Coloring

In the full knowledge that soon I will be filling this blog with new-baby pictures and posts, I thought it would be fair to post an update on Lucy before our world becomes centered, for a time, on Michael. :) (I'm also hoping to get some Christmas Decorating and Michael-related posts done in the next few days - all depending on how much my son likes his current home)

Side Note: Words within quotation marks are words that Lucy has added to her vocabulary. :)

At 17.5 months old, Lucy loves to "color" and if she see's her coloring book she asks, "Color? Color? Color?" We are in the fun toddler stage of repeating one word over and over until Mom or Dad acknowledge and answer the inquiry.

In the words of my friend Autumn, Lucy often decides that "crayons make a better snack than artistic medium," what comfort to know that her little Mia has the same struggle to keep the crayons out of her mouth. :)

Lucy has moved to one nap a day (as of 16 months old) we have encouraged this process mostly because of scheduling and the fact that we need her to take a good long nap while I work. This new schedule has been working well so far and we hope it's consistency will help Lucy with the transition of welcoming a little brother into her life.

Because of Lucy's new sleeping patterns and my new work schedule, I haven't gotten as much "mommy time" during the day.  I am not the type of mom who needs alone time from my children to sit and put my feet up (at least at this point in mommy-hood, I'm not closing off the option for this in the future.. haha). Instead, I need time to clean a bathroom, put away laundry without having to worry about the little one getting into the cat litter, my purse or a kitchen drawer. So we have started room-time, about 30-45 minutes of Lucy-playing-in-her-room-alone. This new venture started as Lucy-standing-at-her-gate-calling-out-"mama!" and only lasted 5-10 minutes but we have worked ourselves into a great routine, and her room is often a MESS afterward - a mess mamma is all too happy to help clean up because it meant that fun was had! On difficult days, (we all have them - even 17 month olds!)Lucy gets to watch a "Ming Ming" in her room during room-time, but we try to encourage her to play with her "hats," "books," stuffed animals, musical instruments and little kitchen.

 Love the look of concentration. :)

In other parts of the day, play time for Lucy usually consists of "babies" - she will bring me a baby with a new outfit to change and is working the word "help" into her vocabulary.  I am all too happy to "help" when she asks! She loves to play with her "ball" and because of daddy's coaching sometimes throws the ball forward instead of backwards - we are hoping Michael is a bit more coordinated. :) Lately, going for a "walk" has been harder as the temperature keeps dropping, but Lucy loves it whenever we are able to go "side" (outside). If we drive by the park she usually gets really excited and says, "Slide" or "Swing!" When we do have time to stop - she is so adventurous (with a healthy mix of caution) and really enjoys climbing on the equipment.

"Ellie" is still her most favorite toy and has started to spend more time in bed - only leaving the house to go to church on work days because Lu naps there. We are hoping that this will help prolong Ellie's life, she is very loved. :) Lucy still loves to "read" and will often bring a "book" to me and sit down close by to look through it. She calls books with no pictures "bible" - we have no idea how this started!

I have been honored to participate in many tea parties hosted by Lucy - she is quite the little hostess. She loves doing "cheer" with the tea cups and will loudly slurp down her pretend tea. She shares "tree" (treats/candy) with me and presses the button on her tea pot to provide nice music for our party. She even provides entertainment as she dances to the music. (Very special memories for her mamma). There have been a few times we have gotten to witness Lucy throwing a tea party for her baby Caroline, "Ka," or "Ellie, she makes sure "Ka" has a few bottles and a bib to keep her clean.

Our sweet girl has been such a parrot the past few weeks, often repeating words after us - prompted or not! Some of these words are echos but she has retained quite a few new ones lately! If there is a word she is unsure of, Lucy will whisper it - it's pretty cute. :) Some of the vocabulary words we have mastered, "nos" (nose), "mou" (mouth), "eyes," "eer" (ear), "toes," "chee" (cheek), "tee" (teeth), "nee" (knee), "hands," "bed," "nigh nigh" (Night Night), "pees" (please), "hug," "kiss," "boo!" "snack," "milk," "cracker," "apple," "mannie" (banana), "kick" (kixs), "wet," "hot," "share" and "no no!" (yep - it's begun. oh joy.). This has been such a fun stage as Lucy has been able to communicate with us what she needs or wants. As anticipated though, it has also brought about some difficult moments. She is very opinionated (no surprise, since she has Brad and me as her dad and mom, I know) and there have been a few tears lately as she has to be told she needs to wait or is not allowed to do something.

