me to hold her for a bit. My little love, such a beautiful ballerina.

Backyard Camping

2011-09-05T08:58:00.005-05:00

Yesterday marked the beginning of some incredibly nice weather (about 30 degrees cooler than it had been) and we promised the girls we would celebrate by setting up camp in the back yard. It was the first time Kaitlyn had ever experienced a tent. It was so funny to watch her go in and out and touch the screened windows and laughing. We spent the entire day outside, only coming in for diaper changes and potty breaks. It was the perfect way to spend a lovely lazy Sunday.

To say that they loved the watermelon was an understatement. We finally had to take it away from Kait and one point to keep her from eating the entire thing. I think it is safe to say that they had a really great time and you know it is a successful day when your kids look like this at the end of the day...

I'm making a batch of blueberry muffins right now and then it is back outside to enjoy another day with my loves. Have a great weekend.

Summer Series: Colored Ice

2011-09-04T13:35:00.003-05:00

I kept seeing the posts about painting with coloring ice cubes like this one at Share & Remember and this one at Chasing Cheerios. I immediately knew it would be a great activity for my girls. Turns out I was wrong. They thought the colored ice cubes were great, but had no interest at all in coloring with them. All they wanted to do was put them on the sidewalk and watch them melt. So that is what we did.

Kaitlyn was more interested in snatching them up and trying to eat them. So that is what she did.

This activity is a perfect lesson in my biggest challenge in creating with the kids...letting go. So often I find this great activity and can't wait to show it to the girls and then upon seeing it they are not interested at all. I think that is especially true of kids this age. They often have their own idea of fun and their own perspective on an activity and it is becomes my job to step back and let them create how they see fit. Afterall it isn't about the project as much as it is the process. Creating and experimenting and having fun, those are the things that count.

See this girl?

2011-09-02T14:22:00.002-05:00

Seriously. Do you SEE her. I adore this tiny little face, dirt and all. The fact that she is 15 months old today makes me more than a little sad.

She is already starting to lose so many of her "baby" traits and is definitely a full on toddler now. Her vocabulary is growing every day right along with her personality. I love seeing which new words she picks up and how she uses them, even if her new favorite is "why". I really thought I had a bit more time before that one but oh well. It is just her inquisitive nature. She wants to know what everything around her is and how it works. It amazes me how much she really absorbs and even though she is absolutely refusing to sign (seriously, she will look at you completely stone faced) she still recognizes and responds when you sign to her.

Her level of independent play increases every day and I can not help but smile when I see her playing a game with her big sister and giggling just like a big girl.

The time is absolutely speeding by and I know that in the blink of an eye she'll be 2 and then the years will just start piling on. But for now I will enjoy the cuddles and giggles and what little baby time I have left.

Summer Series: Graffiti Shoes

2011-08-31T12:45:00.003-05:00

Ever since I saw this tutorial over at Lil Blue Boo last year I've wanted to decorate some shoes with Kinsley. I made sure it made it into our summer crafting schedule this year.

We picked up some cheap canvas shoes on clearance and pulled out all our markers and got right to it.

We learned that the fine tip markers don't bleed nearly as much so they are the best to do any fine detail or outlining with. The shoes have held up surprisingly well, even the ones that were colored with regular "washable" markers.

I decided to do something a little different with the ones I was decorating and just use a black fine tip sharpie to draw some details that we could color in later.

This was such a fun project for both of us. Even if you're like me and have zero drawing ability you can still come up with some pretty cute looking and totally unique shoes. So far Kinsley has decided she likes them without color but that could change any day.

Gone Fishing

2011-08-30T12:41:00.003-05:00

I feel like this post has been forever in the making. We finally were able to take Kinsley on her very first fishing trip. I'm a little sad that it took us 3 1/2 years to finally get it done though. It seems like something was always working against us. The plus to waiting so long was that Kinsely was really excited and able to actually do the fishing part herself some too.

Do you like her "look I just caught a fish pose"? She did that same pose each and every time. Silly girl. We took her to a little place just down from the house that we knew was full of perch so she would be guaranteed to catch something. We'll wait until she's a bit older and gone a few more times before we get into the sitting all day and catching nothing kind of fishing. Turns out she wasn't satisfied with just catching perch and proclaimed "this time I'm going to catch a catfish" as she cast her line the next time.

Can you believe that is exactly what she did? Talk about beginners luck. After that excitement she started to get a little bit bored.

So we decided to call it a day so she fed the rest of her worm to the minnows and went home to show off her big catch.

Scent memories

2011-08-27T01:26:00.005-05:00

Yesterday we gave the house a good cleaning in an effort to get rid of whatever germs might be hanging around since we were all starting to feel a bit better. This included cleaning all the open surfaces of the house, every toy and of course all the linens.

As I wrapped myself up in my quilt last night to go to sleep I breathed in that scent that you only get from line drying laundry, and it hit me. I recognized the scent. It was my grandmother's house. You see for the longest time she would always hang her laundry out on the clothesline behind the house. When I was a kid I remember how much I loved helping her hang out the laundry. It's quite interesting, the things that kids see as fun that most of us grownups think of as work isn't it? But I did love it. I was usually given the task of hanging washcloths, most likely because they were small and easy to manage but I was proud of my work no matter. I still enjoy hanging our laundry on the clothesline though I will admit to using my dryer much more often than she did. Regardless there is just something about seeing beautiful quilts hanging on a clothesline that I love. Maybe its the simplicity of the act in a world that is so often moving away from "old time" traditions like this one, or maybe it is simply the memories of a simpler time in my own life.

Summer days spent waking earlier than I ever thought necessary because we wanted to make it to all the yard sales to find those special treasures. Using a butter knife to eat brownies hot from the microwave and how sad it was when they stopped making the ones with cream in the middle. Endless hours spent on the boat waiting for the fish to bite and dodging them as well because we all knew what it felt like to get a little too close to a big catch. Skip Bo games, crochet lessons and not a single care in the world.

I remember snuggling down under handmade quilts (much like the one I am under tonight) after a busy day of being a kid and breathing in that scent. I don't know that I ever connected the two in my mind, to me it was simply what grandma's house always smelled like.

