not sew much...

Ways to save your life...

2012-01-24T12:00:00.000-06:00

An outbreak of tornadoes has struck Alabama again. The video above show the damage in the path of the EF 3 tornado that hit on January 23, 2012. It was on the ground for approximately 2 hours and followed a very similar track to the April 8, 1998 and April 27, 2011 storms. This is the second time in less than a year that our great state has suffered loss of life and property from severe weather. If you live in Alabama, you need to prepare yourself for severe weather. Any you need to do it now - not when the tornado is bearing down on you.

If you are waiting on the sirens, you won't make it to safety. Most likely, you won't hear them sound at all. The wind will blow the the sound waves away from you, or you won't be able to hear it in your house, or you will sleep through it. There are better ways to protect yourself. They are listed below.

There is an app available for the iPhone called iMap Weather Radio app. ~~Supposedly, they will be adding it to the Android marketplace soon.~~ It is now available for Android as well, but I don't know what the cost is. It will alert you only if you are in the polygon warning for a tornado or other severe weather. $10 is a small price to pay to be able to save your life. If for some reason you don't care if you die or are seriously injured, please buy it to protect the other people and pets in your house.
Here is a link to the iMap Weather Radio app in the iTunes store.
Here is the link to the iMap Weather Radio app in the Android marketplace.

If you have an iPhone or an Android phone, you should also get Ustream app to be able to view ABC 33/40 during a power outage. It is free. However, having this app won't tell you when you need to monitor the weather. It will only allow you to do so. By having this app, I was able to watch the track of the tornado and decide whether or not to move my family to our safe room. We had at least 20 minutes of warning. Plenty of time to move me, David, Emmeline and three dogs, had the need arisen.
Here is the link to the Ustream free app in the iTunes store.
Here is the link to the Ustream free app in the Android marketplace.

If you cannot bear to spend $10 on an app the could really save your life, here are some other options.

AL.com weather texts (This will alert county wide, just like the sirens. The text alerts I got on January 23, 2012 were about 1-2 minutes behind the real warning.) This with the Ustream is an acceptable alternative to iMap Weather Radio, if you think that you won't need those 1-2 minutes.

A weather radio. This one is $30 (plus shipping if you use Amazon). I think I'll be buying these as gifts for friends and family who don't have smart phones. Not a very sassy gift, but I think it says "Please stick around here on earth. I really like you!"
(By the way... you could buy 3 of those $10 apps for that price. Just sayin'...)
Midland Weather Radio from Amazon
Midland Weather Radio from Walmart

Please take these recommendations to heart, unless you think your house will withstand 150 mile per hour winds.

Personally, I think some of our houses will look like the ones in the video above. Wouldn't you like to give yourself the time to get to your safe room?

Be wise and get prepared. Protect yourself and your family. No excuse.

Seriously...

Now...

The camp that we love the best of all...

2011-06-19T06:00:00.002-05:00

Winnataska is its name!

I'm headed to camp for a week. So excited!!!!

Thrifty Thursday - Cleaning Leather

2011-06-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd do a little before and after today on some of the items I've found at the thrift store. Leather shoes, purses and belts are great buys because they are easy to restore, for the most part. As you will see in a minute, there are exceptions. This also applies to leather you already own, but that is showing some wear and tear.

I use Leather CPR restore leather. You can get it at Tuesday Morning or at Sam's, Walmart, etc. We have a leather couch, and it removes scratches from our dogs nail marks on it, so I thought I'd try it on some of the more well-loved pieces I've purchased at the thrift store lately. Use is very simple: wipe on with a soft cloth, let it soak in for a few minutes, wipe of with a different soft cloth.

Let's start with the successes, shall we...

Fossil Brown Leather Purse:

This purse cleaned up really well. It had some major scuffs and scratches to the leather. Those all came out. There was also a dark spot on the front of the purse, but it didn't come out. I have another trick I want to try on it, so I'll post again if it works.

Purse Back before.

Purse Back after.

Purse Front before.

Purse Front after.

White Leather No-Brand-Name Purse:
I bought this purse only because it was 75% off of $3. I thought it would be nice to have for summer, but I really didn't expect to have it clean up very well or to use it very much. Well, I was wrong on both counts. It cleaned up very well. You can't tell from these pictures, but it was very dingy. The picture of the bottom is truer to life, dirt-wise. Also, I love carrying it because it goes with just about everything!

White Purse before.

White purse after.

Bottom before.


Bottom after.

And now the not-so-successful attempt.

Brown Leather Frye Sandals:

I found these sandals about 4 years ago at the thrift store but never wore them. They were a little too big. Then I had a baby and they fit perfectly. (Thanks Emmeline!) I love these sandals, and I wear them even though they are scuffed. I thought I'd try to get them to clean up some.

Frye sandals before

Frye sandals after

Can't tell a difference. Yeah, me either. Bummer, right. Oh well, I do love them, so I wear them even with the scuffs.

I hope this post will give you some encouragement recondition some old leather, either something that you already own, or something that you find at the thrift store on your next adventure!

Emmeline's Manners...

2011-06-10T06:00:00.003-05:00

I'm working on getting Emmeline to say please, thank you, you're welcome, etc. It is really cute when she does, because all of her "courtesy words" are said in this very high pitched, sing-song voice. She does really well saying them, when she remembers. The trick it to remind her before she gets too worked up and into the screaming state (hello, ~~Terrible~~ Trying Twos). I'm sure it frustrates her because just a few months ago, screaming was a completely acceptable way to get what you want. Now we are asking her to say "milk, please" or "pick me up, please." Poor thing...

Usually, she starts ~~screaming~~ loudly requesting something; Pee-na (Kung Fu Panda), Elmo, Milk, Os, Dada, Tractuh (tractor). We then say "Emmeline, how do you ask for that" or "Emmeline, what did you say" and she says what ever it was and then "please." I'm pretty sure that most parents do the exact same thing, so it's not like we are breaking any new ground here. Anyway, here are two stories to demonstrate Emmeline's learning curve, or perhaps my learning curve.

A couple weekends ago, she had finished her dinner and wanted a chocolate graham cracker, which she calls "Cha-kat." The exchange when something like this.

Emmeline: Cha-kat? Cha-kat? Cha-kat?
Elin: (Typing on iPhone to send an email, I think.)
Emmeline: No phone! Cha-kat? (Louder) No phone! No phone! (Louder) No phone! Cha-kat?!?!?!
Elin: Emmeline...
Long pause.
Emmeline: Cha-kat, please...

Atta-girl! Now we are getting there.

Then there's this story...

The next night, I had moved her high chair onto the front porch for dinner. I thought it might be a nice change of pace. When I asked her what she wanted for dinner, she replied "ice cream." Not my first choice for an entree, but I told her that if she ate all of her chicken and most of her other items, she could have some ice cream. We had been sitting outside for a while, just enjoying the evening. She was eating and I was just relaxing. I looked over and saw her moving her plate around. She looked up at me, started clapping and said
Emmeline: Yea! Ice cream, please!
(Um, that plate-moving... she was hiding her chicken underneath it.)
Elin: Emmeline, is that chicken under your plate?
Emmeline: Oh, chicken!
Elin: You can have some ice cream, after you finish your chicken.
Emmeline: OK! Chicken!

We are totally in for it. Sneaky already! She isn't even two.

Thrifty Thursday - Latest Haul

2011-06-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

I went thrifting a couple weekends ago and Emmeline racked up! And I got a few things as well.

