Mother's Day, etc.

Hi, guys. I know I've been really absent here lately. I've not forgotten about the blog - I've just been really busy. Morgan's party went really well. There were tons of crafts, and everybody had a lot of fun. 

Easter was spent at Nick's grandmother's house, which was nice. I made Daisy's Easter dress, which turned out surprisingly well, along with a matching one for a doll, and she loved them both.

At the beginning of the month Kate and Will went to the Kentucky Derby and left Maddox and Kit here with family for the weekend. They actually came in on the 1st, and Kelly went into labor the same day. Kit and Maddox were supposed to stay with my in-laws, but they had Logan at their house while Kelly was in the hospital. Maddox is 4 and can be kind of a handful, and Logan is 19 months old and right in that crazy toddler stage, so they had Maddox stay with us, and Morgan stayed there with Kit and Logan. It was fun to have him stay with us, but exhausting.

The new baby girl is precious and perfect, and I even got to be there when she was born, something I didn't expect.

I've been doing some things to further my crafting, which I won't go into here, but it's keeping me busy.

Mother's Day was...kind of sad. Money is non-existent for us right now, so I didn't expect any gifts from Nick or the kids, and I was really, truly okay with that. But there wasn't much in the way of celebration at all. Morgan was frankly sullen when Nick told her to load the dishwasher so I could fix lunch.  I made Mother's Day gifts for Faith, Kelly, and Melanie, which I do every year, or at least as long as they've been pregnant or mothers, which started two years ago for Kelly and last year for Faith and Melanie. And I don't do that because I expect something back - I really don't. But I had to ask each of them later on if they opened their gifts before I even got a thank you, which made me feel a little...unappreciated. 

To be honest, it wasn't that bad of a day. Even if my sisters-in-law and my friend didn't remember me on Mother's Day, my sweet mom got me a stationary set, and my in-laws got me a geranium, which was precious and unnecessary. And God has blessed me so very much. Right now there is a family on my Facebook feed living the final days of their five-year old son's losing battle with cancer. There's a blog I'm following written by a midwife who just spent her first Mother's Day missing her baby girl who lived 6 hours and died in her arms a few months ago. She's facing a return to her job this month where she will work every day caring for women with healthy pregnancies while she mourns the loss of her own child. We may not have been able to go out for a fancy Mother's Day lunch or dinner, but there was food to put on the table, and it was delicious, even if I had to cook it.

I told Nick tonight that I really think what would help tremendously is for us to have more date nights. We've actually not had one since last year, which is not great considering we're almost halfway through May now. But my parents have been watching Robert and Faith's baby Liam a lot. He's not crawling yet, which makes him an easy baby to watch right now, which my crazy two year old is certainly not. Not that Jack is poorly behaved - he's not. He's just, you know, two. And Morgan of course watches herself but she's not really much help with the other two. Daisy wants my mom to actively play with her, and well, there are three of them in all, and it's just a lot more work.

Nick's dad and stepmom have never really been great about babysitting for us, although they love the kids. But even so, they babysit Logan for Grant and Kelly quite a bit, and with the new baby girl they've been helping even more, which leaves no time for us, should they even by willing. A couple of weeks ago when Nick came home Jack was literally hanging off my neck and Daisy had thrown herself into my lap where she was trying to rock herself like a baby in my arms. He took one look at me and told Morgan she was watching them for a few minutes while we took a walk. We just went around our neighborhood and Morgan complained about it on Facebook while we were gone, but that 20 minutes alone with Nick did me a lot of good. I think we need to try harder to carve out more stolen moments like that.

Anyway, how have you guys been? Anything cool happen for Mother's Day for you?