Maybe it is those days that are in the back of my mind making me smile whenever I see a quilt blowing in the breeze. All I know is that tonight those thoughts will certainly be on my mind I as drift off wrapped in that familiar scent of summer.

Puddle Jumping

2011-08-24T13:30:00.002-05:00

The girls are finally on the mend and I'm hopefully following soon behind. I can't wait to all be feeling our best again. I've tried a couple times to post and the ability to form sentences that you could understand was not one that I possessed lately. I'm taking the easy way out today, just to be on the safe side and posting some pictures of the girls playing in their favorite puddle after a little rain this week. Yea rain!!

Distractions

2011-08-19T20:33:00.002-05:00

It seems like there is always something distracting me from getting my blog posts published. This time it was a missing camera cord, kitchen remodel and then now we have sick babies.

This poor tiny has been running a fever off and on since last Sunday night and has just felt miserable. She hasn't had any other symptoms but when her fever kept reaching over 103 we began to get a little worried. Thankfully all her tests and labwork have come back clean and I think she's finally on the mend.

Of course that means that big sister would have to get sick today. She started the day out with a case of the sniffles and I hoped it was only allergies. Unfortunately tonight she has sniffles, sneezing and now she's running a fever.

My poor babies. We've spent a lot of time laying under our favorite blankets and snuggling and I see a few more days of that in our future. I hope all is well with you and yours...

The wonder of "wow" moments

2011-08-06T10:47:00.003-05:00

I am amazed each and every single day at how much she is growing and learning. She is such a little ball of curiosity and energy. She definitely keeps all of us on our toes every second of the day. Everything is new and exciting to her and her favorite word at the moment is "WOW", so perfect for her. She jumps head first into everything and has absolutely no fear which isn't always a good thing. Jump off the coffee table? Sure, why not. Walk right up to that barking dog and try to pet it? Of course. Like I said, never a dull moment.

I think we are all learning a little something from her about new experiences though. She has helped us all get back to just enjoying the little moments in life because they are truly where the magic is to be found.

She loves to play outside and this summer heat is making it hard on us all. She will just stand and look out the window during the afternoon saying "bye" and waving. Thankfully the evenings are cooling down a bit so we can get outside for a little while. Fall will be absolutely glorious if it ever gets here. And of course it will bring a whole new batch of "wow" moments when it comes. I can not wait.

Smart Summer: Cardboard Roll Rocketships

2011-08-03T15:10:00.002-05:00

We aren't really getting into Outer Space Week very well. The girls have not been in the mood to focus on activities very well and it's been a workout just to get through our daily necessities. I think the heat is getting to them, that or cabin fever since we haven't been able to spend much time outside at all. Either way, this week has already been a long one.

We did attempt to make these cardboard roll rocketships from Naturally Educational.

You don't need much in the way of supplies. Instead of using foam shapes we decided to color our aluminum foil with Sharpies. I'll take any excuse to use them, have I mentioned how much I love Sharpies?

I went with an alien spaceship and stars. How's that for some artistic talent? Ha.

Kinsley drew all the planets on hers.

I didn't get any good in progress shots because the alien space monster (aka Kaitlyn) was trying to destroy the rockets at every turn. Thankfully Naturally Educational has great step by step photos if you need them.

Smart Summer: Sandpaper Starfish

2011-08-02T23:40:00.003-05:00

We finished up Water Fun Week with some easy sandpaper starfish. I simply cut some rough star shapes out of sandpaper and put the girls to work with some older crayons.

Kinsley liked the novelty of drawing on something different than her normal papers and we discussed how the sanpaper felt differently and whether or not we thought it would make the crayons look different. She liked layering her colors and how vibrant the colors appeared.

I don't think Kaitlyn was quite as impressed. Though she did color for longer than she normally does. She isn't a huge fan of art at this point.

Though she is a big fan of eating art supplies. Sigh. She will outgrow this soon right?

We didn't get to make our egg carton sea turtles, our jellyfish or the fishing game this week but I'm keeping the ideas around for later.

Now we're on to the final week of the Smart Summer Challenge: Outer Space! Should be fun.

Aquarium Trip

2011-07-31T14:44:00.002-05:00

Water Fun Week is technically over today but I still have a bit of posting to do before we move on to next week's theme.

We finally made it out to the Oklahoma Aquarium on Friday and we all had a blast. We hadn't been since Kinsley was barely walking so it was about time to visit again. Both girls had an absolute blast looking at every single fish in the entire building. I was surprised at how enthusiastic Kaitlyn was about the whole thing. She adored the tropical fish and would protest every time we left a tank until she saw the next one, the yelled "WOW" every time.

The touching tanks were a big hit although Kinsley was a bit apprehensive at first. Once she saw the other kids doing it she warmed up, a little.

Then she got to feed kelp to the turtles.

"IT'S NEMO!!!" Obviously this tank was a favorite with every kid that I saw, mine included. We've been watching Nemo all week so this was perfect and of course great planning on the aquarium's part. The tropical tanks were beautiful and Kaitlyn's very favorite (and mine too). They also have several exibits that are designed to be like the "local habitats" and they had HUGE catfish. Kinsley could barely contain herself she was so excited and those were the first things she mentioned when we got home. And they were huge, it makes me a little nervous about all the time we spent swimming in the local lakes when we were kids.

The biggest reason Kinsley wanted to go to the aquarium was to see the sharks.

She talked all day long about seeing the sharks and when we first walked up to that giant tank she was speechless. Her sister didn't share the quiet amazement, she screamed. And cried. The poor tiny was terrified of the sharks and wouldn't go near the tank.

The aquarium has the shark tank set up where you can walk through a tunnel and be surrounded by the sharks, they can even swim overhead. Of course we had to go through the tunnel for Kinsley's sake but poor Kaitlyn just hid her face and cried. Needless to say we walked through pretty quickly.

They both enjoyed playing in the dive cage though.

It was a great trip and I can't wait for their new exibits to open so we can go back again. Though I think I'll take a helper along next time just to make it a bit easier.

