another season of life

God Made You...Canvas Project

2012-02-06T19:32:00.003-06:00

I've been working on some art for B's playroom and finished this piece on Saturday. I cut out vinyl letters with my Silhouette machine and placed them where I wanted them on the canvas. Then I spray painted over the canvas, being careful to not blow the letters off with the spray. After it dried, I peeled the vinyl off and then sprayed with a matte finish clear coat. I think it turned out pretty good.

I also tried another project with the vinyl letters. I added the word "journey" to a broken globe that we had laying around, then sprayed it white. The project that gave me this idea had a larger font but the word was shorter. I'm not as crazy about how this one turned out but I do like the idea. Just wished I would have used a bigger font.

Oh, and B is liking his chalk train!

Chalkboard Stencil

2012-01-24T21:08:00.004-06:00

We have been working on transforming the office space in our home into a playroom for B...and mainly a space for all of his toys. We only have a couple of more things to do and it will be finished. This past weekend I worked on creating a chalkboard train on the wall. I took photos as I walked through the process. It began with me traveling back in time to my 8th grade art class...

I first printed out a couple of train silhouettes from the internet and since I didn't like the direction they were going in, I used their negative. Then I taped down a huge piece of wrapping paper on our dining room table. I knew that I was going to need to establish some markers for the size the train will end up being relative to the printed train. I decided to use salad plates as the train "wheels". I was then able to use the wheels as a basis for all of my other dimensions and only had to freehand a couple of parts. As you can see from the photo below, I used several things I had lying around...a level, a Harry Potter book, a boot box lid, etc.

Once I had it all drawn out in pencil, I went back over it in black marker and then cut the stencil out. By this time it was late at night and I knew the project could be postponed till the next day.

I then taped the stencil up on the wall and traced around it in pencil. Then I removed the stencil and started filling the shape in with chalkboard paint. I ended up doing 2 coats of the paint with a large brush and then going back around the edges with a smaller brush so that I would have as even of lines as I could muster.

Voila! B hasn't seen it yet but he did carry the printed train pages around the house all weekend after he saw them. He kept saying they were his choo choo trains.

Ben 'n Boots

2011-10-24T20:32:00.002-05:00

Well, Dreamworks took a pass. They decided to go with that smooth talkin' cat with the fancy hat. But I think they made a big mistake. This little guy is going places...

Before and After

2011-10-23T20:25:00.003-05:00

I recently picked up a simple, small wood hutch from the ReStore for a makeover. The hardest and most time-consuming part was picking the paint color and fabric to back it with. Now, I just have to fill it! I'm keeping my eyes peeled for some wire baskets for the bottom shelves.

Isn't my model such a cutie?!

Demo Time

2011-10-10T21:09:00.003-05:00

We had a demo crew over the other night...we had been thinking about remodeling a little...the crew was cute...but a little demanding. But, they did come highly recommended and they had a pretty fair price of a handful of animal crackers each.

Put Me in Coach!

2011-08-21T21:48:00.004-05:00

Hmmmmm....what's it going to be?

Center?....

Receiver?....

Quarterback?....

It Was the Best of Times...It was the Worst of Times

2011-08-21T21:33:00.003-05:00

Last weekend, B and I headed south to check out a park that many had lauded as the best kids park in the area. We hit the road around five-ish, planning on eating a picnic at the park. I had heard that this particular park had quite the concession stand with reasonable prices. Looking back, this was the one part of the plan that I would change. Once that little bugger caught sight of all of the raging fun rides and jungle gyms he didn't want anything to do with standing in line to get food let alone sitting still long enough to eat it. At that point I knew there was going to be a storm brewing in the distance, I just didn't know how long it would take to get there. Hurricane "B" had been spotted off the coast of the swing set. When we were walking up to the jungle gym, we passed a family who was leaving and they stopped and asked if I wanted the their ride ticket which still had one punch left on it. I of course said yes, since I was planning on letting him go on some rides while we were there. BTW, this particular park had little kids amusement park rides. Pretty cool, huh? Anyways, once he spotted those rides he was off. I whipped out the ticket and he happily climbed into a little airplane to ride around.

Mistake number two for Mommio. I should have went and bought more tickets before we even started with the rides. I found out pretty quick this kid does not like lines...one bit, or looking at the camera...

Needless to say, I ended up dragging a screaming kid to buy more tickets, stand in a couple of more lines and then eventually out to the car. Should of ate that dinner....

Reunion Time

2011-07-24T20:36:00.005-05:00

Last weekend we met a couple of friends from our old college days at ONU in Ft. Wayne, IN. We hung out at the hotel pool, ate dinner, caught up on what's going on and had a blast at the Ft. Wayne Children's Zoo. If you have kids, are ever in Ft. Wayne and have time to stop please do. This zoo is AWESOME for kids.

Play Ball!

2011-07-17T21:30:00.003-05:00

Last Christmas, we gave Papa fake tickets to the Cubs game of his choice with B and Jeff. He finally redeemed them a couple of weeks ago and we celebrated Christmas in July at PNC park in Pittsburgh. This was B's first ballgame and who knows what team he will be rooting for in the future but I think he enjoyed it. It was a night game with a 7 pm start and fireworks and a band playing afterwards. I made sure we got seats on the aisle, right on the main level for easy get-a-ways for an antsy toddler. He walked up and down the steps a couple of times and my MIL followed him around for a little bit. When we first got to our seats, he saw the field and immediately said "Play?". He was ready to go out on the grass. After some mid-game Dippin' Dots, he sat still for a little bit but then had to take another stroll. Overall, I think he did pretty good with only a few minor melt-downs. Maybe we'll catch a minor league game before the end of summer as well.

Big Shoes To Fill

2011-07-10T21:22:00.001-05:00

B takes every opportunity to try different shoes on. He pulled my running shoes on the other day and decided to take a stroll around the house...

We went to the 4th largest [in the WORLD] Amish community today!

2011-06-11T19:40:00.004-05:00

...and all we did was play in the park! Middlefield, Oh has a great splash pad/playground in one of their parks (Eagle Park). We thought it would be a nice day trip since it was a little over an hour away. We spent a good hour and a half playing in the motion-activated fountains and on the playground right next to them. They also had shaded picnic areas but we decided to stop by this Amish restaurant for some home cookin'. Yummy pie! The town also has a lot of your usual Amish community touristy places to stop in but we headed home for naps after lunch. We will definitely keep that park in mind for those hot days ahead of us!

Workin'...On The Weekend...?

2011-06-06T20:35:00.005-05:00

We started our sunroom transformation on Memorial Day Weekend. You can see what we started with below....but you will have to wait for the job to be completed before we reveal it! Thanks to some wonderful helpers, we are moving along quicker than I thought. But, we have a couple more steps before I will be satisfied with it. :-)

Italian Wedding Soup

2011-05-21T21:28:00.000-05:00

Another soup I made a lot of this past winter was the following recipe. We live just down the street from a wonderful Italian grocery store/market and they have wonderful, homemade meatballs that are perfect in this soup.