Lucy's knowledge of animal sounds keeps growing, she LOVES dogs (they may have jumped to #1 fav animal, replacing elephants) Arf arf is "augh augh" and a cat's "meow" are sounds we hear often around our house. She also knows, "Ohh ohh" (monkeys), "Ssssss" (Snake), "kack kack" (duck), "moo," "baaa," "raaar" (bear, lion AND tiger) and "too, too" (A bird's tweet). Although she identifies most animals by their sound, Lucy has learned some animal's proper names, "frog," "cow," "bugh fly" (butterfly), "moose,"  "mouse," "bee" and "bunny." She knows a few animals by hand motions: Turtles are acknowledged by Lucy making a fist (we sing a song about a turtle who peek-a-boos out of his shell - thumb coming out of a fist) and Alligators/Crocodiles are hands slapped against leg (chomp chomp!). She also will make a fishy face if she sees a fish or wants a goldfish snack! :)

Lucy continues to be a good eater, although lately she hasn't been feeling 100% so that has taken it's effect on her appetite. The other day she ate 95% of a soft taco from Taco Bell (super healthy we know) all by herself, she ate the insides first and then folded the tortilla in half and munched away - it was fun to watch.

Mamma says, "No no Lu, not in your mouth!" Notice she is looking RIGHT at me and smiling when doing that which she should not do. My mother-in-law tells me that this is the Brad in her, but my mom and dad would tell you that there is a good amount of Sarah in this rebellion too. 

We have had to brush her teeth after coloring on multiple occasions - blue isn't a good tooth color. I've started to have Lucy stand on a stool next to the sink as we brush her teeth, instead of sitting on the counter. When she stands there, one hand supporting herself on the counter while the other brushes, after momma has had a turn, I can't help but be sad that my little girl is getting older!

In preparation for Michael's arrival we have moved the rocking chair into the master bedroom, out of Lucy's room. This happened one evening after Lucy had gone to bed, my sweet husband wanted to move it to surprise me, so when she woke up the next day we had a confused little girl on our hands! I walked into her room and usually I'm greeted with "mamma" "Milk" "Ellie" or "daddy!" but instead I was greeted with "rock? rock?" She was so confused as to where her rocker was! I showed her where the "rock" now lives and explained as best I could that we moved it to prepare for Michael. We have made a fun reading corner in Lucy's room now to replace the fact she doesn't have a chair anymore and she seems to be enjoying it (after adjusting to her rug being moved, she's a creature of habit - like her mom!). She carries a book to her little rug and sits down, asking "read?" So a few changes, but she seems to adjust pretty quickly! 

Lu has also been really cuddly the past month and a half. I've had a few moms tell me that this happened with their kids too when the next one was close to his/her arrival. I'm not going to lie - it's been so nice! Lucy has never been a cuddle bug so we have been soaking in every hug, kiss and "chee" (cheek - she loves to lay her cheek on ours) opportunity! She has even started to lay back in our arms and say "baby" - so we cradle her like a "baby." She really didn't like being cradled when she was an infant so it is humorous to us that she is asking to be held that way now.

We joke around our house that the iPad now belongs to Lucy - she has named it "Ming Ming." We assume because her favorite show is the Wonder Pets and the duck's name is just that. :) She also enjoys watching a video app that rotates through different animals and says their names (it's called Sponge Words for anyone who is interested in a good toddler app and I have more suggestions, feel free to ask!).

Lucy will often ask to "pray," usually in the middle of a meal, complete with perfectly folded hands - it's pretty cute. One particular day I asked her if there was anything she wanted to ask Jesus for (if I'm remembering correctly - it was the third or fourth time she had asked to pray during that sitting and I figured I hadn't been praying the correct thing since the request kept being repeated) she said, "share" so we prayed that Jesus would help her be good at sharing. :) It melted my heart. We have been praying that the Lord would prepare Lucy to be a big sister and that she would be able to share mommy and daddy with Michael. I'm not sure the concepts are sticking but it is encouraging to see glimpses of principles working their way into my daughter's heart.

That's all I can think of right now, I'm sure there is more I'm missing - but it feels good to have this much recorded for our family's history books. :)

In which I ramble about a bunch of random things...

1. Well, last week held a big transition for the Kidder family - I've started working again. After much prayer we have decided it would be a blessing for both our family and the church if I worked 12 hours a week as the church secretary/Brad's assistant.  It makes me laugh that the question I've been asked the most about this change is, "How can you work with your husband?" or "How can you spend so much time with your husband?" Brad and I have always worked really well together in the kitchen and in the work place (we are working on working well together with home diy projects! :) lol) - We are both particular about certain things and pretty understanding of each other when it comes to "office" things. We have been praying for both humility and clear communication though!