A minute to breathe

I feel like it's been forever since I've put up a real post. It's just been so busy here. But right now Jack (sweet, busy, unstoppable, into-everything-even-stuff-you-didn't-know-you-had Jack) is passed out asleep on the couch, Morgan is at school, Daisy is painting a picture in the kitchen, the ground beef for supper is thawing in the microwave, and there's a load of laundry in both the washer and the dryer. So I'm going to sit down for a minute with my big tumbler of sweet tea and blog for a -

***We interrupt this peaceful moment to bring you the following real life sequence of events: Daisy got done painting and wanted a bath urgently. At this point my mom called to chat. Approximately one minute into the conversation Daisy got too impatient to wait any longer for her bath, so she began frantically yelling from the kitchen and leaning on the baby gate, which immediately fell, and the resulting crash woke Jack. I got off the phone with my mom, got Daisy in the bath, and got a fresh bottle for Jack, who of course showed zero interest in going back to sleep at this point. He wanted nothing more in life than to sit on my lap and drink his milk. So I attempted to pick the computer back up, but he wasn't having it, and at this point I could see Morgan walking home from the bus stop, so I had to go unlock the front door for her. 

She came in and started rummaging for a snack. She brought me our sole carton of strawberry yogurt and asked if she could have it, which Daisy heard from the bathroom and began loudly demanding that she wanted it for herself. She's honestly not usually this rude and demanding, but I guess every three year old has a selfish day now and then. I asked Morgan if she would rather have a brownie instead of the yogurt, which she was happy to do. 

This is when Daisy decided she needed out of the tub, so Morgan went and got her out for me since I had Jack. When Daisy followed Morgan to the living room wrapped in a towel and saw Morgan with the last of the brownies she decided to try to rip them out of her sister's hands. I immediately stopped her and made her apologize.***

 That's been up to the last few minutes. Currently Jack has allowed Morgan to settle him down with his bottle and blanket on the other couch, Morgan is playing music on her iPad, and Daisy is climbing back and forth from the back of the chair to the stairs. 

Me? I'm just trying not to attract any of their attention. I know that this is one of the hardest seasons of parenting, and just knowing that makes it a little easier. But I'm pretty stressed and exhausted these days. Nick has started going on bike rides after work on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Wednesday nights we have church, and of course all day on Sunday. Saturdays if he's off, he's busy doing things like working on cars or taking off the trash, or mowing the yard, all things I understand and appreciate. He's also studying for his ASE tests right now, which takes up the rest of his free time, and it's absolutely essential that he has this time to prepare.

The truth of it though is that I'm seriously needing some down time.

***Just got back from cleaning up the mostly full cup of strawberry yogurt, which Daisy left on the entertainment center and Jack dumped completely upside down on the floor, splattering the whole side of the couch in the process.***

Money has been very tight lately, but what I wouldn't give for $25 and a whole kid free day to spend thrift store hopping! Less expensively, but no less costly, I know I could use a good spanking, but it's not in me to ask right now, and Nick has enough to deal with as it is. 

***Pause to put Jack's diaper back on.***

I'm not managing my time or my stress very well, although I have been sticking with my bedtime pretty closely, at least as far as actually getting in bed.

***Pause to put Jack's diaper back on again. Try to locate the ringing cordless phone. Try to locate the no longer ringing cordless phone. Page the phone. Find it in my pocket. Call my mom back. Pass the phone to Morgan and try unsuccessfully to convince Jack and Daisy that the other couch would be much more comfortable than Mommy's lap. Change Jack's diaper. Watch helplessly as Daisy knocks my Macbook off the couch. Get up and go put Jack on the other couch. Daisy runs off to try to climb the baby gate in front of the stairs. Jack gets up to join her. ***

On another topic, did everyone have a nice Mother's Day? Mine was good. Nick took us out to lunch after church, and Morgan helped me cook the hamburgers that night for dinner. I made all the gifts this year. Excuse my crappy photo backdrops - I was just trying to grab a few quick shots before bedtime the night before:

Infinity scarves for Mom and Nick's stepmom.

 Burlap wreath with handmade flowers for Nick's stepmom.