16.5 oz mini meatballs
8 cups chicken broth
1 cup cooked chicken, chopped
1/2 cup carrot, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 oz frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
garlic salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
1/4 cup romano or parmesan cheese
1/2 cup acini de pepe pasta

Directions:
1) combine all ingredients except pasta and cheese in crock pot and cook all day on low. (6-8 hours)
2) Add the pasta during the last hour to hour and a half of cooking.
3) Serve with the cheese sprinkled on top

This soup also freezes really well.

Black Bean 'n Pumpkin Chili

2011-05-19T21:22:00.000-05:00

I got the following recipe from one of my coworkers. When she first mentioned it, I thought "yuck"! But, now that I have made it a couple of times, I have decided that it is one of my favorite soups and SO healthy for you. This recipe also freezes really well. Enjoy!

1 med. onion - chopped
1 med. yellow pepper - chopped
2 T olive oil
3 cloves garlic - minced
3 cups - chicken broth (low fat/sodium)
2 - 15.5 oz cans black beans (rinsed and drained)
2 1/2 cups cooked turkey sausage (I use pork sausage)
1 - 29 oz can solid pumpkin
1 - 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
2 tsp parsley flakes
2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt

Saute onion and yellow pepper in oil. Add garlic, cook 1 minute longer. Transfer to 3 qt slow cooker. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours.

B's New Game Shirt

2011-05-16T21:56:00.003-05:00

For B's recent party, we requested that everyone come wearing something from their favorite team. I've had an idea for a shirt for B for a while now, so I decided I would knock them both out at the same time by making his 2011 game shirt a little early so that he could wear it on his b'day. Hopefully it will still fit him this fall! I (actually a friend of mine came over to help me) used freezer paper to create the stencil (with my Silhouette) and white fabric paint to fill in the stencil. It was super easy!

And for those of you who don't know...the moose is Malone's mascot. Yeah, I know. It doesn't make much sense...

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

2011-05-16T21:13:00.003-05:00

I made a special batch of cupcakes for B's birthday party this past weekend. And to go with the theme, a friend of mine helped me decorate them like some of B's favorite balls.

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

1 pkg plain yellow cake mix (18.25 oz)
1 pkg vanilla instant pudding mix (3.4 oz)
1 cup whole milk
1 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 pkg frozen cookie dough (break apart kind that makes 24 cookies)

1) Place rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcakes with paper liners. No need to grease them.
2) Place the cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Blend with the mixer. The batter should look well blended. Scoop about 1/4 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it half way. Put the frozen cookie dough pieces on top of each scoop of batter. You can push the cookie dough down a little but the batter will bake up and over the dough in the oven.
3) Bake the cupcakes until they are golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your fingers- 23 to 27 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. They may sink a little more in the centers after cooling.

Two Is A Party

2011-05-03T21:36:00.003-05:00

B had his 2 year well check-up today and passed with mostly flying colors. He has been hit full force by allergies again so he was wheezing, but other than that everything checks out. He got his last shot (other than annual flu) until kindergarten and he doesn't have to be seen again until his 3 year appt. Because of his wheezing, she did bump him up to two steroid treatments a day and prescribed Nasonex to maybe help his drainage from getting stopped up in his ears. As with past doctor visits we took new measurements and he has stayed pretty true to the course. He is a big boy. She said there was no reason to worry about his weight though because he is very proportionate and his weight percentage is creeping down instead of being off the charts.

Weight: 34 lb = 95%
Height: 37" = 97% (he had to stand for the first time to take this measurement)
Head Circumference: 20" = 92%

Everything looked good developmentally and normal on the autism screening. His vocabulary has exploded in the past couple of months. He wants to "try" anything that is cooking on the stove or that Mommy or Daddy is eating. He loves to go outside to "pay". He loves to play with cars and tractors and LOVES any kind of ball. His Uncle Jesse got him a basketball hoop for Christmas and he shoots all kinds of balls through that hoop. He loves other kids but is usually shy at first but then goes all out to "pay" with them. No potty training yet but it is on the horizon since he is moving to his new classroom, which features an open toilet area, next week. Overall, he is just a pretty happy little boy, for which we are so grateful that the Lord charged us with his care. He brings us so much joy each and every day.

Shhhhprise!

2011-04-28T20:05:00.003-05:00

This past weekend we traveled 8 hours just to have B sleep through his Gramma's entire surprise 50th birthday party. Sorry Gramma!

Play Ball!

2011-04-21T20:54:00.003-05:00

B has a ball in his hands pretty much from morning to night. It kind of made it easy to pick a birthday party theme for him this year.

There was only a minimum age...

2011-03-07T20:09:00.002-06:00

Opposite of Clean

2011-02-19T13:47:00.003-06:00

This is what happens when I break out the vacuum....toys magically appear all over the floor and B is busy pushing his shopping cart full of footballs around. :-)

Sledding With a Toddler

2011-01-11T21:56:00.003-06:00

As many of you experienced parents know, sledding with a toddler is not all of the laughter and rosy cheeked excitement that many of us remember as kids. Once I heard that we were getting a nice fresh snow this past weekend, I began to formulate grand plans of taking B sledding on campus. I had recently purchased a couple of different types of sleds at Goodwill (BTW, great place to buy sleds for cheap) and we were going to pack them up on Saturday morning and meet a couple of friends out at the slopes. Well, we ended up changing our location to that of some friends that were meeting us and this new location was a little walk from the car. I had opted to dress B in his snow pants on site so that he would be a little more comfortable in the car. Some might call this a rookie mistake...he was a little chilly when I put on his outer layers in the back of the car. I know this because he actually said - in the clearest little toddler voice - ccccccooooollllllddddd. Poor little guy. But I pressed on and got him all bundled up and pulled him out to where our friends where sledding. We went down the hill once together, climbed back up, got the other two sleds out to try and then went back to the car to warm up. This is when we decided that we were done for the morning and that we would call it a successful sledding day and head home. Total fun, rosy cheek snow time = 10 minutes...tops. From now on, I think we are going to stick with the bunny slopes in our back yard.

PB Knock-offs

2011-01-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

You might say that I have Pottery Barn taste with a thrift store budget...or that might just be how it actually is. For some reason, I just hate to spend the $ on something that I can make or replicate myself. The following pics are a couple of my recent finds that are PotteryBarnesque. I bought some old sweaters at the local Goodwill and sewed pillow covers out of them. Cozy! For the mantel, I've been picking up some things here and there and have come up with this combination. I also threw in a picture of some recently hung photos....since we actually have some pics on the wall now! The white D isn't finished yet...still trying to decide what color to paint it.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-09T15:40:00.002-06:00

Our Christmas this year, involved a little less time off and a little more travel. With my job, I don't have as much vacation time or flexibility as when I did working at a University. But we made it work and got to see family. My parents came in to visit a couple of weekends before Christmas and we ended up taking advantage of my Dad and his mad electrical skillz. We changed out almost every light fixture in our house which has definitely updated those rooms. He was also able to install an outlet so that we could use our dryer that we had purchased right after we moved to OH. They ended up leaving a little early due to an impending snow storm since they had to drive all of the way back to SIL.
Since we were leaving for CHI after I got off work on Christmas Eve Eve, we decided to have our Christmas on Wednesday night. Nothing too exciting just a relaxing evening at home. B was pretty excited about his new movies. He loves his VeggieTales! We were in Chicago visiting family from Thurday night to Tuesday morning. It was a great visit minus my being sick and GG being sick. I'd like to say that we rolled with the punches and were able to adapt to a new gameplan last minute. :-) It seems that I didn't take a awful lot of pics over Christmas. These were the only ones on my camera. Sorry, if you were missed!