Lucy has gone down to one nap a day, and it has worked perfectly for her to sleep at church in an empty classroom from 12-3! She loves playing in her daddy's office and has adjusted well to this change. When Michael comes, the plan is for me to have a swing or some sort of baby-holding-divice by my desk to help with productivity, but we will finalize all those details once he is here.


We have gone into this situation realizing the potential dangers of being "so involved" (pastor's wives can so easily become burnt out). It is such a comfort to me to know that Brad (and the elders) want to protect me and our family.  I know that he will ask me to step back if I am doing too much and often tells me, "I can't talk to you about that" (hard to hear the first few times, but I'm used to it now and trust him completely).  So far it's been great - but we are willing to make changes to protect our marriage, our family and our ministry.

2. Random tip for all you who enjoy doing have to do laundry: I have really been enjoying OxiClean lately - presoaking Lu's clothes (that have food/crayon remnants on them) has really helped! If the stain is appearing to be stubborn, I'll scrub it gently with an old toothbrush after soaking, before washing.

 (Source)

3. Tonight is the first soup night of Fall 2011 - let's just say Brad and Sarah are excited.

Love when recipes are written in my mom's handwriting. :)

4. Lucy's vocabulary is ever increasing. Last week we learned, Please "pease" and Night Night "Nigh nigh." If she sees candy of any kind she starts spewing "Pease, pease, pease?!?" :) It is hard to say no to that!

5. Little tea cups work really well to corral straight pins when in the middle of a sewing project - plus they are adorable.

6. Last week, we came home from work and it was warm in the house (due to the sun spilling in) so I pulled the curtains, in an effort to be energy efficient. Look what I saw:

I screamed and jumped onto the dining room table (I give you permission to laugh at this mental image). Thankfully Brad was home to be my hero - the mouse did escape, (yuck) but we haven't seen it since so we are hoping it escaped to the outside (we have a pier and beam foundation). I have instructed Chloe Cat to be on the alert.

7. I finished Michael's crib skirt yesterday and over the weekend a friend from church helped me surge the edges of his swaddle blankets (Thanks Sherry!!!). Here is a sneak peek of the skirt, a full reveal will come when all of his bedding is complete.

8. I have a new Pandora station addiction.

 Jadon. Lavik. Wonderful. 

I think I was hooked when the first song this station played was "This is my Father's World" for some reason, that song is so "fall" to me. :)

9. I made a fall wreath last night, I'm not so sure how I feel about it. It was supposed to look like this one, but ended up looking way more "3rd grade art project." What do you think? Honest opinions are appreciated. 

10. Fall has finally arrived in the Texas Panhandle. We could not be more excited - we have had three fires in our fireplace this past week! Yeah, we are a tad bit crazy. :)

Well, I think that is all for today - I told you this would be a bit random. :) Hope you enjoy your Tuesday!

Getting Ready For Michael: The Quilt

Michael's quilt is finished! With only 8 weeks 6 days until his due date - I have been feeling a bit short on time to finish some projects, both sewing and around the house stuff. I am really happy to have the quilt done - one more thing crossed off the "To Do Before Michael Arrives" list. :)

 How we started.

 All the individual quilt squares done. 

 Ta Da!!!

 I LOVE the fabric I found for the back! Lucy's quilt has green polk-a-dots on the back too - I like things to coordinate.

 The orange fabric ended up being much "louder" than I anticipated - after I was done piecing the top of the quilt I looked at the whole thing and my heart sank a bit. The orange was so "hello!" and seemed to me to be the focus, it was calling all the attention to itself (selfish fabric!). I hadn't bought fabric for the binding yet, so I looked for something bright that would help meet the "volume" of the orange and tell it, "You're not the only bright fabric at this party, tone it down!"

 I think my plan worked well - I love the results. :) Everyone is now having a great time at the fabric party and no one is dominating the conversation. :) 

(Don't you love how the fabrics talk in my mind? haha!)

 This quilt makes me happy. I can't wait to cuddle up with my son. :)

Something else that makes me happy: 

 The fabrics match up to form the flamingo! :) 

 And again here to form the parrot. :) Neither of these were intentional, but a happy accident nonetheless.