Garden Fail

2011-07-29T09:37:00.003-05:00

I am so disappointed in this year's garden. I was so excited to get everything in this year since we really didn't do a garden last year and even though we got a bit of a late start I was staying optimistic. Then it flooded, twice. And we replanted, twice. Everything started to take off and I thought we would be in good shape. We were very proud of our first ever strawberries and things were looking up then summer came. Wow did summer come. This is the most ridiculously hot and dry summer that I have dealt with for sure.

When the corn started to look like this I was a little bit sad. We've never had good luck with corn it seems but we kept right on watering and hoping for the best.

We didn't win. The drought won this round for sure. At this point we are watering just the tomatoes, watermelons and pumpkins and hoping we can keep them alive long enough for fall. Everything else is done for and we just can't keep up with the watering, and the water bill is scary high.

I was really hoping our corn would do well this year because this baby loves some corn.

(And yes I realize that she is half naked in pretty much all the pictures lately. It's HOT here and I don't see any since in her being miserable. We do have to use a diaper cover of some sort though or she'd be completely naked.)

It's hard to explain why it makes me so sad that our garden just isn't making it this year. There will be no blackberry jelly, no apple pies from our apples, no fresh salsa... I was so looking forward to canning so much from this year's harvest. But I know that there are others who are affected so much more by this drought. Families that depend on their harvests to feed their family and provide income. Hay pastures are burning up and cattle being sold simply because it's too expensive and there is nothing to feed them. Our entire state needs rain so very badly, and I am sure we are not the only one. My heart goes out to these families who are being hit so hard and I just keep praying for rain. In the meantime I will be happy for what little productivity I see in my garden and maybe I'll pick up some strawberries today from the grocery and make some jam. It is something at least.

Smart Summer: Baby Doll Bathtime

2011-07-28T10:20:00.006-05:00

We're getting closer to the end of Water Fun Week in the Smart Summer Challenge but we still have a ton of activities lined up. Thanks to MaryLea at Pink and Green Mama for the inspiration to do a little baby doll washing.

The girls have two baby dolls that they adore that just happen to be made of plastic so this is a perfect activity for them. I will admit though that it irks me just a bit that the two favorites right now are storebought plastic dolls and not any of the cloth dolls (bought or handmade) but that's life so I try to let it go.

I wasn't quite as brave as MaryLea so I didn't give Kait the opportunity to flood the house and instead set the girls up with a washing station outside in their water table. It was a good way to enjoy the evening before bed and the girls could get as wet as their babies if they wanted. Kinsley would have been fine with this activity indoors though so if your kids are quite as young as my littlest it would be fine for in the house.

I simply filled the water table with clean water, gave them some baby shampoo and small crocheted washcloths and let them do the rest.

Kait was, as usual, not terribly impressed with our plan and didn't really care if her baby was dirty or not.

This was pretty much the extent of her participation, a baby under her arm and the washcloth in her mouth. Oh well.

Kinsley did a very thorough job of washing her baby "Lola". For the longest time this doll was known as "K-O-O Baby" we have no idea why but suddenly one day her name became Lola.

This was a great activity for Kinsley because she loves to imitate everything that I do. She did a terrific job and it was sweet to listen to her talking to and comforting her baby during the bathing process. I'll have to start letting her do this more often.

Smart Summer: Cardboard Roll Goldfish Kites

2011-07-27T13:22:00.006-05:00

I was searching Pinterest for some good ideas to go along with Water Fun Week when I came across this post over at Lightly Enchanted and knew they would be perfect and easy for Kinsley to complete on her own.

All you need are some empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls, a package of streamers and some glue. Total cost just at $1.00, not bad.

Put a strip of glue down the length of your cardboard roll.

Wrap your streamer around the roll. I put a little extra glue around the rim just to make sure everything stayed in place.

Cut several lengths of streamer for your tail, make them as long or short as you would like. Ours are about 16-18" in length.

Put a strip of glue inside the rim of the roll and glue your tail pieces on.

Here is where you can give your goldfish some eyes and decoration if you want. We used pom poms for eyes just because we had them handy and couldn't find any googly eyes. You could also use paper, felt or even just a marker. Then just punch a couple holes in the mouth and tie on a string for flying.

Ta-da! Your own flying goldfish.

My Boys

2011-07-26T12:11:00.003-05:00

I'd say we had a perfectly wonderful reason for skipping out on last weeks themed activities, I got to see my nephews! They have grown SO much just from the last time I saw them, I swear as your kids get bigger you forget how quickly babies grow. I tried to convince my sister to move closer but I get the feeling she's not a live in the middle of nowhere type. Gives me an excuse to travel to the "big city" I suppose.

Andrew has turned into SUCH a chunker, I love it! I'm not sure he was thrilled with my sticking a camera in his face every 5 seconds but I think he better adjust quickly. He's too cute not to take a million pictures of.

Especially when I can get him to play and laugh with me. Melt.

Mister Braeden is growing like a champ as well even if he has a bit to go to catch up with brother. Excuse the up the nose shot, he is even less fond of the camera.

He has the BEST smile EVER! Seriously, this is only a quarter of his awesome smile but I could not get it on camera. He smiles so big that he scrunches up his whole face and it is the most adorable thing ever. He reminds me of a little Christmas elf. So stinkin cute. I have assigned my sister with the task of getting a full smile in picture.

They have come such a long way from where they started. I can't wait until they are big enough to really get into some trouble.

Smart Summer: Water Fun Week

2011-07-25T17:44:00.007-05:00

We've reached week #5 of the Smart Summer Challenge and this week's theme is Water Fun Week. There are so many ways that you can go with a theme like that but we're choosing to learn about the different types of creatures that live in the water both locally and in the ocean.

I think what has surprised me the most about this challenge is how much fun we've had just in getting ready for the new week to start. Searching through our own items here at home to find things to fill our weekly basket has been a lot of fun for Kinsley (and I've had a blast coming up with new activities). This week we pulled out some of our favorite fish themed books:

One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss

The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister

Ten Tiny Tadpoles by Debbie Tarbett

Kinsley also gathered up this crocheted whale I made her a while back following this pattern at Bittersweet. A very quick and easy project that you could whip up to go along with the theme this week.