Advent

2010-12-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

This Christmas season we have tried to be more intentional with our family time leading up to Christmas. We started off the season with a list of family activities in our Advent Calendar that we could all enjoy together during this wonderful season of anticipation. B is still very young, so planning activities has been pretty challenging. Also, Jeff has been traveling, so we missed some days. But overall, we are doing pretty good with taking time to sit down as a family and enjoying our time together during such a busy season. Below are a few activities that we have done recently.

B decorating wrapping paper.

B and I decorating Christmas cookies.

Big Boy...Little Bed

2010-12-14T08:00:00.000-06:00

We have started the transition to a toddler bed...pray for strength...

Ladies Craft Night

2010-12-13T22:03:00.000-06:00

I hosted a ladies craft night at our home a little while ago and totally forgot to take pictures of everyone and their neat projects. The theme was reusing/repurposing picture frames. I had several samples of different ideas that you could make your own to fit any size or style of frame that you had lying around. One of my favorite ideas was a butterfly display that had caught my eye several months ago. I chose a plain 5x7 wood frame that had no glass and painted the frame white. I then glued black, textured cardstock onto the cardboard backing and used a white chalk pencil to chart out where I was going to put my butterflys. I punched out 19 small butterflys from a variety pack of black/white printed paper and arranged them on the grid. For a little pop of color I used one bright yellow butterfly in the arrangement. This will be lovely little piece of artwork for our gray walls in our bedroom.

Gobble Gobble!

2010-11-12T11:27:00.006-06:00

I apologize for the slim pickings in the blog postings of late. Got a lot on the 'ol list that needs checked off. Anyways, we had a quiet Thanksgiving Day here at our house with just the three of us...well actually two of us since B fell asleep before we even got to eat lunch. I made a simple turkey breast in the crock pot, some sweet potatoes, stuffing and gravy and called it a day. After lunch we took our cue from B and took naps. Then we got up and did some Christmas decorating.
On Friday, I had to work. Jeff and B had a "Daddy Day" all planned. They went to a model train store, then to the Holiday Tree Festival, home for nap, and then we did a little Christmas shopping.
The rest of the weekend was spent at home, catching up on cleaning, laundry, and "to dos".

That was one sad lookin' Santa. He just did not have it together. I think B knew it too...he didn't want to have anything to do with sitting by him.

Oh, and I meant to post these numbers a couple of weeks ago but never go to it. Here are B's 18 month stats:

Weight - 32lb 10oz, 97%
Length - 35", 97%
Head - 19.5", 90%

Hangin' With the VIPs

2010-11-08T19:02:00.003-06:00

This past weekend we had our second to last game of the season and the weather, as expected, took a turn for the chilly. We are talkin' S-N-O-W. Fortunately we were blessed with a room in the very nice and thankfully soundproof, press box at the stadium. This allowed for a more comfortable viewing experience for the coaches' families and a more confined space for the little ones. B, as usual, watched the first half of the game and some of the band at half-time but also took in a Veggie Tales movie. I would have liked to have been a fly on the wall when the custodian came in to clean that room and saw all of the mouth/lick marks and fingerprints all over the glass window in front of the bottom seats. Those kids really know how to have a good time! :-)
Alas, the game ended in a loss for the Pioneers. But hopefully the story will end differently next Saturday. In our last game of the season, the Pioneers will take on our alma mater, Olivet Nazarene University. Got to root for the Pioneers!!

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T22:14:00.002-05:00

This weekend we had a big trip West, and visited family in the Chicago area. We stayed at Papa and Gramma's house and went to Malone's game vs. TIU (we won 34-0) where we met up with GG, Uncle Justin, Aunt Anna, and our friend Bobby. After the game we went to a little party at GG's house where we had some awesome chili and all of the fixins and got to see Aunt Betty. This morning we did a little early trick-or-treating with Gramma before heading back to OH. It was great to see everyone and great to get a win on the road.
On Saturday morning, I was out running an errand and happened to notice a garage sale that looked like it had kids items on my way back to the house. I had been talking to my MIL earlier about things that would be useful to have at their house when we visit and that we could look for at garage sales or consignment stores. So on a whim, I decided to stop and look around to see if they had anything interesting. Right away, I noticed a big pop-up play tent and knew that B would get a kick out of playing in that. I also found a fold-up booster chair with tray that was actually one of the items that we were going to keep a look-out for. They were both a pretty good deal at $5 a piece (thanks Gramma!). Once I got back to the house, I put the tent up for B and he LOVED it. He kept crawling in and out of it and he would sit in it and have us read him books in it. We currently have it set up in our living room now and he has already been in it a couple of times since we've been home tonight. Some other fun things he got to do this weekend were painting a pumpkin at Papa and Gramma's, pet tons of dogs, get tons of doggie kisses, watch movies in the car, and eat special Halloween cupcakes.

Sunday Serenity

2010-10-25T19:27:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, we took a nice long walk in one of the nearby Ohio state parks to recharge and appreciate the Fall colors. B had fun looking at and meeting the variety of dogs we encountered and clutched the big yellow leaf that I gave him to hold for an hour before he decided to tear it slowly into tiny pieces.

No Cavities!

2010-10-24T18:46:00.004-05:00

B had his first dentist appointment last week and "aced" it. He did a great job watching Mickey Mouse while Mommy got her teeth cleaned and then sat on Mommy's lap so that he could get his teeth checked and counted. He has 6 on top and 6 on bottom. He loves "brushing teeth time" (I think because of the yummy toddler toothpaste) and even lets Mommy or Daddy "help" him at end.

B with his "no cavities" ribbon.

B showing off his mad tooth brushing skills early one morning.

Picture Hanging Tip

2010-10-23T15:31:00.002-05:00

I saw this tip on how to hang your pictures, straight and with only one nail hole in the wall. All you have to do is trace the outline of your frame onto craft paper or scrap paper, depending on the size, and use painters tape to hang the paper where you want it on the wall. After you adjust and move your various "pictures" around you level them and measure to where the hanger would be on the back of the frame. At that point you just have to hammer a nail straight through the paper, rip away the paper and tape, and hang your picture frame. Voila! No nailing mistakes or multiple holes in the wall. Worked for me, hope it works for you!