 

31 wks 1 day

Pregnancy Update: 

Michael continues to grow, turn and kick! He is so much more active than Lucy was - "Get ready mom and dad! I'm an active boy!" - and has already expressed his love of his daddy's chocolate chip cookies (it felt like he was doing somersaults)! :) He is measuring right where he should be and we are counting the days until we can see his sweet face. :) 

As far as how this mamma is doing, well I've been much more uncomfortable in the past few weeks as the third trimester has hit - achy and sore.  Trying to stay chipper and upbeat has been a bit hard - why do pregnancy hormones have to be so stinking strong? We are taking one day at a time and looking forward to 4 months from now when I will feel like myself, physically and emotionally. I've been trying to have more realistic expectations of myself, spreading the housework out over 4 days instead of trying to hammer it all out in one and forcing myself to sit for a little while in the afternoon - that's how the quilt got done! So it's been a good change.

That's it for now, I washed and ironed fabric and made the ties for Michael's crib skirt this afternoon. I'm looking forward to seeing his bedding take shape. Hopefully later this week there will be a Lucy/Family update! :) There is a lot to catch you up on! 

Autumn Adornment

Although our weather in the Texas-Panhandle isn't cooperating with the calendar, I've brought fall into our home despite the high of 91 that is predicted for tomorrow.  :}

I'm starting with my fireplace hearth (even though my dining room is where the party is really being held) because I'm linking up to The Lettered Cottage's Fall Mantles Party! It's my first blog linky-party - and I'm excited to be participating! :) 

 

   The plant and red-fire-bird were joined with a few pumpkins and an owl ("hoot hoot!") because, what says fall like pumpkins and owls? I've had the orange pumpkins for a few years, but found the green one a few weeks ago at our local Tuesday Morning - I like how the shape/color is different than the other two, but it has the same finish!

Close ups of the two sides. :) A little something Orange/Green/Red on both :)

Ok, moving into the dining room:

 My kitchen cart has this cute candle holder (a gift from my mom-in-law) complete with apple cider tea-lights, I get a waif of them whenever I walk by. Makes me smile. :) 

 The buffet has a symmetrical look this season, I'm liking the simplicity of the candles surrounded by corks (this is how I used the hurricanes for the first year I had them, so it is a little sentimental for me).

One of the few decorating things Brad brought into our home when we got married were these rock-bottomed name-place-holders (You can see the "rock" base below). :) I hadn't used them until now, but I had fun making some cards with fall themed words on them - this one says, "Thankful."

This pretty gold bowl was a gift from a couple from church, and I filled it with my traditional fall dried-bean-mix adding a few pine cones and acorns my sisters collected for me when we were in San Antonio (Thanks Laura and Anna!). A fun mix of things that make me think "fall" with no other purpose than making me happy and occupying my cat (apparently? I've found a few acorns in corners and under furniture since this has been out).

Now the table, seriously - this makes me happy.

 I LOVE IT. :)

A few gals from church make fun of me because every time they have come over to my house I have had a different centerpiece. I told them they need to come over more often! :) But what can I say, I get board and like to switch things up! I don't have money to go get manicures/pedicures but decorating is just as relaxing for me, I'm a strange cookie and I'm be the first to admit it. :)

I bought the table runner last winter from World Market, it was on clearance for $10 (I think? I can't remember clearly at this moment) -I've been saving it for fall and was a little afraid I would forget about it, but thankfully I did not! :) It has a dark plum background and a "garland" of white roses, pears and leaves.

 

Here is another name-place-holder, this one reading "friends." Joined by a candle holder from my great-grandma Ivance and a thrift-store votive. 

 The great wooden bowl is another thrift-store find, this one from Lititz PA from my recient trip to visit friends. I was really excited when I saw it, thinking it was handmade in an exotic country - I picked it up and saw a "made in china" sticker, oh well - maybe not a one-of-a-kind piece, but it has been a fun addition to my house. :) The bowl is filled with pears, which aren't real but have fooled many people so far - they are another thrift-store kind hailing from Minnesota. 

I didn't realize how many thrift stores, from all over the country, contributed to this table until now.  :) 

Here is # 3 of 4 name-place-holders - this one reading "Family" Something about fall just makes me thankful for my family, maybe it is the upcoming holidays or the start of school, but it happens every year. :) 

My trio of wooden candle holders don't match perfectly, but coordinate perfectly - one of my favorite looks. The one in the front left was made by my dad in his high school shop class! :) My grandma gave it to me a few years ago and it it one of my all-time favorite things. The tall candle stick is from Ikea - love that place. And the votive-candle-stick....

