Open for Business...

I've been making wool diaper covers for Caleb and decided that I should try selling them as well. Here's a link to my shop:

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5182591

Also, I've uploaded some photos to flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22769628@N04/

Now I'm off to make sides to go with the meatloaf in the oven. Have a great weekend everyone!

It just gets better and better....

So Libby was throwing up on Tuesday night, right? Well, She laid around all day Wednesday, then on Friday she was throwing up again. Friday night Caleb started vomiting. Saturday we HAD to go to the grocery, Libby seemed to be a bit better, and I wore Caleb in my homemade meitai, he slept. Gabriel came over to spend the night and watch Shrek the Third.

Of course, about fifteen minutes after I fell asleep the boyus came rushing into my room exclaiming that Abigail was coughing and throwing up. So I got her cleaned up and made a pallet for her beside the bed. I spent the rest of the night flipping the bedside lamp on and holding the bucket for her everytime she woke up. Sometime around 4am Gabriel came in to tell me that Benjamin was throwing up.

So the kids have spent last 48 hours soaking in warm baths, and imbibing gingerale. And Jeremy and I have been rinsing buckets and refilling glasses. And of course I've done seventy gazillion loads of laundry as well. But I think my favorite part has been all the requests for momma to "rock" them and sing "rockababytreetop" (that's Caleb-speak).

Under the weather....

I've been making most of our meals "from scratch" lately. You know, fresh veggies, raw meats, etc. It gives you such a feel of accomplishment for the little extra effort. And I've discovered that I make some AWESOME chicken soup.

That sure did come in handy today. I kept the girls home from school; poor Libby was up all night throwing up :(

Both girls have gone on and on about how good my soup is... makes a mommy so proud!

Musings...

So as each of my children grows older, marching through the many stages of childhood, I sit back and contemplate each of them.

Ben is nearing the age of "double digits". He reads, he writes(though he detests it) and he is really very selfsufficient in a lot of ways. But he still likes it when Mom makes his microwave pizza, when Mom brings him his clean clothes to put on for school, sitting in Mom's lap and cuddling close. He also loves his younger siblings. Loves to make them laugh and smile, loves to drive them crazy and delight in their screams. He's is your typical boy, but he is very strong in his Faith. And for that I am so very grateful.

Libby is such a character. She is learning so much, picks up so many things along the way to repeat at the next appropriate time and surprise us with her astute obsevation. But in a way she doesn't have any sense of propriety. "Hello, fat lady!" she will say cheerily. How do you explain to someone why a seven-year-old would say that? "Papaw is too old for hugs." she will say. And then I explain, that you're never too old for hugs. You'd think that she'd remember that, as often as we snuggle on the couch together.

Abigail. One minute she's so grown up, taking care of her sister and little brother, talking about happenings at school, singing a song that she heard in a CareBear movie. The next minute something terribly tragic has happened (oh, the mind of a dramaqueen) and she's needs to be soothed and rocked like a baby while she sucks on those two special fingers for comfort. She's an extreme, she's either extremely happy or extremely upset. There are NO inbetweens for this one.

Caleb is growing so fast I feel that he's shot from baby straight to preschooler, skipping toddler in the process. He's talking a blue streak, beginning to show interest in the potty, and so very helpful when Mommy is doing dishes or laundry. And in spite of his nearness to the big 2 he is still having his milkies about twice a day. I cherish those moments when I can pretend he's still a little baby snuggled up in my arms...until he looks up at me and starts talking about the cat or the horse or his siblings or his piggies.

Which brings me to the situation I'm in right now. I am getting "the fever" again... BAD this time. So far, everyone tries to talk me out of it, or at least postpone trying. I've been mulling it over for the past few months and I really really REALLY want another one... RIGHT NOW! Luckily, it doesn't work that way and so we would have at least 9 months from today to build a bigger house and possibly get a more reliable minivan. So I think that the best thing to do would be to stop using "preventive methods" and let God decide. He's always taken care of me.

Going green...

So I have been trying to incorporate several different factors into my crafting. I find myself trying to be economical, first and foremost, but also environmentally minded as well. Thus the use of thrifted clothes and linens to make into other things, like cloth shopping bags.

As of this week, I will no longer be buying disposable diapers, wipes, or pullups (cue sideways glance in Abigail's direction). Monday, when I finally ran out of disposables, I cut up some of the more worn out of our bath towels, most of which are over 10 years old, and sewed some primitive (possibly even crude) diapers. But hey, they work, right? I also made lots of fleece diaper covers out of an old Finding Nemo blanket. Yesterday, I went to my mom's, queen of thrifting, and she gave me a stack of cloth diapers she'd picked up here and there. She uses them for dust rags and to soak up spills. A lidded trash can from Target (on sale for $3.50) and some tea tree oil and we were in business. I also picked up some vinyl covered training pants for our current bedwetter. I told her they were washable pullups and she hugged them tight!