Remember Those Bird Pictures...

2010-10-23T15:21:00.002-05:00

Well, with the help of my mom, they are finally up on the dining room wall. Check it out!

The Ultimate Toddler Fan

2010-10-23T14:47:00.003-05:00

**No actual body paint was used in the taking of this picture. :-)

Hat Trick

2010-10-17T21:41:00.004-05:00

...wait that's only in hockey...isn't it? Well, B had some hat tricks this weekend at the game. He did good for a while, but then after we made a slight adjustment, he must have realized that "Hey, I have a hat on and it will be a fun game to take it off and try to put it back on a million times!"

Yum!

2010-10-11T13:32:00.001-05:00

Looking for a new recipe for all of those apples this fall? Give this one a try, you won't regret it!

Game 5

2010-10-10T20:39:00.004-05:00

This weekend, B and I made the trek to Indiana to watch the Pioneers play at Taylor University. We left on Friday so that we could stay at Jeff's uncle and aunt's house near Indy. B had a pretty good time playing with everyone and was pretty tired Friday night by the time bedtime rolled around.

The whole trip we had wonderful weather and we had a beautiful drive with all of the fall colors. It was probably close to 75 at the game on Saturday. Its always interesting finding ways to occupy a toddler during a football game. Luckily, the visitor's side had plenty of room for him to run around. He was very content for around a half an hour to just put rocks in and out of a cup. It was probably the most I had got to watch a game in a while. The Pioneers ended up losing the game though 12-7. It was a close one and came down to the very end of the game just like last week.

Back In the Game!

2010-10-10T19:21:00.003-05:00

Nope, this post is not about football, so if that is what you are interested in reading about, I'm sorry. You will have to wait for another post for that. What I am referring to is, me getting back in the groove. Last Sunday, I (with the help of my wonderful husband) set aside some time to be creative. I dusted the 'ol sewing machine off and set out to work on a new project. No, I didn't start with a small project, but took it upon myself to make a nap roll for B's new daycare class. I found a pretty simple tutorial here and went and picked out the cutest gender neutral fabric/colors that I could find at JoAnn's. Once B's head hit the pillow for his Sunday afternoon nap, I embarked on my new craft journey. I had only washed the fabric and had not made any cuts or anything at that point. But, I finished it....in about 5-6 hours. I did the final binding stitching with the machine just because it was faster but it doesn't look as good as if I would have hand-stiched it. Oh well, I got it done and it he gets to take a little bit of "Mommy Luv" to daycare with him every day.
Now onto some projects that have been waiting for me to complete since before the move....

Fall Monogram

2010-10-04T21:22:00.004-05:00

I saw this idea somewhere this past weekend but can't remember where.
Take your supplies...

Start hot gluing silk fall leaves onto your cardboard 3-D letter, layering them.

Hang from ribbon and Voila!

Movin' On Up!

2010-10-04T21:08:00.003-05:00

Today, B transitioned to the young toddler room at daycare. This is a pretty big deal in my mind. In this room he no longer sleeps in a crib, but instead on a nap mat/cot on the floor. We were also told that they don't use lids on their cups in this room, so we should practice doing the same at home. Not sure if I'm totally comfortable with that yet... He also, will no longer take a morning nap at daycare. All of these new things on top of some of the new things he has been doing at home has my head spinning. He is growing up so fast.
Yesterday, he was giving us the "I'm concentrating really hard on something big going down in my pants right now" look. When I asked him about it. He pulled at his diaper and said "poopy". Jeff and I were just like, "Did he just tell us that he needed a diaper change?" I guess that is step one on the long road to potty training.
He is getting a little frustrated with his inability to effectively communicate with us but does know some signs and uses them correctly. I have a feeling that we are on the brink of a language explosion though.

All Smiles

2010-10-03T20:09:00.002-05:00

Someone finally got his carseat turned around...he hasn't stopped grinning. :-)

Sneak Peak

2010-09-27T08:00:00.000-05:00

Here's a little teaser of Ben's room. It's not quite finished but his room may just be the first one that I can put my stamp of "DONE" on...too bad he doesn't spend too much time in it. :-)

Balls!!??

2010-09-26T20:43:00.003-05:00

He may have been just a tad bit confused and by the end of the day, had even concocted some wild idea that balls grew on trees. But he certainly had a "ball" this weekend when we took him apple picking. We went to this local orchard where we picked two full bags of Jonagolds and then walked around the orchard.
B thought that they were balls and was picking up all of the small ones and throwing them as he yelled "Ball!". We stopped correcting him after about the 5th time. He loved it. Now I just have to work my way through two large bags of apples. Mmmmm...apple muffins, apple cake, homemade applesauce, apple crisp, apple pie......

Go Pioneers!

2010-09-18T18:04:00.003-05:00

B and I attended our first Malone game today. The Pioneers played Anna Maria (MA) and won their first game of the season, 69-0. Jeff said the team set several offensive school records today.
B did pretty good. We sat in the bleachers for the entire first half and he did very well. He really liked the marching band at the first part of the game and as long as he had snacks he was a happy camper. We went up into one of the suites for the 3rd quarter and ended up walking around the stadium complex for the 4th quarter. It went smoother than I thought it would. He wasn't mobile at all last year, so I didn't know what to expect this season. I'm very thankful that we have options though.

*Awkward...as we were walking around the stadium in the 4th, we stumbled upon a certain moose who appeared to be winding down his/her gig for the day. I had to snap a shot...

Ever Try Wordle?

2010-09-07T20:45:00.003-05:00

If you are looking for a fun project using words in an artistic way head on over to and play around a little in their create area. Pretty neat stuff! I'm thinking of a couple of verses that would be great paired up with some new projects.

Uncle Andy

2010-09-06T20:55:00.004-05:00

We had a nice visit from Uncle Andy this weekend. We....

watched some movies...

trimmed some bushes and worked on a couple of other projects outside...

B backed into Uncle Andy's car when he wasn't lookin'...whoops!

we had some good laughs...

and we played "try to catch the blinds"

Thanks for visiting Uncle Andy! We hope you can come back soon!

World's Best Homemade Enchiladas...IMO

2010-09-02T20:55:00.002-05:00

I made the following recipe this week with some shredded chicken ($5 Rotisserie bird from Sams). It was awesome! And as a bonus it also said that it could be doubled and frozen if you would like to make an extra meal for later. I was a little worried if B would like it since it had a little spice to it but he gobbled it up.

Shredded Beef or Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:

1 T butter or margarine
2 medium onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup milk
2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies
1/4 t salt
1/4 t ground cumin
8-9 flour or corn tortillas
2 1/2 cups cooked, shredded beef chuck roast or shredded chicken
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced (optional)
Sour cream
Salsa

*I also added one can of red enchilada sauce and 1 can of rinsed and drained black beans

Directions:

1. Prepare your meat however you would like. I used leftovers from a rotisserie chicken and shredded it. I then stirred in a can of red enchilada sauce and can of rinsed and drained black beans. You could probably add sweet corn or other ingredients as well. Set aside.