She also found an origami sea life kit, their whale bathtub toys and of course The Little Mermaid and Nemo movies for us to watch.

We have several activities lined up for the week but of course we may add to or subtract from the list as the week goes on. We're nothing if not unpredictable around here.

Cardboard roll goldfish

Egg carton sea turtles

Rainbow Fish on tinfoil

Color sandpaper starfish

Sea life magnets

Painted wooden fish

Go on a fishing trip

Paper plate jellyfish

Hopefully we can squeeze in a trip to our (somewhat) local aquarium this week too. We haven't been since Kinsley was very small so we are due for a visit.

Should be a great week!!

Smart Summer: Feeding the birds

2011-07-24T10:51:00.002-05:00

We didn't get nearly enough of our activities finished for Forest Friendly Week due to a last minute trip out of town to visit family but we had a great time on our trip so it was worth it.

We did manage to make some homemade bird feeders before we left though. We followed along with this post over at Alpha Mom but used the recipe that she mentioned in the comments. I was worried about them not sticking well enough so we picked the recipe that used less water just to give ours a better chance.

You can see that you don't need many ingredients for this easy project.

We used a variety of different cookie cutters for our feeders. The larger cookie cutters without much design did better than the more intricate designs. The leaf didn't not fare well at all but honestly we should probably have let them sit quite a while longer or put them in the freezer to speed up the drying process.

We still ended up with several to hang so it wasn't a total wash, thankfully.

To fill the time while we were waiting for our birdseed ornaments to harden we decided to make a different type of feeder. I pulled out some pipe cleaners and Cheerios and put the girls to work.

Just have the kids string the Cheerios onto the pipe cleaners and they can bend them into any shape they please. Easy peasy. Even my littlest girl thought this was a great activity.

Though I don't think she realized they were to feed the birds and not her. This might not be a bad snack idea afterall. Ha!

There are tons of homemade bird feeder ideas all over the web that you could try. I have this popsicle stick feeder and this orange peel feeder bookmarked for us to use this fall.

Smart Summer: Forest Friendly Week

2011-07-18T16:05:00.003-05:00

We checked the calendar last night and were excited to see that we are entering Forest Friendly Week of the Smart Summer Challenge. This week is going to be perfect for my two little nature loving girls and I can not wait for all the fun activities we have planned. We'll be getting out and learning all about nature, insects, animals and the great outdoors this week. I made a quick list of some of the activities we'll be doing this week...

Making a fairy garden
Homemade bird feeders
Making Binoculars from cardboard tubes
Painting animal and insect rocks
Listening for animal sounds in our own habitat
Making some forest animal finger puppets
Putting on a puppet show
Playing animal charades
Learning about animal tracks

This list certainly isn't set in stone and I'm likely to add several things to it as the week goes on and I see all the other great activities going on this week on the Smart Summer Challenge Facebook page.

And I'm happy to say that I finally came up with the perfect use for my new basket.

I picked this basket up at a yard sale a couple weekends ago for the incredible price of one dollar! I knew it would be perfect for holding something but hadn't come up with the perfect collection, until today. As I was pulling out a few books that went along with this week's theme I spotted my basket sitting empty across the room. Perfect! It's the perfect size to hold books that can be rotated out depending on our study theme or the changing seasons. Not bad for a dollar, not bad at all.

Art in the Park

2011-07-15T12:45:00.003-05:00

Following along with the nature theme this week for the Smart Summer Challenge today the girls and I did a little art in the park. We loaded up the wagon with a quick and easy breakfast, our art supplies and we were off.

First order of business was a quick breakfast to give us the energy we needed for a morning at the park.

We had some whole wheat tortillas with a little peanut butter and wrapped around a banana, blueberries and grapes. Perfect picnic breakfast.

Then it was time to get our art out. Last night I printed out the outline of the numbers 1 and 3 for the girls to create with their found items. The scoured the park looking for bits and pieces to glue to their outlines.

Kaitie's number one was an easy task and really she was more interested in throwing the rocks than playing along.

Kinsley, however, took her artwork very seriously inspecting each thing very carefully to make sure it would work for her.

She was very proud of her finished product. She especially liked the tiny little feather and was SO excited when Daddy surprised us at lunch time and she got to show off her artwork.

After all that creativity it was time to cut loose and play for a bit.

The only downside was the mosquitos, they are awful this year and nothing seems to keep them away.

Asiah's Birthday

2011-07-14T21:38:00.003-05:00

Today was my neice's 8th birthday (goodness I can't believe she's so old already). She came over to the house and while she was here she mentioned she wished she had some of her Grandma's chocolate cake. While mine isn't exactly the same I told her there was no reason we couldn't make chocolate cake and I put the girls to work.

They measured and poured and mixed until a good looking cake was made. They could hardly wait to dive in but I made them wait until after dinner. I'm such a meanie. Of course we ordered pizza for dinner so it wasn't that bad of a wait. I didn't get a picture of the finished cake because everyone devoured it so quickly and I was not about to get between those girls and their cake.

While we were waiting on the cake to finish i pulled out some plain white canvas hats that I picked up at Michaels and let the girls decorate their own sunhats to wear outside. Kaitlyn was less than impressed but the big girls had a good time.

Then the birthday girl requested movie time so we made a 'port' and watched The Little Mermaid until it was cool enough to play outside.

(This is a common scene around our house this summer isn't it.)

Even though it was still pretty warm out we couldn't wait any longer to have a Silly String Fight. Kinsley had never seen the stuff before but Asiah was beyond excited.

Turns out the cans were a little harder to push than we thought they'd be.

This was the best picture I could get of the birthday girl. You'd think she was afraid I'd spray her or something. Silly.

This girl took the game very seriously.

I'd say everyone had a pretty good day and I know we're all exhausted after. Happy Birthday to my littlest neice.

Summer Series: Beat the Heat With Water

2011-07-08T19:22:00.006-05:00

This summer has been ridiculously hot so far and it's made it nearly impossible to spend much time outside. The only ways to beat the heat are to go out first thing in the morning or drench ourselves with water. Since we're not really morning people we've done a lot of playing in the water.