Five pairs of shoes for the girl! Two pairs of canvas tennis shoes (tan and pink), one pair of white leather Keds, one pair of red leather t-straps and a pair of water shoes. All under $2 a pair.

White purse for me. $3

New shirts, all of which I have worn already. Grey linen Gap, bright pink v-neck, graphic print v-neck and black v-neck. All less than $3 each

Yahoo for the thrift!

"Keeping it real" or "Next week on Hoarders"...

2011-06-07T06:00:00.004-05:00

Alright folks. Here you go. I think I need some help. I have too much stuff that I call "craft supplies." What I really should call it it "crap."

Seriously. Who keeps all of their sugar containers? And what was I going to do with them. Ack!

I have this fantastic loft space that I could use for crafting, but it is such a hot mess! I must get it in order. All those totes in that closet... fabric. On the other shelves... disorganized piles of crap, I mean "craft supplies."

Sheesh! I'm hoping to whip it into shape some this summer. I'll let you know if I find any other "lovelies." This could get interesting. Call in the guard if you don't hear from me for a few days.

Thrifty Thursday - Some Rules about Thrifting

2011-05-26T06:00:00.003-05:00

I have never really loved shopping for clothes, because I never like spending tons of money on something and then not liking it. The thought of going to the mall to buy jeans gives me the heebie-jeebies. What if I buy a pair of $50 jeans and they shrink funny in the wash and get all gappy at the waist and flood-water length in the leg and I can't wear them with my new sandals? What if I buy a pair of $50 slacks and they aren't long enough for my heels, but are too long for my flats? What if I buy a new purse for $50 and it is totally out of style next year? See where this is going.

However, the thought of going to the thrift store to buy jeans sounds fantastic. I can buy some trendy skinny-leg jeans for $5 and wear them a few times. If I hate them, well... then back to the thrift for them and for me. Then I can get some white jeans for the summer for $5 and wear them for a while. Until I decide they aren't as cute as I want them to be and then back to the thrift store for them and for me. See where this is going.

Going to the thrift store to buy slacks sounds great as well. I can get two or three lengths in every color I normally wear (grey, black and brown) in summer and winter weight fabrics for the cost on one pair of slacks at retail cost. Of course, I won't find them all in one trip, but I'll get them all eventually. And in the same name brands I would likely buy retail. Right now in my closet I have Rafaella, Jones New York, Gap, Nicole Miller and Good Clothes brand slacks. All bought second hand.

Accessories are great to find at the thrift store. I find trendy purses and clutches all the time as well as classic purses in great shape. I have a black leather purse I love that I bought retail years ago. It was pricey to me (at the time) at $40, but I think that I've had it for 8 years so I was well worth it. I found a similar one (pictured above) in brown leather at the thrift store for $5 a few weeks ago. I love buying purses and clutches second hand because they are inexpensive but I can always find some with lots of life left in them.

There are some limits, but I have found that I really can't buy retail very often anymore. Of course, if I need something specific in a short time frame, chances are I won't find it at the thrift store. For example, I bought my Easter shoes retail this year. I wanted a pewter sandal which, on short notice, is hard to find at the thrift store. I bought these on clearance for $20 (but also became obsessed with a pair of heels and went back and bought them for $30, on clearance, three days later). Did I feel bad about blowing $50 on two pairs of shoes? Not. One. Bit. Because I save so much on clothing that the occasional splurge is still well within my budget.

And, of course, there are a few things that I would never buy second-hand. Undergarments should never be purchased at the thrift store, in my opinion. I also don't buy socks there. Bathing suits either. Or running shorts, bicycle/spandex shorts, etc. All of those I buy new because of the yuck factor! And I don't even look at tank tops at the thrift store because they are usually there because they shrank funny. They end up a crop tops that are about twice as wide as they should be. Or camisoles end up with the elastic sprung in their straps. I can always find those at Walmart/Kmart/Target on clearance and stock up when I do!

So that sums up my "rules" for shopping at the Thrift Store. Anyone out there have more rules to share, or disagree with any of mine?

Gallery Wall in Progress...

2011-05-18T08:30:00.001-05:00

My great aunt and uncle have a fantastic lake house that has been the site of family gatherings for as long as I can remember. We have celebrated everything from weddings to 100th birthdays there and every event holds special memories for me. The main hallway of their house is covered in framed pictures of family and friends. It makes the hallway a destination instead of a pathway. I love it, and I have wanted to create a gallery in my own home for a while now.

Then I saw this by YoungHouseLove.com and decided it was time to get a move on. Using pinterest.com (which is AWESOME, btw), I started collecting inspiration images. Here's a link to my inspiration board, which looks like this.

I've been collecting frames at the thrift store for a few weeks and this is my haul. About 12 frames for $2 a piece on average.

And then on Saturday, I did this. Yes, I made templates of all of them and taped them up. Call me OCD if you want, but this way I won't have to patch as many holes in the wall. First, I disassembled and cleaned all of the frames, labeling each piece so that I could put them back together with no less frustration. Then I traced them onto newspaper and taped them to the wall with frog tape (green painters tape). I moved them around an this is what I ended up with.

I'm going to end up adding some more small objects, but I knew I needed to start with the big stuff. There are a couple of frames to the right of the doorway on the right, but this is the main area I wanted to cover first.

I'll keep you updated on the progress. The next step is spray painting all of the frames to match. Any color suggestions? Navajo white to match the trim? Oil rubbed bronze to match the other painted metal in the house? Brushed nickel to match the unpainted metal in the house? A fun bright color? What are your thoughts?

Emmeline's daily recap...

2011-05-16T08:30:00.000-05:00

On Monday, May 2, Emmeline went with me to the chiropractor and then to her first dental check-up. This is her description of the day.

She describes the chiropractor visit so well. Mamma had an "uh-oh" on her back, so she went "night-night" on the "table" and the doctor "pixed it."

Then we went to her dentist appointment. Her dentist is friends with Lightening McQueen from Cars (who knew that a decal on your wall made you friends with someone). They cleaned her teeth, then painted her hand purple and she got to do a hand print on a yet-to-be-installed ceiling tile.

Emmeline is so observant, it is sort of scary. Keeps us on our toes, for sure!

Second-Hand Style: Mother's Day

2011-05-14T08:30:00.000-05:00

Here's the first post in what I hope becomes a regular category on this blog: Second-Hand Style. One of my Lenten diciplines this year was to wear one outfit every week that was completely purchased second hand. I do a really good job of shoping as the the Thrift Store, but sometimes I find it difficult to pull those items into an everyday rotation of my wardrobe. I thought that by consciously making the choice every week to go all second-hand, I would jump start a personal trend. And it worked! I had a friend suggest that I start posting some of my thrifted outfits here, so here goes!

The weekend of Mother's Day was also the weekend of the season closer at the theatre where I work. When Sunday morning rolled around, I was tired and felt like wearing jeans to church. Lucky for me, no one at St. Andrew's cares what you wear! Here's a picture of me and Emmeline in our Bargain Basement finest!