 Burlap wreath with handmade flowers for Mom using the fabrics from her kitchen makeover.

 You are my sunshine canvas art for Kelly.

 Upcycled mason jar vases for Mom (the blue one) and Nick's stepmom (clear).

***Pause to put Jack's diaper on......again, this time a fresh one.***

Pillow covers (I made one for both) for Faith and Melanie who are both due end of November/beginning of December.

***Pause to run upstairs to retrieve Jack, who bypassed the baby gate by wriggling through the banister.***

I sent Kate this leather and suede banner (which can also be found in my shop).

***Pause to get Jack down from the surround sound box and reset the controls so that the TV works again. Run to the kitchen to retrieve the bottle he tossed through the window.***

Not pictured was Nick's grandmother's gift, which consisted of a set of 16 blank notecards similar to these:

Source

Except mine were bigger and a little more elaborate. I used hearts, flowers, and butterflies, and each one was unique with multiple shapes. I made her some for Christmas, and she asked me if she could buy some more from me (like I'm going to charge her). 

***Pause for Jack to climb up on my lap and shove his whole hand in my mouth.***

I also included a 3x5 magnet of Jack (free from Shutterfly) three singed satin poppy pins, and three 8x10 photo collages (free from Walgreens), one of my kids, one of Kelly's baby, and one of Kate's kids. I packaged everything but the 8x10s up in a handmade felt zipper pouch. 

We gave her stuff to her on Friday. We all had hair appointments with Nick's stepmom, and she always has the appointment right before us, so I knew we'd see her then. Speaking of hair appointments, I got mine cut short (which I always end up doing come spring), and we got Daisy's cut too. This was her first major haircut. It's just above her shoulders, and it's SO CUTE!.

In other news, I've got these in my shop now:

***Pause to answer the phone, which Daisy has just taken away from Jack. It was my mom calling to let me know that Jack had managed to turn the phone on and dial her.***

And it's now a solid three hours since I started this blog post, so I'm going to say goodbye and try to get dinner done before Nick gets home from his bike ride.

Mother’s Day, etc.

Hello, everyone! I had a moment free to sit down and post, so I thought I’d take advantage! Life has been good. God provided some unexpected side work for Nick to help meet our needs, and I’ve also sold some photography packages. I also made my first etsy sale – yippee!

Did everyone have a nice Mother’s Day? It was a busy weekend for us – Kate and Will went to the Kentucky Derby, and my in-laws babysat for them, so we got to see the kids over the weekend and Kate and Will on Sunday when they came back. We went to church that morning, then the whole family spent the day at Kelly's house until it was time for Kate and family to fly back to Texas.
I made anniversary pillow covers for Nick’s stepmom and grandmother, a pillow cover for Kate with the address of her lake house translated to French, and a pillow cover with a favorite hymn lyric for my mom. For my gift, I bought myself a couple of watches on sale a few weeks ago.
Coincidentally, James also came home from Texas that weekend. I think I’ve mentioned that he’s a surgical tech and was doing a travelling job there for a few months. That job has ended, and in a few days he’ll be packing back up to do a stint in Los Angeles. I miss him like crazy, but this is a good time in life for him to travel. He’s single, childless, and still in his twenties, so I’m glad for him to get the opportunity to see some new places. He makes good money being willing to travel, and that’s allowing him to save up for a house.

There’s not been a whole lot happening on the DD front, but neither has it felt like it’s absent. There’s just been no reason for punishment, which is a good thing!

Well, I’m off to edit pictures and work on the laundry – have a great day!

Mother's Day and more

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day! Morgan made me a magnet for Mother's Day at school, and my SIL got me a very sweet card. Daisy of course is still too small to get me a gift :) but she's enough of a gift in herself. Money has been incredibly tight, so Nick decided to take me out for dinner and a movie with his birthday gift cards for his gift to me. We went to church that morning, then to see Nick's grandmother. Then my mom called and wanted us to come have lunch with her at her and Dad's house. Of course we had planned to go see her next anyway, but what a surprise that she was fixing lunch for the rest of us on Mother's Day! As much as my mom may irritate me sometimes, she really is the best mom anyone could ever hope for.