2. In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until onion is tender. Mix the flour in the broth, stir into pan. Stir in milk, chilies, salt, and cumin. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

3. Grease a 13x9 inch baking dish. Spoon a little sauce in the center of each tortilla; spread to the edges. Place meat mixture down the center of each tortilla. Combine cheeses (I just used a bag of the Mexican blend); sprinkle on top of meat mixture. Roll up tortillas and place in baking dish, seam-side down.

4. Pour remaining sauce and some enchilada sauce sauce over tortillas, if you like a wet enchilada use more sauce. Sprinkle with green onions and remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

If making ahead and freezing just prepare and cover the pan with foil and freeze. Make sure that you write the cooking instructions on the foil. When you are ready to bake, let it thaw completely in the fridge and bake the same way. You will probably want to take it out the night before you plan to make it. Make sure it is cooked all the way through. Enjoy!

Sunday Morning Styles

2010-08-29T08:55:00.001-05:00

The Past 24 Hours

2010-08-28T11:30:00.003-05:00

Tests. Tests of patience. Tests of strength. Tests of all kinds. That is what our last 24 hours have been like. Thank you all for your prayers for B, he is doing better today but still exhibiting symptoms. Hopefully, his medication over the next week will squash those. Here is a recap of what happened yesterday...
Ben woke up coughing yesterday morning. We didn't think anything really of it other than his allergies must be acting up again so we gave him some nasal spray and dropped him off at daycare. I received a phone call from his daycare around 4 pm saying that he was having some issues with his breathing. He was "belly breathing". When I got to daycare I saw that he was breathing really hard using his abdomen. I took him to StatCare and they got us in to see a nurse really fast. They took his O2 levels and breathing and saw that he was breathing about 60x a minute (should be 40) and his oxygen levels were lower than normal. They gave him one breathing treatment there and told me that they were going to need to transport us by ambulance to one of the hospital ERs...that is when I started to try to not freak out. Whenever an ambulance is used, that is pretty serious, right? I asked the Dr. how serious this was, and he said the ambulance was a precaution because sometimes the little guys will just stop breathing. At that point I was just praying that he would be okay and that Jeff would get there soon. He had called and said that he had gotten my message and was on his way from practice. He finally got there and that helped calm us both down.
After the breathing treatment, I rode with Ben in the ambulance to the ER where we were until he was discharged at 12:40 am last night. Over the course of those 6 hours, he was given 6 more breathing treatments, a dose of steroids and a couple of chest x-rays. He did really well with the breathing treatments after the first couple and once they would just let him leave his thumb in his mouth while he did them. We were all really tired by the end of the night and they were talking about having us stay the night unless his O2 levels did not stay consistently higher than 93 (they should be around 100). After his final treatment, his levels finally stayed high so we got to go home.
This is probably the first part of a long journey ahead of him and us. We will need to schedule more appointments with his Dr. and perhaps specialists to figure this out. They are thinking that it is asthma but we don't know what triggered this attack or anything else. Please pray that those appointments will provide answers and ultimately, a treatment that works for B. Please pray for B's safety and for any possible flare-ups in the future. We are so grateful for the care that he has received and for everyone's concern for our son. Thank you all. We are truly blessed.

Football Practice

2010-08-21T20:50:00.012-05:00

Preseason practice has been going on for the past week but B and I finally got to attend practice for the first time today. We went to pretty much the entire morning practice and after nap, got to be at the afternoon practice for the last half hour.

We decided to start B's training a little early so we ran through some light exercises today. We ran back and forth across the field, hit the sled a couple of times, and rolled the big weight ball around. Not too much, just enough to break a sweat ya know.

Dining Room Project 1

2010-08-15T21:58:00.006-05:00

I am a big fan of taking old things and making them new again. Since I first settled on a paint color and "idea" for our dining room I have been keeping my eyes open for accessories. I find this the hardest part of decorating because I can never make up my mind and I don't want to spend the money if its just not going to look right when I add it to the room. Lucky for me, I prefer to shop at flea markets, Goodwill, and the Habitat Restore. This makes it a lot easier on my wallet and if I mess something up I can always store it away to maybe use for another project.
The idea for this project started when I saw a couple of large bird prints at a flea market that I went to at the start of summer. I thought they would look perfect in the dining room with the color of blue that I had picked out. Then, about a month or so after, I was at the Goodwill store near our house and found a pair of matching frames that were a pretty cool yellowy-white finish and they looked large enough. If you have never thought to go into second hand stores you really should give them a shot, if nothing else but to just browse around in the household section. Frames are pretty cheap there and can be made to look however you want for only a few bucks. People are usually selling them because they have the UGLIEST artwork in them (see my example below). Anyways, there is a framing store near our house and I finally took the time to stop in there this past weekend to see about getting some large mats cut to display the bird prints in the Goodwill frames. They did a great job, at minimal cost. After I picked up the mats, I took out the old pictures and mats, inserted the new pics and mats (twice because for some reason the words did not line up the first time and I knew that would bother me since they would be hanging side by side) and used the old mats as the backing. I absolutely LOVE how they turned out. I think that they are quite Pottery Barnish, don't you? You will have to wait and see them up on the wall though. I'm not quite done with the rest of the room.

Flea Market Print

Old Goodwill Frame (with ugly pic)

Finished Print in Frame

Free Home Tour!

2010-08-15T21:21:00.005-05:00

Yep, you read right, this tour won't cost you a dime. :-) Thank you to the Hehman family for being our lovely home show models. They look great don't they! I was actually giving Liz and the boys a tour of the house not long after we got the keys. A LOT has happened to it since then. Hopefully, I will be able to reveal room by room as the projects wrap up. We shall see how long that will take since football started today.

I Figured It Out!

2010-08-15T21:18:00.006-05:00

We got a new computer and I finally figured out how to do slideshows...or finally sat down and made myself take time to do it. Here are the much delayed and probably much anticipated 1st Birthday Party shots from May.

It Was Time

2010-08-14T21:20:00.010-05:00

B finally got his second haircut the other day. We were letting him have his "California" summer/blondie locks for the majority of the summer but sadly, it was time for them to go. The little towhead did pretty good during the cut, though I think that last spray the hairdresser gave him sent him over the edge.

15 Months

2010-08-13T21:30:00.003-05:00

B had his 15 month appt. this morning. He is doing great (having a little seasonal allergy problem, but other than that great)! We are so blessed to have a happy and healthy little boy.

The Stats:
Weight: 28 lb 13 oz (93%)
Length: 33 1/4 in (95%)
HC: 19 1/4 in (90%)

He has grown 2 inches in the past 3 months!!