Elin's Outfit
Worthington Sweater: Thrifted $1 (75% off $4) Similar
Tank: Walmart clearance $3 Similar
Jeans: Chico's Platinum Denim, Thrifted $5 Similar, but mine are dark wash
Shoes: Frye sandles, Thrifted $2.50 (50% off $5), Can't find anything similar, but Frye sandals are around $125
Necklace: Thrifted $3.50 Sort of similar
Bracelets and Ring: probably about $10, Goody's clearance ages ago, Sort of similar
Total cost: $25 my way, $264.97 retail

Emmeline's Outfit
T-shirt: Granimals, Thrifted (but brand new) $2 Similar
Dress: No brand tag, Thrifted $3 Similar
Bloomers: No brand tag, Thrifted $.25 (1 of a bag of 8 for $2) Similar
Fake Crocs: Thrifted (but brand new) $2 Similar (with princesses) or Similar (with Cars)
Total cost: $7.25 my way, $33.23 retail

Thrifty Thursday - Dining Room Buffet

2011-05-12T08:30:00.003-05:00

Who doesn't need more storage, right. I think that everyone I know needs one of two things: less stuff or more storage. We are working toward both of those. We got lots of beautiful serving pieces and table linens as wedding gifts, but we didn't have a whole lot of storage space in the china cabinet. We have been looking for a piece to put in the dining room to store those items and to serve as a buffet. Well, we lucked out. Look what we found a few weekends ago.

Welcome home, Mr. Mid-Century Modern, solid wood dresser/buffet. We've missed you. We bought him at one of our favorite Thrift Stores, Mission Possible in Pinson. We can usually find great deals on furniture and children's clothes at that store.

I really love the clean lines and fine craftsmanship of mid-century pieces, especially the Danish ones. This piece was in great shape. All the drawers work beautifully with no sticking and there are very few scratches on the finish. I looked online for a modern equivalent, and I couldn't find one. However, here is a link to one on eBay.

Um, $850 is a lot more than what we paid for it. We waffled on paying $20, which was 75% off of the original $80 price!

Looks like we got a good deal!

This is my confession...

2011-05-10T08:30:00.010-05:00

I have an addiction. It isn't costly. It isn't harmful. It isn't damaging to my health. But it is an addiction nonetheless.

And I have no intention of quitting.

I am totally addicted to shopping at the thrift store. Seriously. Clothes, shoes, furniture, home decor items, office supplies, jewelry, purses... they all find their way home with me.

I love it for many reasons. Here's a few:

I get nice stuff for dirt cheep. Leather Fossil purse for $4. Steve Madden pumps for a friend (pictured above) $5. Mid-century modern Danish buffet for $20. Chico's jeans for $5. Yup. All at the thrift.
I supports charities. I shop at the Big Saver, Mission Possible, Goodwill, Salvation Army and a few other local thrift stores; all of which support great local programs and charities.
Retail therapy is awesome. Sometimes, blowing $10 is good for the soul. I could go and buy two pairs of new socks, or I could go to the thrift store and buy an entire new outfit... head to toe (minus unmentionables, of course). A little more bang for the buck, if you ask me.
It keeps things out of the land fill. Just because something is at the thrift store, doesn't mean that it is trash. Someone might be on a weight loss journey and only be in a size for a few months. I know that is one of the reasons that I started shopping second hand. I knew I was losing weight, so why buy new pants when I'd drop a size in a few ~~weeks~~ months.
I'm not buying new, so I'm lessening the impact of consumerism on the environment. Sure, not by much, but every little bit helps.

A friend suggested that I start blogging about some of my finds at the thrift store. I have neglected this blog, because I really didn't have too much I wanted to write about, but I think this subject matter should help. This week I'll start the subject out with a Thrifty Thursday post about a recent furniture purchase. I'm also planning on posting some of the outfits I find second-hand. One of my Lenten diciplines this year was to wear one outfit every week that was all second-hand, so now that I'm in the practice of doing that, I hope to have some good posts.

(Did I get this song stuck in your head with the title of the post? If so, sorry...)

On tractors and tiaras...

2011-05-09T17:15:00.000-05:00

So Emmeline is into two things right now: riding on the lawnmower and princesses. I'll get to princesses in a minute, but first... tractors. A few weeks ago, David took her for a ride on the lawnmower and now it is her favorite thing to do at home. "Tak-tuh?" (tractor) she says. Everyday. Usually first thing in the morning. Always when she gets home. Before we leave for school everyday, she has to hug the tractor. "Aww, tak-tuh, aww." ("Aww" means hug, because that is what we say when she gives us hugs.) Yup, she hugs the tractor everyday before she will get in the car.

David found her this Emmeline-sized John Deere at the Thrift Store the other day. It has no charger and the wheels are shot, but she climbs onto it and off of it and onto it and off of it about 100 times. But it doesn't replace riding with Daddy. When she isn't on the tractor, she carries around a picture of them riding the tractor. Sometimes, she will take the picture to bed with her and I'll hear her talking on the monitor about the "taktuh."

Now, on princesses, "pinsess" as Emmeline calls them. I woke up on April 29 just in time to catch most of the Royal Wedding. Emmeline got up in time to see the Prince and Princess leaving Westminster Abbey. Her favorite part: the horses. "Husses, giin. Husses, giin!" (Horses, again. Horses again!) Then she saw the princess in her tiara waving at the crowd while sitting in a carriage pulled by huge horses. Emmeline turned and looked at me like, "How come we don't ride around like that!" And then she started waving back at the Prince and Princess. She smiled and waved all morning. If you ask her to, she will smile and wave like a princess. Somehow, the receptionists at her dentist knew she was a princess, which made the first visit there better.

Last week, I took her by the recital rehearsal for Steeple Arts, my old dance studio. My mom's cousin teaches there and we wanted to stop by and say hello to her and some other friends. Emmeline really wanted to go home and ride the tractor, so she was fussy-butted all the way there in the car. Finally she calmed down when I told her we were going to see some dancing princesses.

Once we got there, I took her into the theatre and she saw the girls dancing on stage. "Pinsess, aww. pincess, aww." "We will go give them a hug in a minute, Emmeline. The are doing their Princess Dance right now." "Pinsess, aww. pincess, aww." This went on for a while. Finally, they were finished with their dancing and pictures and we went on stage to see them. This sweet class of 12 little 12-year-olds were so flattered to be thought of as Princesses, but I wish I had had my camera to capture Emmeline's face! She positively lit up when those girls gushed over her. She cried when it was time to leave. "Pincess, aww. Pincess, aww. Pincess, aww, giin, ginn!!!" One lonely Princess in the parking lot waiting on her ~~queen~~ mom to pick her up got one final hug from Emmeline and then we were on the way home. No amount of telling her that the Princesses were all night-night in their castles would console her. She wanted more hugs from the Princesses. She cried and cried and cried...

Until we pulled up at home and she saw the tractor.

Ahhh, the attention span of the toddler mind.

Words words words...

2011-02-09T17:15:00.000-06:00

Here's a current word list. These are words that she says. She recognizes plenty more, but doesn't say them, i.e. she can point to her ear, shoulder, knee, etc. but doesn't say those yet.

Foods: nana (banana), gogurt (yogurt), apah (applesauce or apples), kiken (chicken), kaka (cracker), bebbies (veggie straws), oh (cheerios), muck (milk), cuh (cup), cahkee (coffee)

Exclamations: o bee (o boy), yuck, meh (mess), ah hah (uh huh), no, yeh (yes), mup (up), go, ni ni (night night), uh oh, moh (more), gen (again), BOO, pees (please), poopy (only after the fact, of course), ah duh (all done), bye bye, hi, dahhhhk (dark), echo (she doesn't know what it means, but uses it at the right time like leaning into the shower and saying "echo")

People (and pets): Mama, Dada, Caca (Chica), Wiwi (Winni), gNini (Ginny), Bebe (my mom), Rara (Roger), Pat Pat said much like a duck would say it and always very loudly (David's mom), Papa (David's dad), Elmo, Ohi (Zoey), Cookie, Bih Buhd (Big Bird) Bahnee (Barney, tragic... I know),

Places: cul (school)

Things: bak (block), buk (book), ba (bath), puppy (always whispered), dahg or woo woo (dog), mehehe (horse), mahw (cat), buhd (bird), boon (balloon), light, mihboooohn (milkbone), snow, nenees (necklace)

Body Parts: heh (head), noh (nose), mahw (mouth), ih (eye), bip bip (belly button), toe,

She puts words together some, too. A few nights ago, she got a very serious look on her face while she was eating dinner and slowly said, "Moh ohs pees," and then grinned really big and looked so proud of herself. I could just see the gears turning in her brain.

