pumpkin painting

This year my little chick-a-dee decided she wanted to paint a family of pumpkins instead of carving any. No complaints from this mama!

So between myself, my son, and her we painted up a set of 5 pumpkins to represent the family. Pay close attention to the littlest pumpkin, the baby. Natalie painted a frown and fangs on him because he's cutting his molars, he's grumpy and biting everything. Priceless!

sewing can be such a chore...

I've been working on a project now for, ahem, quite awhile and am SO excited that it's done. I'm quite giddy over having it finished actually. Have you ever been in the middle of a project you really wished you hadn't started, but once you get on it you HAD to finish it because it's needed?

I had the bright idea to make some more cloth diapers. Scratch that, actually this girl I know had the bright idea, and apparently the desire, to make cloth diapers for her soon to be arriving baby. And, as if I didn't already have enough to do, I thought, "hey I could use some more diapers, too, why don't I make some?"

Now, I love my cloth diapers. Even after yesterday's incident which involved a baby wriggling the velcro free and making a really nasty mess on the dining room floor in front of the older children who, bless their hearts, were trying to eat their breakfast. This mama so deserved some hazard pay for THAT one.

But Back to the diapers, I bought my friends excess PUL and microfleece and bartered on etsy for some birdscloth. And the stuff sat around in my sewing room for awhile. And then it sat some more. I figured I'd better get started on these darn things before Ian's potty trained or I'd never hear the last of it.

I think I did pretty good, and isn't he just a cutie!

I used this pattern for the prefolds and this pattern with some of my own modifications for the fitted cover. I used Aplix instead of snaps and I didn't use FOE, but instead sewed elastic onto the seam allowance and then topstiched all around, thus encasing the elastic. Which I'd be delighted to give more info on if someone needs it.

I'm so happy these are done, you have no idea! I made 10 diapers, which hopefully he'll still fit into until he's potty trained. I'm glad to have the extra diapers and so relieved I saved us like $130 or so by making my own, but I swear I WILL NEVER take this project on again! :)

cloth diaper giveaway!

I'm a big fan of cloth diapering! I wish I had done this with my older two, I had wanted to, I just didn't KNOW how to do it when they were younger. Now, cloth diapering resources are everywhere. Over at SimpleMom, they have a fabulous giveaway for some cloth diapers and tons of information if anyone is interested in learning more. Check it out!

too much quilting...

I'm in the middle of tackling several huge projects, apart from what I'm sewing for upcoming craft shows. I don't know why I do this...I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. Right now, I've got three big quilting projects that simply NEED to get complete. One is on my machine right now. It's my quilt that will be donated. I'm happy to finally get the top done and am about halfway done quilting it.

Next, I have my quilt I started ages ago which was supposed to use up a good portion of my stash. (sadly, I still have quite the stash of fabric)

And last, this beast, is a fireplace cover. What is that you ask? It's a cleverly designed (but not by me) quilted slipcover that ties around my fireplace to protect a little noggin as he explores his world. I figure I have about another month before Ian begins crawling. So, this keeps getting pushed back. Maybe, once I get this done I can explain how to make it. Because I know I will NEVER make one to sell...my little machine can barely handle making the one!

Baby Food...mmm chicken casserole

I fixed Ian up with a yummy chicken dish yesterday. He really seemed to enjoy his first taste of meat. It's so simple and very customizable.

Saute 2 carrots and a little sliced leek in some vegetable oil until it just begins to soften. Toss in some chopped chicken and cook until the chicken becomes opaque. Next you add some more veggies; potatoes, parsnips, peas, green beans, lima beans, etc. Add in just enough water to cover then simmer, covered, for about 15 min or until all veggies are soft and the chicken is cooked through. Process, thinning with more water if necessary.

Now, I've never had my poultry come out as smooth as the jarred variety, but my baby doesn't mind. If yours has real texture issues, be patient as you introduce this.

By the way, I love these new bibs I have introduced into my Etsy shop. They are bigger and more trim than my previous line.

Baby Food...mmm sweet potatoes

Next, for little Ian to try is sweet potatoes. My mom had received a bunch of sweet potatoes and I was lucky enough to snag a bunch. So I cooked them up for the babe and he LOVES them! Again, these are so simple to make and much more delicious than store bought.

Simply, roast your sweet potatoes until tender (the time, of course, depends on how big your potatoes are). All you have to do next is peel, add water, and blend until smooth. I will tell you that they are sticky little things to get out of the ice cube trays. Just have patience. Sweet potatoes, and other winter squash, mix great with white potatoes, apples, and chicken.

Baby food

Let me warn you, I'm about to get on my soap box for a minute. I make my own baby food. I do not like store bought baby food. Mine is far superior in test, quality, freshness and cleanliness.

Back when I was a little girl, I over heard a conversation between my parents. Apparently, a church member who worked in a Gerber factory said he would never feed his child Gerber food because of how dirty the place was. I immediately decided that I would fix my own food. Have you ever tasted that stuff? It's nasty. Yes, I have resorted to using the jarred food in emergencies, but trust me, I did it with objections! :)

Making your own baby food is so simple and easy. You do not need crazy equipment or baby food cookbooks with exotic recipes. Since my little guy is beginning to eat solid foods, I plan on adding posts to my blog about the adventure. If you have a baby I hope you'll consider joining me as I feed my baby. And please, if you have any questions, please ask me!