And although this started as an effort in frugality, it has become slightly expensive... thanks a lot eBay! I can validate my spending though, because even with all the towel diapers I made, and the prefolds from mom, I only have about eighteen diapers. That's just over a day's worth for Mr. TinkleWinkle.

I'm hoping that using cloth will contribute to a speeding training of my little man. But even if it doesn't, I'm actually enjoying using cloth. We'll see how long the enjoyment lasts, right?

By the way, if anyone has any cloth diapering "stuff" that they don't want, you can send it my way ;)

A Lesson in Homonyms

*Stained Glass*

An area pastor tells of his first Sunday in the new parish and presenting the children's message. Seems the sanctuary in the new church had some magnificent stained glass windows, so his message centered on how each of us is called of God to help make up the whole picture of life (the life of the community of the faithful). Like the pictures in the windows, it takes many little panels of glass to make the whole picture.

And then he said, "You see each one of you is a little pane." And then pointing to each child, "You're a little pane. And you're a little pane. And you're a little pane. And..."

It took a few moments before he realized why everyone was laughing so hard.

Behind again...

I suppose getting behind during one of the most busy months of the year is excusible, right?

The girls got American Girl dolls for Christmas. I've been searching for patterns and ideas to clothe these since the outfits cost an INSANE amount of money. Of course the matching outfits for the girls are twice as much, nearly as much as the doll itself. But we did splurge and purchase a few of the outfits to go with "Nicki" since she was a limited edition and a cowgirl to boot! Grandma is going to pass along the doll dresser that her dad made for er when she was 7, and Granny bought antique doll bunk beds. Every night they get their "girls" ready for bed. I think maybe it helps them settle down for the night as well.

The AG catalog arrived in the mail yesterday and the girls have been puring over it together, making mental wishlists for their birthdays... what have I gotten myself into?!!

On the same "I'm insane" lines, I bought Ben a remote control spider for Christmas. He loves it for all the reasons you'd imagine: scaring mommy, scaring his sisters, scaring his little brother, scaring the dogs, scaring the new kitten... do you see a trend developing? Luckily I found it while he was schooling with Grandma and tucked it safely away.

I'll have to come back soon and post photos of all the Christmasy goodness.

Long time, no see...

Wow! I've gotten behind in this thing, haven't I? I've been to Texas and back, been in a Christmas parade, and countless others. Perhaps one day I'll get around to posting about those things but I know if I wait to post about life in order, I'll never catch up!

So I'll leave you with a photo of my favorite blessings:

Recipe for a Pleasantly Quiet Sunday Afternoon

Take two square scraps of muslin, add embroidery hoops/needles/thread, and a rough sketch onto said fabric scraps and what do you get?

Peace and quiet.

It's especially pleasant if you can find a warm sunbeam to sew in.

Shades of pain...

Looking at the photos I've taken over the past few days is interesting. Here's what I mean:



Tuesday morning:




Tuesday evening:




Wednesday morning:




Thursday morning:

Please excuse the spaghetti stains on his face... guess what we had for breakfast? ;)

The progression og the bruise that's blooming in the middle of his face is just really interesting, isn't it? Yesterday Ben asked why Caleb looked like "Rainbow Man"? He is definitely reminiscent of a masked super hero, or a raccoon.

The Color Purple...

The color purple never made me cringe until today. Everytime I look into this alien little face (he doesn't even look like MY BABY!) it's smiling up at me and yet still, I cringe because man, oh man... it just looks so dang painful!

I can't tell if you can see the damage better with the flash on or off...

Little boys keep you on your toes...

I had several photos of Caleb that I've been meaning to post and now I have more and a story to go along with them.



Remember when I said I took that grey sweater apart? Well, as we wound each section into a "hank" (I think that's what it's called) I tied them off. Then I noticed what a cute turban it would make. Thus the photo of Jeremy and his little genie:




Last week I had to take Ben to the hospital for a minor outpatient-type surgery (although a urethral meatomy doesn't seem minor when you realize what they're cutting on, does it?) and so Daddy stayed home with the others. Daddys aren't used to nap schedules and so when Abby told him that "Caleb looks tired" he took a photo so I could see just how tired he was before Daddy put him to bed:




And finally, last night at about 8pm we heard a loud thud and Libby came in to tell us that Caleb was hurt. From what we've gathered she had "helped" him climb onto the top bunk bed and was helping him down again when something went wrong. "I've made a terrible mistake" she said, as the blood poured from his nose. Several red marks appeared across the tip of his nose and it started swelling as he partook of milkies to keep calm while we continued to monitor him. He kept telling me "Nose. Ow. Hurt. Milkies, please mom." Heartbreaking, really.