This post is brought to you today by...

2011-02-07T17:15:00.001-06:00

The letter B.

Emmeline had her 18 month check-up on Thursday and she is doing great! Also, I'm pretty sure that she is a genius. I always park in the same row on the same level of the parking deck when I go to St. Vincent's. I'm pretty sure I'd lose my car if I didn't. On Thursday, I parked in my normal spot and we load out of the car - and I'm hustling to get us too the elevator because we are late and it is cold. Emmeline points to the huge letter marking the level and screams...

B!!!

No lie.

Then she looks up at me and grins like "See how smart I am. I know what I just did."

She might not be a genius, of course, because when she sings her alphabet it goes like this: A-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B.

B is her favorite.

But still... really smart, that girl.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~Stats at 18 months (with WHO percentiles in parentheses):
Weight: 26 lbs. 10 oz. (88%)
Height: 32.5" (62%)
Head Size: 19.75" (99%), supports genius theory

All of her other milestones are great as well. She is talking a lot. I'll try to post a word list soon. She loves helping around the house, especially loading and unloading the dryer. She eats well, but still has a milk allergy. She loves her books and her blocks. If it were up to her, she and Elmo (and Cookie Monster, too) could read books and stack blocks all day long. She is very affectionate, unless saying "no" to hugs and kisses seems like more fun at the time.

All in all, we are so very blessed to have such a wonderful, loving, smart, silly daughter.

Best friends...

2011-01-22T10:51:00.001-06:00

Here's a picture of Emmeline with her best friend, Elmo. Everything nowadays is Elmo Elmo Elmo. On the you tube, DVRed Sesame Street, Elmo in Grouchland, on her diapers, talking/dancing/storytelling Elmos.

They are inseparable. Super cute.

I know I've been a bad blogger. I'll do better this year.

Some Emmeline video...

2010-09-09T09:28:00.000-05:00

Here's a video of Emmeline. She loves the forward faving camera on my iPhone. Thanks, Steve Jobs, for making it easier to take video of my child!

Some shopping

2010-08-29T13:43:00.001-05:00

After church today, Emmeline and I went to the Super Oriental Market on West Valley Avenue. It is a really interesting place. There is a restaurant there that I'd really like to try. We were edging up on naptime so we didn't stay too long.

The picture shows our haul. Emmeline's favorite bowl has a smiling pig on it, so our trip to the Super Oriental Market was in search if more like that, and it didn't disappoint. We got four new bowls; a dog and a rabbit bowl like her pig one and four shallow bowls with cartoon-ish characters. I also found a new bento box for my lunches.

We might have to go back when we can spend some more time!!!

For the nursery...

2010-07-26T19:15:00.001-05:00

We found this piece of furniture yesterday at the thrift store. It is so perfect for Emmeline's room. I just can't stand how cute it is, with it's rounded to and short stature. It needs a little work, but only on the finish. It is a little "distressed," so I have to decide whether to go farther with that or clean up the finish. What do y'all think?

I love thrifting!!!

Mmmmm...

2010-07-24T20:09:00.002-05:00

Emmeline's favorite book for bedtime has ling been Goodnight Moon. No different from many children, to be sure. My mom put her to bed the other night and noticed something new. Upon arriving at the "goodnight nobody, goodnight mush" page, Emmeline must pause for a "taste" of mush and then say "mmmm."

No one taught her this. She just saw a spoon in a bowl and knew it was food. Tonight we went back for more mush four times.

Kids are smart. Really, scary smart.

Emmeline - 1 year

2010-07-10T21:03:00.000-05:00

Oh. My. Goodness. I can't believe that she is a year old. Let's see how we got here.

Seconds old.

One month. All swaddled and big smiles.

Two months. New hairdo!

Three months. Sitting pretty!

Four months. Loves her paci!

Five months. Sweet cheeks!

Six months. Even with an ear infection, she's all smiles!

Seven months. Sweet toothy smiles.

Eight months. Pretty in pink, and getting more curious.

Nine months. Into everything!

Ten months. So happy to be outside!

Eleven months. Here I come, ready or not!

One year. Steppin' out!

My girl has had a great month, with only a little bit of sickness thrown in. She started walking (at camp, big surprise) and is a master crawler. Emmeline's intellect seems to be expanding exponentially. All of a sudden, she is doing a great job communicating with us, and in less baby-like ways.

Her vocabulary includes: Mama, Dada, wuh-wuh (the answer to the question "what does a puppy dog say" and the dogs themselves), du (duck), doh (dog), tya tya (thank you), ba ba (don't know what that one means), hi, bye and many many other noises. She also does well making her needs know in ways without words, including pointing, grunting, screaming and screeching!

She loves playing and reading books. She has a few toys that are favorites, but loves the books the best. She loves babbling to herself in the mirror. Another new fun game is throwing the ball to us, and catching it when we roll it back to her.

She follows simple instructions very well. She can stand up, walk, help get herself dressed, and give hugs when asked. She is starting to get frustrated when she doesn't get what she wants, which is usually a product of her inability to communicate what she wants to us. I'm just thinking that it is a terrible two's temper tantrum preview. I'm just really proud that she is doing such a good job getting her point across. We'll work on volume control next!

Still not sleeping well... She's just about the sweetest think other than that, so I'll call it even, I guess.

Emmeline -11 months

2010-06-16T11:31:00.000-05:00

Thankfully, this month has been much less eventful that illness-ridden month 10. I forgot to mention in last month's update that she had gotten her top two middle teeth. Now she has the next two top teeth coming in! We're up to 6 total.

Here are some milestones for the month. I have dates for some, and not for others.

Licked Winni (May 22) Yep. Crawled right over and licked her on her furry face. I guess she figured that was the appropriate greeting, since that is what the dogs do to her.
Points and says dat (May 10)
Nods head yes and shakes head no (May 31)
Says Ma Ma and Da Da consistently. When I get her out of the car after daycare, she points to the house and says "Da Da" because she expects him to be home before us.
Knows what hugs are, and may or may not give you one. Usually, she just shakes her head no.
Recognizes pictures of me, David and the dogs.
Stands alone for 10ish seconds.
Cruises around on the furniture.
Takes a bath without her bath seat and likes to throw things out of the tub.

She is about to start walking, but I'm thinking she's saving that for her first trip to Camp Winnataska next week!

We sure do love her!

(Please note her full body hugging technique pictured below!)

Emmeline - 10 months (sorry so late...)

2010-05-20T13:15:00.002-05:00

So, what a month. Emmeline started the month off with another double ear infection for two weeks (April 12-23) which took two rounds of two different antibiotics to solve. The next week (April 26-30) brought the lovely roseola - an illness characterized by a high fever (we made it to 103.7 degrees), followed by a rash. We ended up at the Children's ER one night. Of course, by the time we got there her fever was at a much more respectable 101.5. Roseola = a bunch of crap, thank you very much.