The girls love the new water table, it has definitely become a favorite new toy. It will be great to bring inside this fall and turn into a sensory table too, I can't wait.

And of course you can't call it summer unless you get to run through a sprinkler.

The girls had a blast at the splash park by grandma's house on our last visit. Kinsley made sure they packed their swimsuits "just in case" they went again while they are spending the weekend with her. I have a feeling they'll definitely make it there again.

We also got the cousins to come over and had a huge water fight. I learned two things that day.

1) It takes about 25 times longer to fill up water balloons than it does to pop them all. We did more than 100 balloons and I swear it felt like it only took them 3 minutes to use them all up. Thankfully we also had made more sponge balls.

2) Kaitlyn doesn't care about water fights as long as she can find a way to drink the water from her pool. Silly girl.

We really haven't done any swimming this summer since neither girl can swim on their own and I just don't feel comfortable taking them on my own. Hopefully soon we'll all make it out to the pool.

Fourth of July

2011-07-05T13:48:00.002-05:00

Hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend and didn't blow anything up besides fireworks. Thankfully there were no big emergencies or fires anywhere in our area and everyone had a nice relaxing holiday.

Kinsley spent most of her day running through the smoke from her smoke bombs.

And helping daddy pick out which fireworks to do next and then running like a crazy person.

We tried doing some glow in the dark sno-cones last night too. We put glow in the dark bracelets in the bottom of our glasses and then made the sno-cones on top. I was less than impressed with the glow but Kinsley thought they were "awesome".

You can see the glow really well from the sides but not from the top. Maybe next time we'll just do glow in the dark water.

Summer Series: Glow Stick Lanterns

2011-07-03T22:35:00.004-05:00

This fun little project didn't make it to our Summer Fun Calendar since typically the girls are in bed before it's dark enough to do this. Tonight we were up late thanks to some neighborhood fireworks and a cranky baby sister so it was the perfect fun activity.

Just take your glow stick, cut the top off and dump the contents into a jar. Shake it up and the kids have their very own glowing lanterns. Easy Peasy. The contents are non-toxic but be careful because it will stain your clothing.

We used some old canning jars I had in the cabinet but you could use any container with a tight fitting lid. If you used a plastic jar even the littlest ones could participate. They would be great for nightlights during a camp out and even the adults thought they were pretty awesome. Kinsley is using hers as an extra nightlight tonight.

Summer Series: Sponge Balls

2011-07-01T10:19:00.002-05:00

You've all probably seen these floating around blogland and hopefully you put them on your summer to-do list too. It's the perfect cheap, quick and fun summer activity for the kids.

We bought two packages of sponges from the dollar tree and used some cotton yarn I already had on hand. So my total cost for this was $2, told you super cheap.

Take your sponges and cut them into (semi even) strips. Since they are so soft the kids can easily do this part themselves. You might end up with several different sizes but trust me they still work just fine.

Stack your sponge strips. We used 8 on the first two and I think only 6-7 on the last two since we didn't end up with an even amount. But the smaller ones worked great too and I might make them all that size next time. Then simply tie them together. We used cotton yarn but you could use fishing line, dental floss, zip ties or whatever else you have on hand. Just pull tight.

This is what you'll end up with and you're ready to head outside for some waterfight fun.

Try not to drown your baby sibling in the process. Kaitlyn didn't even mind that Kinsley kept follwing her around and squeezing it out over her head. It could have been that it was over 100 degrees outside.

We may or may not have pulled out a few water balloons for a little extra fun. And yes, I know she already needs another haircut. Sigh.

We're already planning a huge waterfight this weekend so we're going to be picking up some more sponges and make a few more. Unlike the water balloons they are reusable so you can just keep playing as long as you have some water to dunk them in. Surprisingly they hold a LOT of water, which I found out when the hubby hit me with one while I was filling up the balloons. They would definitely be fun enough for an older crowd too, we all had a blast and it was a great way to cool off.

This girl...

2011-06-29T10:22:00.003-05:00

This girl is why things have been slow around here. It's a good thing she's so cute. Otherwise I might have to ship her off to the circus. Sleep regression is not a fun thing.

(And don't worry, she has had a trim since. I don't want you to worry about her walking into walls and such, although she still does that some...)

Summer Fun Series

2011-06-28T16:57:00.004-05:00

I had intended to post our "Summer Fun Series" starting post before today but it took us a bit longer to recover from the virus that struck us, and we are still struggling with Kaitlyn's sleep regression (but that's another post entirely).

With my girls not being in school yet we don't have to deal with the sudden change in routine and summer boredom issues, but I still wanted to find a way to make them aware of summer and make it fun as well. I had the idea to do a summer advent calendar (much like a Christmas Advent) that would hold all the different ideas for fun summertime activities. In my mind it was going to be a beautiful quilted piece with a colorful banner and lots of brightly colored pockets. Then reality set in. I realized that summer would be over before I was able to complete something like that so instead I pulled out my trusty glue gun and felt stash and set to work.

I went with the basic visual of what I had originally planned but made a few changes along the way. I realized that while the pockets were cute it gave me no chance to guide the direction our days' activities went. I decided to simply glue the squares down and tape the activities to the front. It gives me a chance to see which activity we are picking each day to ensure we choose one that can be reasonably completed when I take into account the temperaments of the children at any given moment. It has worked out very well this way and Kinsley likes to ask, several times a day, what each piece of paper says.

When I looked at the picture I realized that I listed "make our own crayons" twice, I'll have to add in a new activity to replace one of those. You can do a search online and find tons of blog posts and websites full of summer bucket list ideas like this one and this one and this one as well. I didn't include activities that I consider to be part of our everyday schedule. I used this as an opportunity to try out some of the crafts and activities that Kinsley and I had wanted to do but never tried before and a couple old favorties that we hadn't done in a while.