...was a Amarillo thrift-store find, I purchased it alone and it wasn't until I was putting together this centerpiece that i realized it holds my (Chicago thrift-store) votive holders perfectly! Sarah was very happy upon discovering this - it's the small things.

 Have you set your "fall" table yet?

The autumn adornment doesn't stop there - no my friends - I have a little touch of fall in my front room too! (I have told myself that I am not allowed to buy anymore "Fall themed decor" but must have fun with what I have until I have more surfaces to decorate.) :)

 My new sewing table, when it's not in use, provides a nice surface for a few little things.

 My cute pilgrim couple, another gift from my fabulous mom-in-law, make me happy.  I realize they may not be for everyone - Brad thinks they are kinda creepy because they don't have eyes. 

I hope you enjoyed the fall tour of our home - I'm hoping the weather starts to cool off soon, but until then I'll just keep burning my apple cider candles and pretending it is crisp and cool outside. :) How have you welcomed fall into your home?

Getting Ready for Michael: Sewing Projects, Fabrics, and a Gift

Excitement doesn't even begin to describe how I feel about beginning these projects for my SON! :) I am thrilled.

The Plan:

• Make a Crib Skirt (Using this tutorial but adjusting the pattern to make the skirt shorter)
• Make Bumper Pads (Using this tutorial)
• Make a Quilt (Using the same pattern I used with following the same pattern I used with Lucy's quilt, Amy Butler's Play Time Quilt)
• Make Swaddling Blankets

The Fabrics: 

Lucy and Michael will be sharing a room so I really wanted their "colors" to be coordinating but still very feminine and very masculine - my goal is to have Michael's bedding/quilt so "boy" that you do not think even for a second, "Is it for a girl?"

It didn't take long for me to realize that it is so much harder to find fabric for a boy than it is to find fabric for a girl. Brad and I didn't want Michael's (or Lucy's) fabric to be "themey," and we were able to stay away from a theme with girl fabrics (there are so may options/colors that are distinctly feminine but not distinctly a theme) but found the choices more difficult this time around. I finally found a fabric that would be a great inspiration/jumping off point for his quilt. And although it was an animal print, it didn't read "Zoo" to us at all. :) Success!

 (If you would like the names of any of these fabrics, let me know and I'd be happy to find them for you. :))

I've already started the quilt! It is turning out really well so far - I haven't decided what to do about the backing and binding yet, I think I would like to bring a little more green into the quilt - but we will see what I'm able to find. :) 

I decided to make the bedding (Crib Skirt and Bumper Pads) more generic so that I can use them for future sons. The moment I saw this argyle I knew it would be perfect!

This argyle will be the main fabric on the bumper pads and will be the accent on the crib skirt. I haven't found the fabric I need for the piping on the bumper pads and the majority of the skirt - I'm hoping to find a green fabric that matches/coordinates well with our rocking chair and storage boxes in the kid's room (all the storage items I have are "Sage" from the Koala Kids line at Babies R Us, so they are gender neutral). I'd love a polka dot (you know me...) or maybe a stripe, but again - we will see what is available. :)

Next up, swaddling blankets! We loved wrapping Lucy up "real tight" when she was a newborn - she actually slept swaddled until she was about 7 or 8 months!  I was given three beautiful home-made blankets at a baby shower that were the perfect swaddlers. So my mind has been set on making my own for future kiddos. :)

These flannel fabrics make me smile and they match Michael's quilt perfectly. :) Lucy's colors are pink/green/grey and I think Michael's are shaping out to be Orange/Green/Blue. :) There is a lady from church, Emily, who has a surger - and she is going to show me how to use it and let me borrow it! Can't wait! 

fyi: the green plaid is very similar to the shade of green I'm looking for for the skirt/bumper pad piping.

Here are all the fabrics we have so far: :)

Oh! And Emily, the same sweet lady who has a surger - gave me a beautiful gift last week: 

 A stunning sewing table! It belonged to her sister-in-law and when she downsized and moved she gave the desk to Emily.

The desk is complete with: 

  

  A Singer Touch and Sew Machine - this thing is a beast. It has been maintained beautifully and runs so smoothly!

 The sewing desk has this neat "nook" for all of the essentials that you need to keep close by!

 And a spacious drawer for other do-dads :)

I've been having fun playing with this machine - never did I think I would enjoy having two sewing machines but so far it has been an amazing luxury! :) What a gift! Thank you Emily for encouraging my creativity with this stunning family heirloom - I love it!

Well, that wraps up this post. Are you like me? Do fabric and sewing machines make you happy?