Not to be outdone by the past three weeks, next on the illness agenda was pink eye (May 1-6). Really spectacular, that one. So much so that I just had to try it as well (May 6-12). I really don't want to get it ever again. My eyeball was swollen - the actual eyeball. I spent 3 hours of my first Mother's Day alone at the Callahan Eye Foundation Hospital Emergency Room to make sure that my eyeball didn't explode. Having spent a lovely 12 weeks at home with my baby after her birth, I burned some comp and vacation time to be out with one of the most contagious disease imaginable. Fantastic.

On top of all of this fun, David designed and built the set for Samford Theatre's production of Thoroughly Modern Millie which ran April 30-May 2. The show was so wonderful. The production looked great, and the students did a fantastic job with a very big show. Once the show came down, so did David. I think he picked up the pink eye virus which, on him, showed up as a really, really bad case of the ick. He had a terrible fever and chills for about 5 days and then has felt run down and awful for two weeks. It started on May 4 and is still lingering about.

All in all, a banner month in wellness for the Glenn household. I know I'm whining, and I know it could have been so much worse. It just seemed like last month was a doozy health-wise! Nothing was major, but all the little stuff seemed to add up. Thankfully, we are all on the mend!

But onto the more fun stuff. What Emmeline is up to nowadays.

She consistently says Da-da to David. She consistently says duh, which means dog. She consistently says mmm which means I'm hungry for food, milk, formula, cheerios, that couch cushion, a kleenex, your grocery list - whatever she might want to eat at the time. She will on occasion say Ma-ma and really mean it.

She laughs when you laugh. It is her most endearing trait. If David and I laugh at something, she laughs right along with us. If the cashier at Walmart laughs at the manager, she laughs, too. And I mean side-splitting laughter. You can tell it is forced, but it isn't fake. She is really laughing.

Another cute new development is hugging people and things. Her stuffed animals were on the floor one day when she got home from school and she crawled right over to her teddy bear (which is as big as she is) and laid right down on it and "hugged" it. Then she crawled over to the other stuffed animals and did the same. She hugs the dogs, too. Chica HATES it. Winni and Ginny don't mind too much until the hair pulling starts, then it's off they go. Emmeline has also gotten very good at hugging David and me as well - so sweet.

Developmentally, I think she's right on track. She bangs things together (the louder, the better). She eats with her hands (mmmmmmmm). She plays pat-a-cake ("roll it up" is a struggle, but she tries and says "rrrr" while she does). She stands by herself for a few seconds, and looks like she wants to walk, but doesn't really like to cruise too much or walk while holding our fingers.

All in all, it was a crazy month. Health-wise it was a 3 (ranked that way because all three of us made it through, relatively unscathed). Personality-wise, it was a 10. Emmeline could not be a sweeter child. A better sleeper, yes, but sweeter, not a chance.

(Where is my 2 week old that slept through the night...)

Breadmaking...

2010-04-14T17:30:00.001-05:00

So, I'm hooked. I love making bread. The method outlined in Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day is fantastic. It is so easy a caveman... oh you get the picture. If you haven't checked this book out yet, please do. Follow this link to the JCLC catalog to put it on reserve or really, just go buy it. (They are all checked out anyway.) I promise you won't regret it.

I've make a few things from it including Whole Wheat Master Loaf, Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Loaf, Avocado Guacamole Bread and another one I can't remember right now. The marvelous thing is that out of these batches of dough, I've made a multitude of things from artisan free form loaves and sandwich loaves to pizza crust to garlic rolls to a bog round flat loaf that I've been making focaccia sandwiches with.

The Avocado Guacamole was the best. Really good flavor which made it great for many things, breakfast toast with mozzarella cheese, dinner bread, etc. Anyway, please give this method a try. It is totally worth it.

Emmeline - 9 months

2010-04-08T20:22:00.000-05:00

Well, Miss Emmeline has been out as long as she was in! I really can't believe it. She is growing up to be such a cute baby. Her biggest development this month is her appetite! She will eat anything, and I mean anything, that you feed her or put in front of her. I was a little worried that she would turn into a Cheerio, so we are working in a few other kinds of finger foods. Her daily food and milk/formula intake looks like this:

6:00 am Nurse
7:30 am 4 oz of fruit or applesauce with baby cereal with Cheerios after
8:15 am Nurse
10:45 am 4.5 oz. milk bottle and 4 oz. of pureed veggies or stage 2 fruit
1:45 pm 4.5 oz. milk bottle and 4 oz. of pureed fruit or stage 2 fruit
3:00 pm 4 oz formula bottle and puffs and cheerios
5:30 pm Nurse
6:00 pm 3-4 oz. of pureed veggies, an ounce of pureed meat, an ounce of avocado and an ounce of brown rice with diced peaches and Cheerios after
7:30 pm Nurse and bed
Usually she wakes to nurse between 2 am and 4 am, but sometimes she sleeps through.

Next week we are going to two 6 oz. bottles at daycare and upping her food some by adding some finger foods for her to have there. I think that I'll switch her over to stage 3 baby foods and chunkier home purees as well. I hope that she continues to be an adventurous eater!

Some milestones this month include incessant chatter. This child talks all the time! (I'm sure that isn't that much of a surprise if you know me.) She talks to us, to her friends at "school," to the dogs... all the time. She has really started to interact more with us, the kids in her class and, most hysterically, the dogs. Every morning she crawls over to the dogs and "hugs" them by pulling herself up to kneeling onto them and then flopping her head down on top of them. The grudgingly cooperate. The other afternoon she grabbed the other end of the toy Winni was playing with and started shaking it and laughing. I think she really enjoyed "playing" with her.

Emmeline also enjoys going outside, which is great because David and I do, too! Every afternoon she spends some time outside after we get home from work. The last few days we have gone to the track at Irondale Middle School to walk after she eats dinner and she enjoyed that (when she wasn't too sleepy).

She is developing a sense of humor as well. She laughs when we laugh, even if she doesn't know why. Also, she thinks it is super-funny to put her pacifier in your mouth. Much hilarity will ensue. Just don't try to take it from her, because that is clearly NOT funny.

Here are some items from the babycenter.com milestone chart. She is right on track developmentally, and slightly advanced in the social aspects, I think.

• Stands while holding onto something

• Jabbers or combines syllables

• Eats with fingers

• Bangs objects together

• Plays patty-cake and peek-a-boo (she doesn't do too well with the "roll-it-up" portion of patty cake, but she gets the rest)

• Says "mama" and "dada" to the correct parent (with absolutely no regularity, and sometimes not at all)

• Waves goodbye (or sometimes, if she is really feeling fancy, she claps goodbye)

• Picks things up with pincer grasp (oh, Cheerios, how much you have taught us)

• Crawls well, with belly off the ground

• Understands "no" and simple instructions (albeit she doesn't follow those instructions)

We do love her so!

Making baby food...

2010-03-21T08:30:00.000-05:00

So I've been making Emmeline's food for a few weeks and we both are enjoying it. She still eats some store-bought foods, but a lot is home pureed fruits and veggies.

So far we've tried sweet potatoes, butternut squash, yellow squash, broccoli, green beans, avocado, chicken, peaches, blueberries, pears and bananas. She has loved it all, as you can see in that picture! I've also gotten a stash of food cubes stored in the freezer, which is the only way a working person could handle doing this, in my opinion. I try to do two to four ice cube trays worth every weekend.
Next up, English peas and more green beans!

