Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Family time

We had Larry's side of the family up to the lake house on Saturday to celebrate the spring birthdays.  The kids were CRAZY together, but had so much fun.  It was a good thing we got out and took a walk in the sun, they needed to burn off some more energy.
awww
riding the teeter totter
don't look so excited Maria
She loves the swing
:)
checking out things out the window

Her bug magnifying glass...do I look like a bug??
Zach borrowing Maria's favorite gift, binoculars.
Anna REALLY wanted that pacifier.
Zach wouldn't give it up, so she settled for the lid to Maria's teapot.
Let's try again...
I don't think he's gonna give it up.

We have plenty to praise God for; spending time with family and enjoying the company.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Rock




We had a fun time with Mindy and Zane last Friday. Maria especially had a great time playing with Zane. She didn't want them to leave. It was good to have some chat time with my childhood friend, and take a nice walk in the sun! Thank you friend, you blessed my heart.
We have plenty to praise God for; forever friends!

Monday, March 29, 2010

peek-a-boo




We have plenty to praise God for; peek-a-boo fun with Anna.

Monday, March 22, 2010

10 months



Another month zooms by.  Anna is showing more interest in moving around.  Her favorite thing to do is to scoot across the kitchen floor, in no time flat she can be from one end to the other and often stuck under a chair, cupboard, etc.  She is starting to push herself up on her knees more too.  
She likes to play peek-a-boo, and will even put her hand up on part of her face to play along.  It even sounds like she is trying to say "peek-a-boo" along with us.  She is good at copying sounds, especially "uh-oh," "uh,uh,uh," and "ha,ha,ha".  She is especially good at shaking her head no lately too, not sure where she would have ever picked that up at??  She will sometimes give kisses, but more like open mouth drool on your face kind of kiss.
Seeing herself in the mirror has suddenly become a treat.  She will smile, point to herself and often wave, we're not sure yet if she realizes it is her, or still thinks it's another baby.  When Larry was reading to her from a board book of baby photos a few weeks ago, it soundly distinctly like she was saying "baby".  She also says "hi" or "hi, there".
She has good nap days and other days where she only takes one decent nap.  She definitely likes Cheerios and some days that is all she seems to want to eat.  A few days ago anything resembling a vegetable going into her mouth was soon coming right back out.
Still a very content baby, but will let you know when she is unhappy with a loud wail. 

We have plenty to praise God for; a 10 month old that brings us so much joy each day.

Friday, March 19, 2010

at the lake

Some of you heard our story about Larry going up to check our lake house and the house was about 107 degrees, but for those haven't...The previous thermostat was battery powered to tell it to kick on and off.  The batteries had died, so.....heat it did!  So, we took an old school thermostat up and changed it out...but alas, now we have to fix the paint job that we just did!  We already had a flooded crawl-space at the end of last year due to a pipe that need a simple $0.59 brace to stabilize it.  Ah, the joys of home ownership.


Some pictures of the house looking lived in with artwork, etc.  Posters of Mont St. Michel, a castle in France that Larry visited when he was a child living there. I need to repaint the one frame to black, the gold is a bit gaudy. Rocking chair beneath them that Larry has had since we met, it was his grandparents.  Our table and chair set is from his other grandparents.
Three boat prints that Larry got an our church auction for maybe $15.  I can't decide whether to leave as is with old mats and frames or clean them up with white frames and new mats?  Love seat and lamp from Nana.
Three metal words I found at Salvation Army for probably $0.25 a piece
Alot of the decor were things I had, but I did pick up a nice load of things at the Lions sale they have twice a year here in town, including several metal lanterns, the old fan, and the mail basket.  I love the boat model that is from France.  The letter S I found on sale at Kohl's for about $5.  The globe $2 at a garage sale.  The mirror above the fireplace someone had lying with their garbage and I hauled it home with me...I was pushing the stroller when I found it,but didn't want to chance it being gone when I returned...we were quite a sight, that things weighs a ton!
Blue couch in our living room is from a garage sale $50, and the other was a roadside freebie...if you saw the thing uncovered or tried to sleep on the pullout bed you would understand why, but thanks to my brother for hauling it to his house for us.  We have a couple side table and a coffee table too.  The coffee table was left in the parsonage in Culver by the previous pastor, the side tables from a used furniture store, about $15 each.  We also have an arm chair that was from Larry's parents.  Blue lamp was from Nana and the brown one I don't know where it was from, but it was gold and black loveliness and I spray painted it with a texture finish.
I got the styrofoam balls at the thrift store for $0.25 and the twig ball probably about the same, the moss, berries, twine were all things I had in my craft supplies.  I made all but the twig ball, from the help of this tutorial.
The painting above the towel bar was another auction purchase, I am guessing maybe $10.  The metal candle stand was a gift way back from my friend Rachel.