Have a Fashion Show
Big girl library day
Outdoor art show
Backyard carnival
Art in the park
Tie Dye
Squirt Bottle Painting
Mentos Fountain
Make our own crayons
Write our own bedtime story
Camp out in the backyard
Family Game Night
Go Fishing
Indoor Hopscotch Game
Melt icecubes in the sun
Have a parade through town
Make a fairy garden
Have a watergun fight
Water bomb sponges
Build a fort
Roast Marshmallows
Homemade icecream
Face Painting
Homemade playdoh
Have a picnic
Beaded jewelry
Decorate canvas shoes
Make sidewalk chalk paint
Silly string fight
Puppet show
Lighted sno-cones
Cardboard tube binoculars
Patriotic ribbon wands

I tried to include more activities that could be done indoors because it is so miserably hot already this summer and we just can't spend that much time outdoors. I think this way we have a pretty good mix and hopefully no one will be bored. We also didn't include many outings because we didn't want to deal with the crowds or the heat right now. And with trying to get the littlest one back on a regular schedule the more time we spend at home the better off we are.

We're also taking part in the Smart Summer Challenge to give us a few more ideas. This week's theme is "You on the Map". While we're following along with the calendar we are changing up some of the activities to better suit younger kids and what I think my girls in particular will enjoy. Today's activity was drawing a life size Kinsley.

She was so excited to decorate herself and we spent the better part of the afternoon on this activity.

And of course we had to draw on a t-shirt and t-pants because that is the only suitable wardrobe for an almost 4 year old.

First Day of Summer

2011-06-21T18:17:00.002-05:00

I have a hard time with the idea that today is the first official day of summer since it has been over 100* several times already. That truly worries me as to what the rest of the summer holds for us. The girls and I decided to celebrate our first day of summer a bit differently.

We gathered up our pillows and blankets, cranked up the A/C and turned on Frosty the Snowman. We put on what little winter gear that we hadn't already packed away, made some hot cocoa (chocolate milk for the littles) and ate cookies all while pretending that it was a nice cold winter day. Maybe it's not the most traditional way to celebrate the beginning of summer but with 2 out of 3 of us sick it was all we could muster. I have to say that I think it might be our new tradition though. It was quite a welcome break from the sweltering heat.

How did you welcome summer?

Why Organic?

2011-06-20T14:38:00.004-05:00

The Summer Fun Series is put on hold for another day or two because I am fighting an awful head cold and quite honestly I'm too tired to upload the pictures. I know how sad that sounds but the baby isn't sleeping...Ever...so I'm spent. I still have plenty to talk about though since I've been such a bloggy slacker.

Our little garden is just not thriving this year. I'm not sure if it is because we got such a late start to our planting or because it flooded immediately after planting, twice. Whatever the cause I'm sad to say that aside from the acorn squash, there isn't much picking going on. By the way, do you cook acorn squash? This was our first year to try it and honestly I have no idea what to do with it now that it's growing.

We did manage to get 2 strawberries from our one little strawberry plant.

And looking at this picture of the corner of our garden I am beginning to think it was waiting too late into the year to expand the garden and not properly working the soil that may be to blame...

Either way, I hear from a reliable source that the berries were in fact "super yummy".

The one thing that I get the most strange looks and questions about, in this area at least, is the fact that we don't use any sort of chemicals on our garden. I can not count the number of times I've been told "Oh just use SevenDust, it's not bad for you" or "How in the world do you expect to grow anything like that?" and my favorite "Who cares anyway". Well, I can tell you exactly who care, this mama. I happen to have a very good reason (or several actually) for caring. Aside from the fact that you have to be careful with what you eat, drink, wear and play with these days because of all the harmful toxins that are used to create nearly everything we come into contact with anyway, it baffles me that people are so willing to be the ones to introduce toxins into their lives. Why would I put more chemicals and products with ingredients that you probably can't pronounce let alone tell me what they are into our food? Part of growing our own food in our own garden is for the purpose of knowing exactly what we are eating and where it came from. If that isn't reason enough I'll show you my main motivating factor to growing organically...

This, this right here is exactly why. Oh, you think it's just a picture of one of my sweet girls playing in the garden. Look closer.

THAT. That right there is my youngest child with a mouth full of dirt from the garden. If you had a child that loved to do exactly that you wouldn't let a bag of pesticide anywhere near your soil either, would you? I should hope not.

Felt Birthday Crown

2011-06-18T13:22:00.004-05:00

I want to talk a little bit more about the felt crown that Kait was wearing in her birthday pictures. This was definitely one of my favorite projects that I've ever made. It wasn't only because I was making it for such a special little girl either. You all know I'm a little addicted to blog surfing and I kept seeing the felt birthday crowns popping up all over blogland so I knew that I *had* to have one for Kait. I love the idea of the having a few special birthday traditions that we repeat year after year until the girls are old enough to object to them (and even then I'll still probably try). Something to make the birthday girl feel even more special and something to look forward to every year.

There are a ton of gorgeous felt crowns all over the internet but I couldn't simply buy one. For this crafty mama I knew that it had to be handmade by me to add another touch of tradition and love. I sketched out a very simple idea of what I thought I wanted it to look like and then just freehanded it the rest of the way.

I am in love with how it turned out in the end and it's made me even more excited to make Kinsley's for her upcoming birthday. I'll admit that it took me a while to get the placement just right and I thought I would probably never finish it in time but I am so glad that I stuck with it. The supplies of course came from Etsy. I purchased the felt sheets from BenzieBazaar and the colors could not have been more perfect for what I was imagining. Since I was down to the wire on time (I know, shocking right?) I cheated and ordered premade rosebuds from Hey MieMie so that I'd only have to work on the smaller details. They were just lovely and matched the colors of felt pefectly. I couldn't be happier with my choices.

I added a bit of elastic in the back so that it is adjustable and she can wear it for many years to come, until the day comes to pack it away in her keepsake box.

The last minute addition of the vine embroidery with the tiny rosebuds is one of my very favorite parts.

I'm hoping to find the time to make a few to add to my Etsy shop soon. I think it's such a sweet tradition.

Pink Lemonade Party

2011-06-15T13:35:00.003-05:00

The girls and I started our summer vacation out with a trip to visit family and somehow I made it down there without the cord to my camera so I couldn't upload any pictures while we were gone. We're home now, the pictures have been uploaded and now I have lots to blog about. I'm going to start doing a Summer Series with different activities you can do with your kids to keep the summer fun and educational but first I'm going to go back and show you all the pictures from Kaitlyn's birthday party.