Spring...

2010-03-20T10:06:00.003-05:00

has sprung.

The time change happened last weekend, but it has been dreary and cold most of the week. It finally warmed up on Friday and we all went out into the yard to play.

So nice.

Emmeline - 8 months

2010-03-09T17:30:00.000-06:00

I can't believe that it is time for another update. Emmeline has had a big month. She moved up a class at daycare, which I think accellerated her physical development. Her new class doesn't have any "containers" like excersaucers or bouncy seats. It is just a free for all baby-pile and a toy box. I was very nervous at first because when she moved up, Emmeline wasn't very mobile yet, only crawling backward, so I wondered how she would do. After a few days of adjustment, she adjusted very well. By the second week she was crawling and playing just fine. I think that it is good for her to learn how to play with the other children in her class. Also, she was getting very attached to one of her teachers in the other class. She likes her new teachers, but doesn't seem to cling as much to them as she did to Miss Amy.

Another change for this month was the addition of more foods. I've started making some of her baby foods and she likes them, once she gets used to them. So far I have the following stock in the freezer: green beans, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, bananas and blueberries. I have some brown rice and some peaches to puree one night this week. All of this eating seems to agree with her. I weighed her last night and she weighs 17 lbs. 13 oz., up 9 oz. in just a week! I couldn't believe it. Before that, she had only gained 4 ounces in two weeks.

We have added breakfast and dinner into the mix last week, which probably accounts for the weight gain. She has home-pureed fruits with baby cereal for breakfast, store bought baby-fruit for a morning snack, store-bought baby veggies for lunch, puffs for an afternoon snack, and home-pureed veggies with a little protein for dinner. She nurses four times a day and gets two milk bottles and one formula bottle during the week. On the weekends she just nurses on demand, but her food schedule stays the same. I was hesitant about adding formula, but she takes it fine at daycare. (She won't touch it from me, David or my mom who keeps her on Fridays. Oh well...)

She loves the dogs so much. When we get her home everyday, she kicks and kicks until she sees the dogs - then she laughs and wants to get down on the floor with them. She and Ginny are bestest friends, and Emmeline thinks that Winni is hysterical, probably because Winni smiles all the time.

New milestones this month are:
waves hello and goodbye
reapeats ma-ma and sometimes says it (It's more like maaaaaaaaaaaaaa when she wants something, but it is a start)
smacks and says "mmmmmmm" when she wants to eat
mouths bye-bye sometimes
chatters on and on, but we have no idea what she is saying
understands "no" and HATES it
crawls really well
pulls to standing
stands for a couple seconds on her own
uses pincher grasp
feeds herself puffs (really she just puts everything in her mouth hoping that it is puffs)
bangs things together and on the ground (and thinks that really funny)
"claps," but sometimes misses
still loves peek-a-boo

We are having some difficulties sleeping again. Right now, I think it is because she is sick with a cold, so I hope that it goes away on its own. She is getting up at least twice at night to nurse, and usually has trouble getting back to sleep once and is up for about 45 minutes to an hour. I know that she can sleep through from about 7 pm-5 am (with a dream feed around 10:30 pm) because she has done it a few times, but I think I'll wait until she is feeling better to work on any sleep re-training. Maybe (hopefully) it will work out on its own.

Anyway, as always, we love her so. I cannot believe how easily and well she melds into our family. Her little personality comes through more and more everyday. She is bright, happy, inquisitive, darling, loving and beautiful - inside and out. Sweet Emmeline, we love her so.

In my kitchen this Lent...

2010-02-17T08:26:00.000-06:00

In years past, I have had a more fulfilling Lent when I take something on rather than give something up. My most memorable Lent was 2003, my brother's senior year of high school, when he, my mother and I made a conscious effort to spend time together on a weekly basis. We didn't miss a week and had a good time. Emotionally, that was a very full year for me, and starting it that way really helped. My least favorite Lenten discipline was giving up chocolate one year while I was in high school. I was miserable. My mother told me on Easter that I was never allowed to do that again.

My Lenten discipline this year is going to be baking bread and making baby food. This will serve two main purposes, and multiple other ones as well. In the main, we will save money and eat healthier. It will also taste better, which is always a good thing. I made a batch of the master loaf from the wonderful book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day. (That's the jclc.org library link. If you want to buy it, visit your local independent bookseller. They need the business more than amazon.com.) The premise of the book is that you make a large batch of dough that gets refridgerated and used over a two week period. The resulting bread tasted good. I've baked three loaves and a pizza from it and I really like it. I think I'm going to enjoy this. My grandfather (who passed away in 2003) used to love making bread. I think he would be glad that I have picked up his habit.

Winni Wednesday, take 1 . . .

2010-02-10T08:00:00.001-06:00

Here's old one-track Winni. Single-minded in her concentration on a milkbone. So much so that her ear stick out like that. So cute.

Could you just give it to me already!

Winni is such a photogenic dog that I might try to include more pictures of her and her furry friends on the blog, least y'all think Emmeline is taking over.

Emmeline - 7 months (Can you believe it!)

2010-02-02T16:31:00.007-06:00

So Emmeline is 7 months old. I cannot believe how quickly she is growing. David bought be an infant beam scale at the thrift store, so I can tell you her exact stats.

Weight: 16 lbs. 15 oz. (59%)
Height: 26 inches (46%)
Head Circumference: 17 inches (62%)

She is really enjoying floor time and is getting the hang of playing now. I was checking the babycenter.com Milestone Chart and trying to find out what they mean by "object performance." (Edited to say: What this really is is "object permanence," which makes a lot more sense. Perhaps Dad should teach reading comprehension. Thanks for pointing out my typo, LAG!) They use the example of peek-a-boo. Well, Emmeline has been playing peek-a-boo for a LONG time. Starting at about 4 or 5 months, when I would take her pants off during her nightly routine, I would put them over her face. She would then pant with excitement, and wait a few second and then pull them off and grin really big. This went on until she was about five and a half months old and then she started to put anything within reach over her face, pant with excitement and then pull them away and give me a big grin. Who knew that this was "object performance" and was a normal milestone at 7 months! So smart, my child!

We have gotten back into a normal sleeping schedule after the craziness of Christmas and two infected ears. She now nurses 4 or 5 times during the day, one of which is a dream feed before I go to bed, and then once at night. She takes three bottles at daycare. She has finally gotten the hang of solids and LOVES them. Amy, her favorite teacher, mentioned to me that Emmeline would screech every time anyone else was being fed. Incredulously I sent a container of sweet potatoes to daycare the next day. We had been trying for weeks to get her to eat solids. I made my own baby food, I mushed up bananas and avocados, I mixed rice cereal - all to no avail. What finally worked was peer pressure. After that first serving at daycare, Emmeline hasn't looked back and now eats anything we feed her. She ate stage one foods for about two weeks and now is onto stage two.

The picture on the left shows her about 3 weeks ago. The one on the right was taken last weekend.

The other milestones she has met this month include:

sitting unassisted
scooting / crawling backward
going from hands and knees to sitting (she does this every few days, so I think she is almost ready to do it consistently)
stands while holding onto something (she can almost pull herself up in her crib)
waves good-bye
passes things from hand to had
understands cause and effect (that's the nice way to say "throws things off of high chair tray")
the above also means that she is beginning to experience stranger and separation anxiety

A highlight of the past week was her first injury - a black eye. She was on hands and knees and lunged forward for a toy and face-planted on it instead. Can I mention that David and I were both sitting on the floor with her. Geez, we felt terrible.