Some other tidbits...
B is wearing a 3T shirt, 24 months/2T pants, and size 5 shoes.
He is saying around 15 words now.
He is trying to jump, but can only do calf raises or lift one leg off of the ground. :-)
He is a great helper and puts things away and hands things to Mommy or Daddy when asked (at least when he is in the mood to do so).
He gets super excited to see Diego every morning and when he gets home from "school".
He loves to take the pots and pans out of the cabinet and place them all over the house.
He can often be found bustin' a move whenever he hears music.
He likes to go up stairs the "big boy" way.
He has finally settled into enjoying his bath time and no longer tries to stand up in the tub for the whole thing.
He is still very much the thumbsucker and is soothed by skin contact.

...No, I Am Not Crazy.

2010-08-01T19:47:00.002-05:00

What A Couple Of Cuties

2010-08-01T19:41:00.000-05:00

Wow! That was a long break!

2010-07-07T14:43:00.003-05:00

Well, not really a break...but we are on kind of a break right now. Some vacation pics for your viewing pleasure. B's had a little bit of a fever yesterday and today so hopefully that subsides soon. Other than that, the weather has been wonderful.

We Bought A House!

2010-04-20T20:31:00.000-05:00

...more details to come later this week.

Update on B

2010-04-15T21:33:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to let you all know that B is doing much better now. His fever broke on Tuesday night and he is almost 100% again. He is still taking his antibiotics until they are gone but that should only be a couple of more days.
We had his pics taken last weekend and they are already finished. Didn't Liz do a great job?!

A Day of Firsts

2010-04-12T19:09:00.003-05:00

Today, we had a lot of firsts in the DiSandro family. I started my new job at the hospital today and B had his first day of daycare. But our firsts didn't end there. This afternoon, I got my first call from the daycare to say that B had a temp. So, I then made my first early pick-up from daycare and we went to see our new pediatrician for the first time. Where...it was determined that B had his first ear infection. So, now he is on his first prescription of antibiotics. Hopefully it will nip it in the bud and we will be on to our second day of daycare tomorrow. :-)

B's First Easter

2010-04-04T18:20:00.003-05:00

We celebrated Resurrection Day in Canton this year. This morning we found our Easter baskets, finished preparations for Easter dinner, and headed off to Easter Sunday service. The church that we have been attending the past couple of weeks had an amazing Easter play. After service we came home, finished preparing dinner, and our guests arrived with plenty of food and fellowship. B slept through lunch but finally woke up to play with his new friend G before everyone left. We all finished out the day with a little walk and run for the guys. We hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Easter Sunday today.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T05:00:00.001-05:00

I made these two little bunnies for B and his cousin O's Easter basket. They were super easy and I got my inspiration from here.

I'd Like a Little Off the Top, Please

2010-03-31T10:05:00.004-05:00

B had his first haircut today! He sat on Mommy's lap and did really well. It helped that we went right before his nap, so he was pretty tired.

11 Months!

2010-03-31T09:53:00.003-05:00

This is one of B's new favorite pastimes...

Practical, If Nothing Else

2010-03-28T15:46:00.005-05:00

Last night, I had the opportunity to be creative with no distractions. (Thanks for hosting, Liz!) Out of probably 50 projects I currently would like to complete, I chose the most practical and useful one. Also, I might add the most "earth-friendly". I recently acquired a Swiffer WetJet when a sale and a coupon coincided a couple of weeks ago. The problem with these kind of contraptions are the way the companies try to keep you buying refills and new "throw-away" pads. I thought that there must be a better way out there since I had seen several tutorials on regular homemade/washable Swiffer pads. So, I put my thinking cap on and came up with an idea which I then ran by my friend Kristen last night. With a few alterations because of the placement of the squirter holes, I think we made a pretty good prototype which we then copied a couple more times. I had some towel scraps from this project and some white flannel type fabric that had one fuzzy side. I used it this morning and it worked perfectly. We'll see how it washes and holds up over time but I'm pretty satisfied with this cheap and green project.

Spring...Say What?

2010-03-28T15:25:00.003-05:00

The view one morning last week.

It melted by the end of the day but hopefully that was the last one for a long while.

Story Time

2010-03-26T16:28:00.005-05:00

B's GG got him a couple of books recently and he loves them! As you read him the story, he always has some form of commentary about what is going on in the pictures. Oh to only know what the little guy is saying...

Swingin'

2010-03-25T17:59:00.007-05:00

We have a playground outside our townhouse complex and yesterday Jeff and I took B for a swing session after dinner. He seemed to like it but was a little nervous. Sorry the picture is a little "Blair Witchey".

Don't mind the conversation. :-) We are talking to Matthew Hehman in the background as Ben swings.

Spring Sewing

2010-03-25T17:48:00.002-05:00

This past week I tackled a little sewing project that I've been wanting to do for a while. I bought a couple of cute little t's at BRU on sale for like a buck and knew that I wanted to "purty 'em up" somehow but finally figured out what I wanted to do.

Pants Are Optional

2010-03-25T16:11:00.003-05:00

The weather was so nice last week that when B had a little wetness seep through his diaper, we decided to go without pants for the afternoon. Looks like he liked it. :-)
And no, we don't feed B off of the floor, he tends to want to immediately empty his snack onto the carpet as soon as he gets it.

Fluff and Fold

2010-03-16T12:03:00.002-05:00

Helping Mommy fold clothes. What a good helper!

Speedy

2010-03-16T10:52:00.002-05:00

Gotcha!

2010-03-16T10:06:00.003-05:00

B found himself in a bit of a conundrum this morning....

As part of our design scheme in the living area of the townhouse, we have a collapsible hamper which we use to collect B's clothes. This morning he decided to up the ante on his fun with the hamper. He removed all of the clothes from it like usual but then decided it would be fun to climb inside it. Since he was so quite, I went over to see what he was doing and found this...

Makeover

2010-02-27T09:59:00.003-06:00

I needed an office chair for my "home office" so I set out and to find something cheap but with potential at a second-hand store. I found this chair:

Which now looks like this:

What do you think about my first furniture refashion?

My Little Helper

2010-02-26T21:20:00.001-06:00

The Move: Part II

2010-02-24T18:40:00.004-06:00

Last year I got a new alarm clock, you know, the kind that if you don't wake up when it makes a sound, then it reaches out and slaps you in the face...literally. Yep, B is pretty effective an getting one out of bed. Every once and a while you get a bye and he "snoozes" a little more. Well, last Friday was no exception. We decided that we would just start our final day of travel relaxed and on B's schedule. We had a nice breakfast at the hotel, loaded the car back up, changed one more diaper, and were on our way across the great state of Indiana. I let my mom drive and I rode in back with B. We decided to stop around 12 (again sticking with B's schedule) to eat at a Bob Evan's restaurant. While Mom went to get seated, I headed to the bathroom to change B's diaper. Oh, in case I didn't mention, B was teething like no body's business last week....now link that up to the diaper change. Well, to spare you the details, I had to call in back-up, literally from the bathroom. Mom started the clean-up process and I ran back out to dig another outfit out of the mountain of stuff in the car. Hence this recent post. The white onsie was saved though! A clothing miracle! Anyways, we ate, B had a couple of new things at lunch, and got back on the road. Somewhere in Ohio B woke up and I noticed a darkness creeping up his leg, yep wet pant leg. So, we pull over at a Meijer to change him and get him some more snacks. In the bathroom we find yet another huge mess. So, after another change of clothes we were back on our way. I was beginning to think we were going to run out of clothes before we could get to Canton. But, B surprised us and took a third nap that afternoon and we safely arrived a little before 5 pm.
Since then we have received all of our furniture and boxes (with a broken crib of course), started unpacking slllllloooooooowwwwwlllllyyyyy, went grocery shopping, went baby proofing shopping (Do you know the number of people that will laugh at you in any given store if you ask where the baby-proof trash cans are? A lot.), tried out a new church, took my mom to the airport, retracted an offer we had previously put on a house, and made an offer on another house. And B has his top two teeth now and is pulling up on things left and right!