Well, I'm not all that familiar with nose injuries so off to the ER we went with Grandma, while Daddy watched the concerned older siblings. Granny met us there and boy was Caleb glad to see her! He clung to her for the duration of his hospital stay, which included a rectal temp check (yikes!) and a CT scan. For the scan he was wrapped in a sheet which was then taped up. Then they secured his head in place with tape but the little squirmy-worm required mommy to lay on top of him and secure his chin as well. As you can imagine, that went over about as well as a lead zeppelin. The scan showed that there were no fractures and no bleeding in the brain, so we were sent on our merry way. He spent the entire night in bed with Mommy, Daddy, and Milkies and seems to be feeling fine, but boy! does it hurt me everytime I look at that purple face:

The Holidays are fast approaching...

As a follow-up to my last post about knitting I thought I would let anyone out there that actually reads this know that there's a month-long how-to thingy going on at Sew, Mama, Sew. I'm looking forward to daily inspiration ;)

Busy Knitting.

I've been so busy lately, it's been crazy! I've been knitting practically everyday, trying to finish up Christmas gifts and winter accesories for the kids. The other night Jeremy helped me frog (unravel) a sweater that I saved from the salvation army pile. It's a wool/acrylic blend in charcoal gray. I ended up with 5 nice sized balls of yarn, and I've already started knitting up some armwarmers for my nephew. It's such a nice neutral color, perfect for guys. Counting out how many pairs of armwarmers I'm going to have to make, I think it's five pair of boys armwarmers, and then two more hat/armwarmer sets for girls, maybe more. Just thinking of it in those terms makes me want to give up. So I think that instead I'll allow myself that I can't make them for everyone and when I get tired of it I will stop. Last year when I felt obligated to finish something, it took me nearly a year to pick my needles up again. Same thing with sewing, if I've agreed to do something I just don't wanna do it anymore. I think I work best as some sort of surprise crafter. Like, I'm only inspired if no one is expecting anything. lol.

Well, back to my needles.

Dyson

Dyson is one of the best vacuum cleaners you will ever use. I've had a Kirby, an Electrolux, and an Oreck and it is by far superior to all of these. I can't tell you how many times I've loaned my Dyson to someone in the family or someone from church because even they could tell it was superior to their own cleaner. I would love to win a pink Dyson for my mother, she could really use a quality machine.

I love that all the basic attachments are "on board". I love that you don't have to buy bags for it, and that it's super easy to empty the canister. There are several places throughout the machine where you can check for blockages. The canister is clear so you can see how much it picks up, it's incredible (my kids LOVE watching the dust swirl around). It's really just a fantastic cleaning machine.

Who says English food is bad?

So the other night we had boiled sausages-cabbage-and-potatoes which is an old family favorite of mine. Tonight I'm taking the leftovers and making Bubble and Squeak. Mmmmm!

Whoever said English food is bad has obviously never tasted the same recipes that I've made. Bubble and Squeak, Scotch Collops and Stoved Tatties, Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding... Yum-YUM!

Everyday there are those moments where you wish that you had a built-in-camera to catch that look, that pose, that event. But by the time you get up, take the camera out of its case and point it at your subject, the moment has passed, and all you are left with is the memory.

Case in point, this morning my cat, followed my coffee cup wherever I set it down, determined that she was going to take a sip or three. I caught her with her nose hovering over it several times, preparing to lap up the sweet milky goodness, and I knew that getting up to get the camera would endanger my precious java. So instead, I petted her, pushing her head back, and told her "No kitteh, u can't haz coffeh."

Ben's Birthday Loot

Here's the mysterious cloaked stranger:


Here he is, showing off his fox shirt and soft, comfy pants:



And here he is doing his imitation of Bella Lagosi:

Copy cat, copy cat!!!

Yeah, I'll admit it. I have abosolutely no imagination when it comes to thinking up projects on my own. But I'm a whiz at seeing other people's creations and copying them to give to family and friends. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, right? I hope Erin thinks so.

So here we have coffee-cozies, which also make excellent other-drink-cozies. These aren't just for hot coffee. They're perfect for iced coffee, and cold drinks. Nobody likes icy fingers! So far I made one for my BEST FRIEND, my mom, my mother-in-law, my cousin-in-law, my mom's best friend, and of course MYSELF. Because when I saw them on Erin's blog, I HAD TO HAVE ONE. And once I finished it I HAD TO TRY IT OUT. So my loving, devoted, and indulging husband took me 30 miles to the nearest Starbucks and I bought a grande pumpkin spice frapucchino because it was HOT that day. Which is how I found out that it works fabulously on cold drinks as well as hot ones.

By the way, the mostest funnest thing about this project was the embroidery. I am now as addicted to embroidery as I am to coffee. Especially embroidering the names. I LOVE IT!

You can't tell I've had too much coffee today, can you? ;)

Boys like shirts, too!

I couldn't leave my little man out now could I?

A little heat-n-bond, some scraps of thrifted fabric, and a short length of brown embroidery floss and VOILA! a turtle shirt. The bonus is, the turtle is hiding a stain I couldn't remove.

When my mom saw this she said "Oh, that's that ugly fabric I gave you. It makes a cute turtle shell!"