All in all she is growing into a beautiful child. I am really enjoying being her parent.

Emmeline - 6 months (and an on time update)

2010-01-01T14:46:00.005-06:00

Half a year old. Man, oh man . . . that doesn't seem possible.

Emmeline is such a smart child. I know that every parent says that, but really, she is fantastic!
We had her six month appointment today. She has gained 1 lb. 2 oz. since last month and now weighs 15 lbs. 6 oz. which is great news. The not so good news is that she has at least one, but probably two infected ears. That most likely accounts for her getting up 4 times a night for the last few nights. Hopefully with her antibiotics will get rid of the infection and she will be back to being a happy baby with good sleep habits. She also got five shots, but after her nap, has been acting like nothing is wrong.

This has been a big month for her. She has hit the following milestones:

She has her first two teeth, the middle ones on the bottom (Dec. 13 on the right and about two weeks later for the left)
Passes objects back and forth between her hands, especially her pacifier. If you put it in her left hand, she moves it to her right hand and then puts it in her mouth.
She sits up for a minute or two with out support, and for a long time if she has her boppy behind her. She might be fine without the boppy, but I get a little nervous.
She really likes "talking" now. She yacks away, even thought we have no idea what she is saying. She gets into squealing matches with my mom, too, which is quite funny! She also squeals with delight every time the dogs pay her any attention.
She is really good at getting toys (and anything) that she wants. She rolls around in her crib or on the floor or on our bed to get whatever she wants.
She is so mobile that I have started changing her on our bed because the changing table made me nervous. David gave me a little crafting tote a few years ago that he suggested that we repurpose as a diaper tote. It is fantastic and holds diapers, wipes, medicines, a changing pad, lotions, baby powder, desitin etc. I love it!
Solids are going okay. I gave up on rice cereal, but she will eat bananas. Next up are avocados and sweet potatoes.
She is really good at sitting on my hip now.
She stands up when she holds on to me or onto the couch. She will pull herself up if she is squatting on your lap.
She says "mama" but has no idea what it means, but I love the way it sounds.
She plays peek-a-boo and knows that it is fun! It has always been part of our nightly routine, but she initiates play now.

Y'all have a good day, and ROLL TIDE!!!

Emmeline - 5 month (and 4 weeks)

2009-12-21T11:43:00.003-06:00

Man, I'm really bad at the monthly updates. I'll make this one fast.
So far this month, sweetest Emmeline does the following (I took this list from Babycenter.com):

• Distinguishes between bold colors
• Plays with his hands and feet
• Recognizes own name
• Turns toward new sounds
• Rolls over in both directions
• Sits momentarily without support
• Mouths objects
• Turns toward sounds and voices
• Rolls over in both directions
• Is ready for solid foods
• Mouths objects
• Lunges forward or starts crawling
• Jabbers or combines syllables
• Drags objects toward herself

Here are some pictures - highlights from the month!

Here we are in Linn Park. We went to the Veteran's Day Parade.

Here's Emmeline Thanksgiving weekend. We all had a stomach bug... can't you tell she doesn't feel good. Yeah, we couldn't either, except when she was vomiting.
She absolutely loves this swing. My sister-in-law let us use it and man, it is so fantastic!

On the state of our home . . .

2009-12-02T13:12:00.004-06:00

If any of you should venture to our house anytime soon and wonder about the dull state of our hardwoods or the dust bunnies in the corners or the unfinished moulding or the raw wood doors, might I refer you to the poem below.

We are otherwise entertained right now. Emmeline grows bigger all the time. We'd rather not miss it (however the picture below shows how out of hand the craft loft has become).

Craft loft, a.k.a. storage, a.k.a. my next project

Anyway, on to that poem.

BABIES DON’T KEEP

Mother, oh Mother,

come shake out your cloth,

empty the dustpan,

poison the moth,

hang out the washing

and butter the bread,

sew on a button and make up a bed.

Where is the mother whose house

is so shocking?

She’s up in the nursery,

blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little

Boy Blue (lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

Dishes are waiting and bills are past due

(pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).

The shopping’s not done

and there’s nothing for stew

and out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo

but I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.

Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?

(lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing

will wait till tomorrow,

for Children grow up,

as I’ve learned to my sorrow.

So quiet down, cobwebs.

Dust go to sleep.

I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep…...

~Author Unknown ~

He was born on the third of July...

2009-11-25T11:34:00.004-06:00

and died the day before Thanksgiving.

Calvin had to be put to sleep this morning. The cancer was back, and it was shutting him down. If you don't remember, Calvin was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma, the most invasive, blood born cancer a dog can have. They removed a ten pound tumor that had taken over his spleen in August of 2006, two weeks before our wedding. Calvin was eleven. The told us he would live four months, on the outside.

He made it three and a half more years.

He met Ginny.

He met Emmeline.

Now he's eating steak in heaven with all of his girlfriends.

We love him and miss him so much. He truly is the greatest dog I've ever known. Hands down. He introduced David and me. He was one evolutionary rung away from speech, I could see it in his eyes. He would hide rawhides from the other dogs, even at 14 years old. He went out smiling.

What a great run, Calvin.

I'm so blessed to have known you.

Seeing double . . .

2009-11-13T09:19:00.000-06:00

I found this old picture in a stack that my mom gave me.

Me at exactly four months on my christening day.

And here's a new one.

Emmeline at five days shy of four months, in the same dress.

Same dress.

Same age.

She is totally cuter.

Emmeline - 4 Months

2009-11-07T14:24:00.002-06:00

Emmeline is four months old today. She is growing up so fast! Her stats are:

Weight: 13 lbs. 8 oz. (up one and a half pounds in two months)
Length: 24.5"
Head: 17"

Developmentally, she is changing every day. Some new milestones include:

putting toys and things into her mouth
reaching for objects, like keys, grocery lists, etc.
taking her paci out and putting it back in
standing (supported by us, of course)
passing toys from hand to hand (she has just started this)
playing with her feet, including taking off her socks
"chatting" with us, and she is adding in some consenants
showing interest in our food (I don't think she is quite ready for solids yet, but she sure likes to sit in our laps and watch us eat.)
slinging her toys around (she enjoys the rattling that they make)

All in all, she is a total joy, and we really love her so much.

"There's a thin line between Saturday night, and Sunday morning . . ."

2009-11-01T21:20:00.004-06:00

Before we get started, does anybody know where that quote is from?

So yesterday (Saturday) was Halloween and today (Sunday) is All Saint's Day. Emmeline celebrated both, so here are the pics.

She was a rock star for Halloween. Her shirt says "The Hissyfits" on the front and "Rock Me!" on the back. She wore zebra print pants and I spiked her hair up with Karo syrup, a trick I learned from the guy who has been cutting my hair forever.

We went to visit David's parents and my parents and she was a HUGE hit, of course. She was quite cute and really seemed to like being dressed up. Of course, that could have been her high-contrast pants!

Today we baptized Emmeline at St. Andrew's, the church where I was baptized, and married. It was such a great service. She was a fabulous child and didn't get fussy until the very end. The choir sang an arrangement of "Be Thou My Vision" that was a wedding gift to me from my friend Michael Smith. It was so great to have it heard at Emmeline's baptism, too! We had a reception afterward and it was so wonderful. I couldn't have asked for a better day!