Sadly this is the only picture I got of Kait inside her lemonade stand because she was so busy running around. Isn't it the cutest thing ever? The Papa (my FIL) constructed it for us and now we have it sitting in the backyard ready for lots of pretend play this summer. I'm envisioning puppet shows, lemonade, restaurants and lots more.

The only complaint I have with the party besides that I forgot lots of little details that no one besides me will ever notice is that is was so miserably hot that day. The weather reports said it was 12 degrees hotter than normal and we felt every degree of it. Everyone had a great time but next year I think we'll look into parties involving water or air conditioning.

Now for the picture overload...

Overall I'd say the party was a huge success and we're already looking forward to the next one we can throw.

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn

2011-06-03T00:37:00.002-05:00

Good morning Birthday Girl. I look at you and can't believe that you are a year old already. Where did the time go? Sometimes it seems like only yesterday that you came into our lives and we began to get to know each other. There are other times though, that I watch you and can't believe that you are only a year old. You have become quite the smart, adventurous and funny little girl. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly you are learning new things and discovering your world. Your fierce independent and stubborn streak makes me both proud and crazy on a daily basis. Just like your refusing to sign unless you aren't getting what you want. I do hope that you can continue to be so curious and excited by life as you grow older.

And you are quite the fearless explorer. Your love of all things outdoors is something you definitely inherited from your father and I swear you would both live outside in the yard if I would allow it. I've never seen a child want to be outside as much as you do.

I hope that you know how much we all adore you and that we are giving you back as much joy as you have given all of us. Your smile and laughter brightens our every day.

I am trying to remember to savor nights like tonight where we spend hours in the recliner rocking because you refuse to go to sleep. I find this amusing simply because just before bedtime you are the one that goes to your room to get your blanket and paci so that we can snuggle up together. Silly girl. But I know that these days are numbered and so tonight with all of these thoughts and feelings running through my mind I am simply thankful to be able to call myself your mama.

Love you...

First Birthday Present Ever

2011-06-01T15:08:00.002-05:00

A certain tiny girl is turning 1 tomorrow, whether her mommy is ready or not. A couple weeks ago she received her very first birthday present in the mail. Since I'm not a mean mommy I didn't make her wait until her birthday to open it. Okay, so really I just couldn't wait any longer to know what was in it. It came from an awesome mama in my mom's group so I was stalking the mail waiting for it to arrive. We didn't even go inside to open it, we just plopped ourselves down in the grass.

It didn't take her any time at all to rip that paper right off.

Kait was pretty impressed and thought it made a neat sound when she would bang her hands on it. Thankfully she was easily distracted with the wrapping paper and I was able to save the plate.

But seriously how cute is this plate? I love everything about it. We have been talking a lot about birthday traditions that the girls could look forward to every year and this fits in perfectly. I love that every year she can eat her birthday breakfast on her very own birthday plate. And the fact that she took the time to make this specifically for Kait makes it even more special. It couldn't have been more perfect for her very first birthday present.

Replanting with hope

2011-05-28T22:46:00.004-05:00

We were watching the rain out Kinsley's bedroom window and lamenting over the fact that we had just replanted the back half of our garden a couple days prior to the massive rain and storms. Replanted because after we planted the garden originally it poured rain and washed away our seeds in the back half. Are you noticing the same pattern I am?

I was feeling very frustrated over our garden problems, and then the actual storms hit. The devastation caused by the tornadoes that passed through our part of the country is truly heartbreaking. So many people lost everything and are forced to start building their lives over again and some weren't that lucky. I think many of us have been doing some soul searching since those storms have hit, I know I certainly have. The stories of loss and devastation that have emerged since have certainly made me hold my loves a little closer and appreciate how fortunate we are just a bit more. It's the stories of hope and of neighbors far and wide reaching out to lift each other up have truly touched my heart. It is so inpiring to see people, many who have lost so much themselves, doing what they can to make a difference for someone else. It's truly heart warming. So we will replant, and not with resentment but with appreciation.

Hair Bow Holder

2011-05-25T14:37:00.002-05:00

I've had the idea to make one of those pretty hairbow holders you see at craft shows ever since Kinsley finally grew some hair. Thanks to a push from a friend of mine I finally made one. So what if Kinsley is almost four, I'm not talking about it...

It was so simple to make that I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner. I didn't want anything huge since we're not that big into hairbows or free space to put one.

I picked up all my supplies at Hobby Lobby except for the paint and glue which I already had on hand. Truth be told I already had a lot of scrapbook paper at home too but I really like this one. The total cost was around $2 to pick up what I needed. Even if you had to buy everything you could still complete this project for less than $5.

First we painted the wooden letter and wooden plague with some regular old acrylic craft paint and let it dry. This part is great if you have littles helping you, I know mine loves to paint.

Once the paint was dry it was time to glue the scrapbooking paper to the front. Since I'm too lazy to actually measure the size I needed I cheated a bit. I just threw the paper on top and ran my finger around the edge of the wood to crease it. Easy peasy and the perfect fit. I used a regular Elmer's gluestick to glue my paper down but you could use Mod Podge, spray adhesive or any other glue you have handy.

Once the paper was on we hotglued the wooden letter to the front and our ribbons to the back. Done. The whole project took us less than 30 minutes and $2, not too shabby.

Etsy Mention

2011-05-24T15:05:00.003-05:00

I've went back and forth (and back and forth and...) over how much connection to have between my blog, facebook page and Etsy shop. I've tried to keep my blog somewhat Etsy free and since I've been so busy with custom orders that's kept the blog pretty post free. No good. I've also not posted a lot of blog stuff on my facebook page which has kept the page pretty post free too. Sigh. I feel like it's all very much a part of who I am and what goes on in our lives so I want to find a cohesive feel to bringing them all together. When you "work" from home it's very hard to separate the two. Obviously the way I was doing it wasn't working so I'm going to be tweaking the balance a bit over the next few weeks so bear with me and let me know how you feel about the posts meshing together.

Like I said though, I've been crazy busy with custom orders and here is the last one I just finished.