First up on the menu for Ian, was potatoes. I like to start with potatoes because they are bland, they look cereal, and are easy to digest. All you have to do is clean, peel, and slice you potatoes. Boil in water until tender. The time varies depending on how big your chunks of potatoes are. I like to reserve the cooking water which is so full of vitamins, to thin out my potato puree. Once, your potatoes are tender, just process them with either a mixer or a food mill. Do NOT use a blender, unless you want wall paper paste! I then pass the mixture through a sieve or a colander to remove any large pieces. Then thin the puree using reserved potato water, breastmilk, or water. I freeze my purees in ice cube trays. The fancy trays they sell in catalogs are nice, but not at all necessary.

As your baby gets older, potatoes are great to mix it in with all types of vegetables like peas, beans, broccoli, and zucchini. You cal also mix them with meats and apple purees.

potty talk

I mentioned before that this baby was going to be in cloth diapers. I had never used them before and so I had no idea what to expect. But I LOVE them! Just LOVE them! I wish I used them with my first, then I never would have used disposables. Yes, they are a bit bulky, esp. in the beginning. Other than that, there are no complaints.

The Bum Genius brand is what I use so I can only vouch for those, but they really hold in all the little baby mess. He's leaked a few times, but that was because I hadn't put the insert in properly. Occasionally, I use a disposable if I'm washing the diapers or if I'm out of town for the day and don't want to keep the dirty diapers in my bag (I'm not that hardcore). He has leaked a disposable so many more times and that is also when he is likely to get diaper rash. Ian does not get diaper rash in the cloth diapers.

The cleaning isn't really that big of deal at all. I just pop them in the washer. I just can't say enough about them! I didn't know I could get so excited over diapers. :)

If you're having a baby, I highly recommend switching to cloth. It's better for the baby, the environment, and the WALLET. I will not switch back to disposables that's for sure.

In love with Orange

I'm so tickled with new diaper bag. I wanted it to be a messenger style and have lots of pockets and I knew it had to be orange. I bought the fabric here. Soon, (I hope) I will be offering this diaper bag in my shop. I put two elastic topped bottle/sippy cups on the outside, which are also great to put your keys and cell phone in. There's another pocket under the flap, one more open pocket inside, and a zippered pocket. Talk about great storage.

Plus, the strap is long enough to fit across my body so I have two free hands. Such a must in my book. I just love the design and functionality. Not to mention, I just love the orange color.

In case I didn't make it clear enough, love the orange.

One month along

I can't believe Ian is a month already. It seems like just yesterday I was in the hospital just giving birth. In the hospital, not doing a load of dirty diapers every day. In the hospital, not trying to get kids dressed, baby fed, lunch packed, shoes found before school starts. In the hospital, not having to fix breakfast, fix snack, make lunch, one more snack, another snack for the son home from school, oh and then prepare dinner. In the hospital, not having to clean the house which seems to multiply in stuff every hour. ( I swear, school papers are like rabbits! They just keep breeding.)

Did I mention that all that and more needs to be done when my sweet precious babe isn't nursing for full feedings every two hours.

Sigh, it's not that I want to be back in the hospital. It's just that it was so much easier.

a new precious life...

Finally, finally, the new baby is here! I think I'm still in shock that he belongs to me. Of course, my kids and husband will quickly point he also belongs to them.

This is Ian, the little caboose to our family train. Ian came into this world weighing in at 10 lbs and 7 oz. Yes, he was a pretty big baby. He was trying to keep up with his older brother! If he had been able to stay in there another week I imagine he would have tied his brother at 11 lbs. Already the competition begins between the two. ;)

If I had more time (or more energy) I could gush all over about Ian. But I'll have to save that for another day.

Coming home from the hospital

My two boys

my babies

My diapers came in!

So, this third baby was a real surprise to us, right? Since this will be my last baby, I figured I'd better do everything I want to with this one. And one thing I've been wanting to try out was cloth diapering. I looked into it with my first and all I could find was diapering services and they cost a fortune! We just didn't have the start up funds for it. With the second one, my husband just wasn't keen on it, even though he doesn't remember it that way.

After talking with a girl at my church who cloth diapers, I was absolutely determined to use cloth with this little baby. I found these great one size diapers from Bum Genius. These diapers will grow with your baby so you only need one set of cloth diapers. They snap down for newborns and then adjust to bigger babies! How great is that! So, we bought the 12 pack to try out (free shipping and at a discount bulk price, love that), eventually if we love them I'll buy a 6 pack as well.

Now of course, these won't do me any good if they leak and fall apart. But all the reviews I've read make these out to be a great product. So once that sweet baby starts putting his tiny heiney in them, I'll let you know how they turn out!

the baby belly

I saw a blog the other day where a pregnant woman took a photo of the view she sees looking down. It was so cute to see her little toes poking out from behind the baby belly. But, then I thought, she's so lucky she can still see her toes!

Here's my shot, and there's no toes.


Seroously, that's what I see when I look down. It's not fun when my kids leave their stuff on the ground. I'm constantly stubbing my toes, tripping over shoes, but not for much longer. 26 days and the baby will be here!