Lunch was great, and we got her a colander as a gift. Okay, I know that sounds really lame, but it honestly was the perfect gift for her. I usually get her something decorative for the house or a department store gift card, but she's reached the point in her life where she doesn't want any more stuff brought into the house, and she usually ends up using the gift cards on Morgan and Daisy.

Anyway, my in-laws got me this same colander for Christmas, and I absolutely love it! I use it every single day, and since it collapses, it easily fits into the dishwasher for cleaning and the cabinet for storing. My mom saw mine and said how much she liked it, so I decided to go with something she would actually use and that would give her a little more space and convenience. Anyway, she loved it.

After we saw my mom we went to see Nick's stepmom. Nick's sisters wanted to get her a spa day, so we went in with them on that. A few days ago we had asked Nick's stepmom if she would babysit for us sometime soon so we could do dinner and a movie. She called a few days later and asked if it she could do it on Mother's Day night, so (after making sure that she really did want to do it that night) that worked out perfectly for us.

The gift cards were for Outback Steakhouse and Regal Cinema. Of course on Mother's Day Outback was incredibly crowded, so we drove to a couple before we found one with a reasonable wait time. Then as we were walking in, Nick said, "Do you have the gift cards?"

"No, why would I have them? I thought you had them!" Urrggghhh! So we decided instead to go have sushi. A few months ago Restaurant.com had $25 gift cards for $2 each, so I spent $8 and got a $100 worth to a local sushi place. We had a couple of those left, so we used one for dinner.

Fortunately, I also had a couple of free movie passes in my purse. Back around Christmas we went to see Sherlock Holmes with my brother. The heat was messed up in the theater and it was about 8o°, so as we were leaving, they handed us each a free movie pass for our inconvenience.

So we went to see Date Night, which was very funny. What's nice is that we still have the Outback and movie gift cards that we can use some other time.

Yesterday Daisy scared me half to death. I was nursing her in our bed after Nick went to work. Unfortunately I drifted off and she decided to explore. I had some pretty heavy pillows surrounding us as a barrier just in case she decided to roll, but she managed to climb over one and do a swan dive off the side of the bed. She's fine, just a little scab on her nose where she got some carpet burn, but it dazed her a bit at first and had me absolutely panicked. I know it happens once or twice to most babies at some point, but I felt terrible! I kept a close eye on her all day yesterday, checking her pupils and coordination and movement and ability to track things with her eyes and everything is fine, but what a scare!

I applied for a job with Wal-Mart the other night. I didn't want to, but we're really, really struggling. I only listed that I was able to work in the evenings so that I can still watch the girls while Nick's at work. Hopefully if I get it I can just do it for a few months and get us caught up and then quit again.

Well, I guess that's about it for now - hope everyone is having a great week!

Should I be nervous?

Maybe, but I'm actually quite excited! A couple of days ago Nick let me place an order from Cane-IAC as a Mother's Day gift, and I can't wait till it gets here! I've ordered a Patty Paddle and an Oak Wooden Paddle Set. The prices are extremely reasonable, and I couldn't have had better communication with the owners so far. I'm off to do some laundry!

Happy Mother's Day!

Very special wishes for some very special women...

Super cool Mother's Day gift

My amazing and somewhat overindulgent husband bought me an iPod nano for Mother's Day! I mentioned the other day that I'd like an iPod, and he came home and suprised me with this today. So I've been downloading all of our CDs all afternoon. It holds 500 songs, and I can't wait to get it filled up. Thank you soooo much, Baby!

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

I hope each and every one of you wonderful, overworked, underpaid, underappreciated women out there who've taken on the most important job in the world have a day fit for a queen! I love my Mom!