The Move: Part I

2010-02-22T21:06:00.007-06:00

We are finally here! In our new home! In Ohio! Where it is cold and well, er...rainy today. I have been a little incommunicado for the past couple of days but just wanted to catch you all up on the latest move the DiSandros just made which just so happened to be Ben's second move in his wee, short life. Here is the condensed version as it it all went down....and at some points spiraling down.
It all began last week on Wednesday. I was slowly packing my way through the house but hit a small snag called running out of boxes. Whoops! Well I had a good estimate of how many I would need so I went ahead and called the moving company with a final estimate. As I was taking to my agent I asked when I should be getting a call for the pick-up window since I haven't received one yet. He said anytime now. So I waited. Well, I was mentioning the conversation to my other half that night and a light bulb must have went on because he then remembered that they had called and said that the pick-up was a two-day window of Thursday/Friday. Egad! Starting a little panicky sweat...but alas the truck driver called later that night to say he would be in Greenville to pick up on Friday morning. Whew! Panicky sweat now evaporating... Thursday morning I got up, got Ben ready and was thinking about my last day in the office and what I had to do, my co-workers had planned a going-away lunch, etc. and I get a call...THE call. The one that turned day upside down. It was the driver again...he was 3 HOURS away. What?! Serious panic starting to build now... I still had B with me, I had no boxes, it was supposed to be my last day at work... I felt like I would crumble underneath the pressure. So, I started to pray and ask God to just get me through the day. I made a bunch of calls telling everyone that all bets were off and that my plans were out the window. I dropped B off early at the sitters, called work, and I then started dumpster diving for boxes....well, not really diving, just dipping my toes in a little. Hey, they were clean! Well, I hauled a bunch home and started running around the house like a madwoman packing. Liz stopped by to help for a bit, bless her heart, she had her own house to pack. And thank God Beth, didn't have plans, she kept B all day for me. I had to laugh when I picked him up....after 5 pm...she told me the boys where asking if Ben was going to live with them now. Poor kid must of thought I abandoned him there. :) The movers didn't get done until around 5 and then I ran into my office to clean it out and say goodbye to whoever was left there. I then picked up B and we drove to get my mom at the Shiloh/Scott Metra parking lot where she left her car. We drove home and then I finished cleaning the house and emptying the fridge. I packed up the car with all of the things that we might need before the truck got to Ohio and that left us with one last chore before we left: move our van to a safe spot to park until we could get new plates and drive it back out to Ohio. Click...click...click. Some of you may recognize that sound...yes a dead battery. Super. Its 10 pm now. I was determined to at least get out of IL for the first leg of the trip. Oh course my jumper cables were on a truck to Kansas or somewhere like that so, my mom called my dad's cousin and he dropped off jumper cables. She jumped the car (I know, what a mom right?!) and drove it to the parking spot with me following her. After a brief stop for gas before heading out of town, we were well on our way. We ended up stopping in Terra Haute for the night around 1 am. Thankfully, B was very good on the road and slept most of the way.
Stay tuned for Part II...

The Newest Addition To Our Family....Meet The Twins

2010-02-21T14:38:00.004-06:00

I apologize if this title was slightly misleading...serves you right though if you jumped to different conclusions. :-) Due to some extreme conditions we have been experiencing of late, we decided to expedite our purchase of these babies. Ahhhhhh...my life is so much easier now that they are here.

Cross Your Fingers Folks....

2010-02-17T23:09:00.003-06:00

This could be the job for me. It looks like it is a small shop right now but they are wanting to go big soon. Check it out! :-) And now back to packing....

Motivation Please!

2010-02-16T21:11:00.003-06:00

A little taste of what our surroundings look like...

A little bit of what B looks like when Mommy is tired of packing....

What Was I Thinking?!

2010-02-15T16:24:00.001-06:00

Okay, so I just made a 9x13 pan of fudge brownies....and its just B and me. We all know that I could take that pan of brownies down but will I? Ugh...we'll see.

Happy Valentines Day!

2010-02-14T06:00:00.001-06:00

What better way to celebrate Valentines Day than making heart-shaped bean bags for your favorite sister's daughter, also known as your favorite 16 month old niece? :-) Happy Valentines Day to all of my "sweeties", "pumpkin faces", and "busters" out there!

It's Goes Against How I Was Raised....But This One Is For Papa

2010-02-13T11:50:00.002-06:00

9 Months!

2010-02-08T21:36:00.003-06:00

Okay, so this post is a little delayed. B and I spent a week scoping out our new "home"town. It will take some adjusting...once we get there that is. Anyways, what you have all been waiting for (probably not but nonetheless), here are B's latest stats.

Weight: 25 lb 5 oz
Height: 29.25"

I'm already starting to see some "rascal" coming out in his personality. Now that he is getting around pretty good he has started exploring some of the less kid-friendly places in our home. For example the TV and DVD player....at least he is keeping to one room.

Gobble Gobble Gobble!

2010-01-26T20:54:00.004-06:00

B is doing more and more "table food" each day. He has mastered several kinds of soft fruits, cheerios, some cooked veggies, and has only turned his nose up (well...actually gagged) on a couple of foods. The boy is cleaning up at mealtime! He has finally got a couple of teeth (the front, bottom two) to help him with this new-fangled concept of chewing.

He is also very close to a full out crawl. I think that he may be waiting for an audience with Daddy. But he has been practicing and has the army crawl down. Every day I tell myself that I'd better put away everything in the living room that he could get to because he is going to be in the middle of it soon. I think that I'll just start packing stuff up, since it will eventually have to happen (hopefully in the near future). He also, just got a new toy (early b'day gift from Grandma and Grandpa) and has been eyeing it across the room. We practice a little on it every day but he's not sure what to think about the purpose of it.

Emptyness

2010-01-26T20:41:00.003-06:00

These days, this is what greets B and I when we come home in the afternoon. An empty doorway.

No little doggie there to greet us with her tail wagging and tongue ready to lick B. The house has been pretty lonely without her cuddled up on the couch snoozing away. Hopefully she will be back with us soon once the move is complete. Until then, we hear she is having a great doggie vacation at Gramma and Papa Damitz's.

What Is Round On The Sides and High In The Middle?