I am in love with this color combo (so cute it matched her daughters' birthday party) and the ruffles on the little dress? Love. I need to dig back out the pictures of the other dresses too. And work on a better backdrop for photographing them...

Afternoon Activity: Tree Transplant

2011-05-14T19:29:00.002-05:00

With all the rain we've been getting there hasn't been much lawn mowing going on lately. The plus side to that is that there are lots of little Maple trees popping up throughout the yard. This afternoon warmed up just enough to get outside and we needed a good activity so we decided to rescue some of those trees before the hubby mowed them down.

We took the leftover styrofoam cups from Mother's Day and punched holes in the bottom with a nail. We put all our cups into a large pan to keep them from blowing away when we took them outside and then we placed a few small rocks in the bottom of each cup to help with drainage.

Once we got outside we filled each cup about half full with some potting soil leftover from planting our garden and headed off in search of trees.

They were a little tricky to find in some spots but Kinsley did a great job searching them out (and then letting mama do the digging). We placed one sapling in each cup.

Then quality control had to come and check our work and make sure everything was going according to plan.

We filled the remaining half of our cups with potting soil making sure each sapling was packed in well and watered them in.

Now just to sit back, watch and hope that they grow. And no, we don't have any idea what we're going to do with 16 Maple trees.

Birthday Party Fun

2011-05-13T16:36:00.003-05:00

We're enjoying a lazy weekend in the house since the weather is too cold and rainy to be out doing much. Last weekend though was a very different story. The girls went to their first ever (non-family) birthday party. From the moment the invitation arrived in the mail Kinsley started planning. She knew exactly what she wanted to give her "very best friend" and we went to work.

The last playdate the girls had was at our house and Kinsley had the best time playing kitchen with her little friends so she insisted that we must make some kitchen things. And we did. We put together these yummy looking felt cupcakes (not chocolate because "only white cake is good"). We also picked up some pretend cookies and pizza because a girl can not live on cupcakes alone, although it might be fun to try.

Then we realized she needed something to hold her new goodies.

We made this fun little cupcake bag and embroidered her name on it to make it even more special. I think it turned out very well and Kinsley couldn't wait to surprise her friend.

The girls had a blast running and playing but no one had more fun than Kaitlyn did. Kaitlyn got her very first cupcake and DEVOURED it in absolutely no time. I think she'll do fine with her smash cake on her birthday (in less than a month...sigh).

Yummy.

Happy St. Mother's Day.

2011-05-08T19:49:00.002-05:00

That's how Kinsley woke me up this morning, with a flower and a "Happy St. Mother's Day". A great start to an even better day.

Now I'm off to have some of that yummy cake and enjoy the rest of my evening. Hope you can do the same.

Meet Lailey

2011-05-04T15:59:00.005-05:00

I just realized that I never introduced everyone to Kinsley's special doll Lailey. I love the waldorf style dolls and had been wanting to get Kinsley one for Christmas but I just could not justify spending $200 on a doll for a 3 year old when she already had so many babies. And the thought of trying to make one before Christmas gave me a mild panic attack. I couldn't stop thinking about all the beautiful dolls and Kinsley and I liked to look at them online while we were searching for crafty ideas. One day Kinsley saw one that she loved and told me she wanted her to come live with us. She even gave the doll a name, Lailey. I knew I had to figure out something so I started searching for patterns and tutorials to make my very own Waldorf style doll. Thankfully I stumbled across Ashtabeulah on Etsy and all was well again. I ordered a 12" ready to finish doll and just hoped I could have it finished before Christmas morning came. It probably wouldn't have been such an issue if I started this process before the end of November. Ha!

After it arrived I stared at it for a couple days before I got up the courage to actually start sewing. I ordered some awesome handspun yarn from Funky Yarns and it was a perfect match to Kinsley's wild and crazy hair. I can't say enough about her awesome yarns. I want them all!!

I crocheted her a pretty pink sweater and quickly sewed up a little matching skirt and she was ready to meet her new mama. Of course I was, and still am, super critical of my work but when Kinsley saw her and exclaimed "IT'S LAILEY!!!!" and gave her a big hug I knew it was worth staying up until the wee hours on Christmas Eve to make her come to life.

The weather has finally started to warm up here and Kinsley is back to wearing a dress every chance she gets. One afternoon this week she came to me and asked if we could make Lailey a dress because she was getting too hot so that's just what we did.

I pulled out our tub of scrap fabrics and Kinsley got right to work.

She had a butterfly dress picked out for herself to wear that afternoon so she insisted that Lailey wear the bumblebee fabric so they could both be animals that love flowers. With a little help from mama she sewed a pretty little summer dress for Lailey and they were ready to head outside to play.

I think Lailey is very happy with her new dress and pigtails. Even if she needs a bit of a haircut. Poor Lailey often gets pulled around by her hair stretching the wool fibers so every once in a while she needs a trim. I think it's time.

Happy 11 Months Kaitie Baby

2011-05-02T16:09:00.002-05:00

Another month and we'll be celebrating her being a year old. I'm just not ready. She has changed so much in the last month, even just in the last week really. Her little personality is cracking us all up and she is loving being the center of attention. She's finally becoming confident enough in her walking to let go of furniture and do it all on her own. She's becoming quite brave and adding climbing to the mix as well. We are in so much trouble with her, she has absolutely no fear.

She still only has 4 teeth but she has three more coming in all at the same time. I'm really going to miss this cheesy little grin when all her new teeth come in.

She's really starting to enjoy exploring her world and loves to go outside. She is happiest when she is outside and when we make her come back in she walks to the back door and bangs on it saying "bye bye" until we let her go back out again. I am so thankful the weather is warming up enough that we can spend most of the day outside. Now if I could just figure out how to get her to stop eating grass. And dirt, and rocks, and leaves, and...

But at least she's happy about it.

Do you Dye?

2011-04-30T15:20:00.003-05:00

After the egg coloring was over there was still a ton of dye left since the kids only did a dozen eggs. My family doesn't like to waste so they came up with the idea of pulling all the plain white onesies out of my nephews' closet and the adults got to have a little fun.

They turned out really great and it was a great after lunch activity. I can't wait to do some more tie dye this summer with the girls!