The shelf was another thrift store find, maybe $1.  The boat was a model that Larry's parents picked up in California a while back.  I assembled it and painted it.  The small bucket was a freebie from a garage sale and most of the shells are ones I had from our frequent trips to Florida as a kid.  The small white frame I painted and added a shell to make it fit the decor.  The ivy I had in my craft stash.


I saw this idea and made my own interpretation of it for our hallway. The hangers were ones I had and a few my mom brought to add to the cause.  The pictures I took and printed online.


I used this tutorial to change some lovely aluminum miniblinds into custom NO-SEW roman shades.  
down.
up
with the original lace curtains over the roman shade...can't decide if I want to keep these up or just the roman shade, but the lace does give a bit of privacy during the day when we ant a bit of light coming in, but not a fishbowl effect.  Plus the windows have gotten moisture in between the panes of glass and don't look too attractive.  
Our bedroom.  I got these great curtains at WalMart...they are light/noise blocking and help to keep cold out too(or so the package claims)  They do block light well and the best part, they were only about $10.  I decided that I couldn't buy fabric and liner for that price...plus I would have had to make them.  Bonus, they were larger than I needed, so there is extra that I can use to make valances in the bath, kitchen...wherever.  Our chair/bedside tables were from an antique shop, I think $18 a piece.  Figured they work as tables and extra seating when we have guests.  Lamp and bedspread from Nana. Bed frame $20 off of Craigslist, mattress, boxsprings our old ones.

The roman shade I made in the girls room.  I used a light blocking fabric liner and did the same tutorial.  This was the first one I made, and it took quite a bit longer the first time around.  The fabric and glue total cost me about $15.

I do have some great retro Noah's ark curtains to hang on either side once the walls are all scraped and painted.  The curtains were probably about $5 or less?  The beds we have in there were given to us from a pastor friend of Larry's.  There is a dresser and a nightstand to go with them, we just haven't brought them over yet.

giving the girls a dark room for napping, don't mind the nasty looking wall...it's our last room since one of the girls is always in there napping or sleeping.

We have plenty to praise God for; the generosity of friends and family and cheap finds to decorate our new digs.  

Thursday, March 18, 2010

make the cake

The girls and I went to my sister's place last weekend.  My nephew had a Boy Scout cake auction, so we helped to make this masterpiece...it was fun!  I did the wording, which was actually two colors...blue and gold, Boy Scout colors.  I also helped my nephew to do the icing of the "logs" and make the texture so they looked like real logs.  My sister was the coal expert, making them out of donut holes and fruit rollups.
We had a fun time making it, and going to the auction the next night.  There weren't a ton of people to bid on the cakes besides those who had made them, but it did get up to $25.  Maria wanted me to bid on a cake shaped like an Easter basket, which happened to be carrot cake.  I did bid, but when it got up to $40, I quit. She was heartbroken about that.  I did get a train cake though.
Friday during the day I took the girls to have lunch with my nephew Trey at his school.  Then afterward we went to a local park for about an hour.  That is where Anna had her first swing ride...she wasn't too impressed.  Maria was able to play with another little girl, not too much older than her, that was there with her great-grandmother.  Ironically she knows my sister and my nephew.  They girls had a great time while I chatted with the grandmother.  We went back to the house and the girls and I ALL had a nap.  That is rare at home, but since Maria had not slept well the night before, and we were sharing a bed, I didn't sleep well either.  So, nap we did...it was good.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

The Swing

How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
River and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside--

Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown--
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down! 
-Robert Louis Stevenson



Anna's first swing ride.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

translation please

We know Anna understands lots of what we say to her, but we're pretty sure we don't understand all but a few words she can say. Anyone know of a good baby translator?

Monday, March 8, 2010

dolls


I made this black apple doll for my life long friend's daughter, Lauren.  She turned two last week, she was tweaked to look like her, complete with pigtails.

This doll I made for Maria's playmate, Sophia, who turned three last week.  Maria went to her first ever birthday party...outside of family anyway!  She had a great time, and I even left her there for a while by herself.  They played, watch The Little Mermaid, ate some goodies and just had a good time!  Now her newest thing to play with her dolls is have a birthday party instead of a tea party! :)

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Faker faker, belly acher


Yep, Anna likes to fake cough and now cry.  I caught a bit of her at dinner the other night on video...and a couple pictures...yes, we did have carrots for dinner in case you couldn't tell!