2010-01-09T10:19:00.006-06:00

Yes, this is a riddle but it is also doubling as a big announcement. We have big news to share (to all of you out "there")! I know, I know, the suspense is killing you. The answer to the riddle is Ohio. Get it? Sorry, it's my only Ohio joke/riddle. Anyways, Jeff recently accepted a position on the football staff at Malone University in Canton, OH. He starts on Monday. What, you may be asking are B and I going to do? Good question. :-) We will begin the process of looking for a home and me finding a job, daycare, new doctors...etc. So please keep us in your prayers. We are praying that this is a speedy transition for our family so that we won't have to be apart for long.

Here are some interesting facts about Malone and Canton:
-One of the only college football games I got to see Jeff play was at the Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, against Malone.
-Malone's mascot is the Pioneer. I was a Pioneer back in HS!
-Canton is home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the William McKinley Presidential Library/National Monument, and the National First Ladies Library and Research Center.
-Canton has 5 area universities.
-Canton is 60 miles south of Cleaveland, 90 miles west of Pittsburgh, 130 miles NE of Columbus

The Many Faces of B

2010-01-09T09:59:00.001-06:00

Christmas 2009...and a Little Bit of New Years Part III

2010-01-09T09:51:00.001-06:00

8 Months Already!

2009-12-28T19:13:00.004-06:00

Here are a few of B's latest:
...he gives high fives and kisses upon request.
...has the beginning of a wave going on.
...makes the same "aghhhhhhhh" noise when he gets excited about seeing his little trucks or some toy he thinks is fun.
...is starting to make some forward motion but still not crawling.
...likes to sleep in bed with mommy and daddy.
...is very ticklish.
...loves exploring the dog.
...can spin himself all over the floor.
...likes Veggie Tales.
...loves his Christmas music book.
...loves all types of cell phones and computers.
...always has a big smile and little gasp when he goes outside and the cold air first hits him.
...is constantly using his little index finger to "explore" everything including people's mouths.
...loves the camera (the kid can't stop smiling when he sees a camera!).

Christmas 2009 Part II

2009-12-27T16:01:00.001-06:00

Final Christmas Projects Revealed!

2009-12-27T14:37:00.003-06:00

I told you felt food can be addicting! After making these green eggs and ham ,I just had to make some more of this cute play food. I used this tutorial from Skip to my Lou and didn't really stray too far from her idea. But you could have tons of variations to the lunch sack theme.

One of the final gifts I made this year was the first bag that I ever made. I used this book (which I highly recommend to anyone - beginner or expert sewer) for the pattern and instructions. It took me a little while because I kept reading the directions over and over again because I would get interrupted and I didn't want to mess it up since I was only using one yard of fabric with little room for error. I think that it turned out pretty good. I chose a black heavy weight cotton for the outside and a black/white/lime flowery print for the inside. It also had a magnetic closure at the top. This wasn't a hard project, just a time-consuming one for a beginner like myself. Also, I thought the bag would turn out a little larger than it did. That was a little disappointing. But overall, I really liked it and see myself making more in the future.

Getting Closer! I Can Feel The Pressure!

2009-12-21T19:39:00.005-06:00

My nephew loves Sponge Bob, so when I saw this fabric remnant in the clearance bin at Wal-Mart, I thought of him. I had bookmarked this tutorial a while back, wondering if it was really as easy as they said it was in the tutorial. Well folks, it was! It was probably the easiest project I completed all year. I had a couple of pillows/forms that someone had given me, so I just altered the dimensions to suit my pillow form and voila! It turned out great! I see some pretty cool pillows in B's room in the future...and maybe even some more interesting ones on our couch as well!

I also made this game called 5 Stones from a tutorial found here. The rules are a little more challenging but I thought it would be nice to have a harder game for the older kids and adults. I had never heard of the game before but it sounds kind of like jacks. Its a great project to use up your scraps. I actually used part of a green linen napkin that I picked up the same day that I bought my buttons for this project.

My final project for today was another tag-along prop kind of thing (yep, that is its official name) that goes with a book. Since my soon to be niece already has the book and loves it (so my lil bro says) I decided to make her "green eggs and ham"...well the ham is more like a ham steak. I'm just getting into making felt food (which is very addicting I might add) and the 3D food is a bit harder. But the ham steak didn't turn out too bad, right?

Puffs Are A-Okay!

2009-12-20T22:22:00.003-06:00

So, remember our little encounter with the lethal rice krispy kernel? Well, it was one-month ago today that we tried anything remotely resembling a solid food. Today, I worked up my nerve to give it a go again. We went with a puff this time. In my opinion, after I tried one of them, I didn't think that they dissolved that fast. But, my mom made a good point when she said that B was basically a slobber machine (not her words exactly) and he had a lot more moisture going on in there so it would dissolve faster for him. Well, he successfully maneuvered (the majority of the time) the puffs from his high-chair tray to his mouth with only a few going into Mickey's mouth. (That is where this house dog thing is going to come in handy.) He did have a little issue with the release. Sometimes he wouldn't let go of them once it got to his mouth, while other times they were just moist enough, that they would stick to his hands and not stay in his mouth. Its a work in progress, but we are just a little bit closer to big boy food!

Mmmmmmm....Pie

2009-12-20T22:14:00.002-06:00

I've made this pie, twice now...just in case it was a fluke. It is darn-tootin' good pie. If I were you I'd make it, but only for a party because you may just eat the whole thing yourself if you were left at home alone with it. ...I'm not implying that happened or anything, cause it didn't...yet.

Christmas 2009 Part 1

2009-12-20T22:03:00.001-06:00

One More Checked Off The List...

2009-12-20T21:46:00.003-06:00

This I-spy bag was a quick project that I checked off my list tonight...finally. I had slowly been collecting supplies for it since I first saw this tutorial on Make It and Love It. She has got tons of great tutorials along the left hand side of her blog. This little gem is going to be part of a Christmas gift that I am putting together for some younger kids. It wasn't hard to make at all, if you have all of the supplies. I went with the poly beads because I didn't want it to be ruined if it got wet like it would with rice or beans. For the vinyl, I just used part of a onsie package that I had saved for this purpose. You would just need to use some sort of plastic that is strong but not too tough for your sewing machine. I put all kinds of little beads and shapes inside also. Hopefully this will entertain them for a little while in the car.

From The Ashes...A New Project Has Risen!

2009-12-17T22:06:00.005-06:00

So, I tried my hardest to make the oven mitts work and look nice. They worked but I could not for the life of me get the binding to look nice. So I scrapped that idea...literally. I didn't want to waste all of that nice Christmas fabric that I had bought and cut up already so I went on a mission. A mission to find something cool and easy and fun and did I mention easy? And what luck! I found something on my first stop at Sew Mama Sew. She has a wonderful list every year called Handmade for the Holidays. Every day there is a new category with multiple similarly themed projects. I chose this cute little star ornament. I skipped the button because I didn't have any cool, vintagey ones laying around the house.