This picture has nothing to do with Halloween or her baptism, but I love it so I included it. David took it in our back yard and she looks so sweet in it. I must say, my husband is a wonderful photographer!!!

Speaking of my husband, he is recovering from the swine flu, so send some good thoughts his way. David has had what he thought was a cold for a couple of weeks. Last Friday, when he was still feeling cruddy and with a long weekend of work and the baptism ahead, he went to a doc in a box to see if he had walking pneumonia. No, but he was at the tail end (we hope) of the swine flu.

Thank God Emmeline and I were spared (we think), knock on wood. We thought his cold was something he picked up from me or Emmeline since we have both been a little sick in the past few weeks. Who knew that it was swine flu!!!!

Anyway, that's all from here. I'll try to do another post this week about some of the non-baby things going on around here.

Emmeline - 3 months (and 3 weeks)

2009-10-30T17:10:00.000-05:00

I sure hope you all haven't been waiting on the edge of your seats for this update, because it is LATE! It has taken some adjustment going back to work. Just when we had gotten into the swing of things - mama has to throw a wrench in it! I've had it started for a long time, but I'm just now finishing it. Perhaps I'll post Halloween pictures for Thanksgiving.

Anyway, Emmeline is doing great. She sleeps so well. We are very fortunate. She has adjusted to daycare without a hitch and really seems to enjoy it. Her two teachers, Mary and Amy like her because she is such an easy-going baby. She is such a little rock star (especially the hair), as you can see from the following picture!
We didn't weigh her this month, but she is a total chunk, and I mean that in the nicest way. I mean, look at those cheeks. I'd say her days of not gaining well are way in the past.
She is hitting all of her developmental milestones right on target. Her new accomplishments this month are:

rolling over back to front and front to back (she accomplished both of these the day before she turned three months)
mini-push-ups (see picture below, she loves tummy time)
"stands up" if you hold her, bears weight on legs
smiles and coos at our funny songs and faces (Tragically, "Party in the U.S.A." is a favorite.)
"talks" and laughs
Her favorite game right now is spitting-out-her-spit. It is equal parts gross and sweet. She seems so pleased with herself, even though her front is slimy wet all the time.
"watching" us, following us and the dogs with her eyes
She loves sitting in her bumbo. I'll leave you with a couple of pictures of that!

We have Halloween and her baptism this weekend, followed by her four month check up and her four month birthday at the end of the week. Also, I've been trying to make some progress on the craft loft so I'll need to show you that! It look like I'll need to be a better blogger. Somehow it seems like more fun to hug on the baby than to blog about her, but I'll do my best!!!

Emmeline - 2 months

2009-09-08T16:40:00.000-05:00

Emmeline is two months old. I just can't believe it. She weighs 11 pounds 10 ounces and is 24 inches long. She is growing like a weed!
What is ridiculous is her hair. It is so long, or tall, depending on how you look at it. It stands straight up on the top and lays completely flat on the sides and back because of holding her.

Here are a few of her recent highlights:

She is getting so much personality. She has distinct likes (kisses, watching and batting at toys, singing) and dislikes (wet diapers, being hungry, being gassy).
She is a very happy baby. She only cries when she needs something, so not a lot of incessant fussing, which is great. She really doesn't like being hungry or sleepy.
She smiles a lot now - especially at David's funny faces and my singing. (I'm not quite sure how to take that.)
She laughs in her sleep, but I have yet to hear a real laugh out loud. We are really looking forward to baby giggles.
She coos and gurgles at us when she is amused.
She flirts with the ceiling fan. First she will smile at it, and then she will turn her head away coyly. It is quite funny - we think that it is her first boyfriend.
She will stand up, if supported.
She loves all of the toys on her activity mat. She grabs and holds onto the turtle and the octopus. She loves her mobile, too. The both play classical music, which she enjoys, and she hates when it stops.
She really likes chewing on her hands. It isn't really sucking her fingers, though she does that some too.
She sleeps very well (5-7.5 hours) and is getting onto a good schedule. This is what a normal day looks like. (A note: "play" means many things; tummy time, time on her activity mat or swing, walking around the house talking to me and the dogs, or even a running dialog about what we are buying at Sam's.)

Up at 5 or 6 to eat and then back to sleep until 8ish.
Up to eat and then play until about 10 and then nap until 11.
Up to eat and then play until about 1 and then nap until 2 or 3.
Up to eat and then play until 5 or 6 without much of a nap.
Eat again around 7 or 8 and then play while we eat dinner.
Bathtime (every other night) and then to bed, either in the pack and play in the living room or in your crib in our bedroom. Sometimes you like to be where the action is.
Up to nurse (more like a dream feed) one last time around 10 or 11 when we go to bed.
Lather, rinse, repeat.

All in all, we are so blessed to have such a beautiful and smart child. David and I are looking forward to getting to know Emmeline more as we all grow!

A new project . . .

2009-09-04T13:14:00.003-05:00

I want to make this quilt.
It (and this photo) are from Anna Marie Horner, a fabric designer. I haven't picked the fabric yet. I'm looking at fabric.com, but I just can't decide. I could use her collections, but that seems like the easy way out. I'll keep you updated.

I'm sure this will take me FOREVER to finish, what with a small infant and going back to work in 3 weeks. Perhaps it will be done by next summer, along with that Winnataska t-shirt quilt I keep threatening to start.

So many projects, so little time. I guess I should go get the craft loft set up.

Emmeline - Week 6

2009-08-19T16:35:00.005-05:00

The highlight of Emmeline's week was a trip to the beach. We spent a week at The Beach Club in Fort Morgan. It was a great trip. She spent a lot of time bonding with her Uncle Seth . . .

and her Grandmother.

We also celebrated my birthday while we were down there. While I was feeding Emmeline, everyone else decorated the condo and totally surprised me when I came out of our bedroom. Emmeline was slightly unsure about the whole thing.

She was the subject of multiple photo shoots, one of which is shown above.
All in all, we had a great time. Emmeline was well behaved and really enjoyed spending time with extended family.

David snapped this picture of her the other day and it is his new favorite. I like it too, so I thought I should included it.

This may be the last weekly update - I think I'll switch to monthly. Her milestones should be spreading out soon. So far, she:

holds her head up really well
recognizes faces (especially David, me and other folks she sees all the time)
shows a preference for positions, people and toys (she loves her pink bear)
smiles when we approach her to pick her up
enjoys tummy time, especially on her daddy's chest
smiles and approximates a laugh, but not that baby giggling yet (I.can't.wait.)
"talks" to us using coos, sighs, gurgles and squeals, but conversational inflections, which is really crazy

I think she is doing really well. Below are her stats:
10 lbs. 7 oz. (up 2 lbs. from birth, and 2 lbs. 3 oz. from her lowest weight)
23.5 inches (up 2.5 inches from birth, but she is hard to measure, so this one is approximate)

Next post - not baby related - I promise!!!

Emmeline - Week 5

2009-08-14T21:59:00.004-05:00

Emmeline's fifth week was a busy one. She took her first big trip. We went to the beach but I haven't downloaded all of the pictures yet, so those will have to wait until the next post. For now, here are a few pics of her other activities.

Napping in the pack and play and dreaming about puppies and fairies.

Chilling in the back yard, working on holding my head up.

Posing (a la Glamour Shots) for my one-month portraits.

Emmeline - Week 4

2009-08-07T10:00:00.002-05:00

So I weighed Emmeline again on her 3 wek birthday and she had only gained 2 oz., no where near the .5-1 oz. per day recommended. Connie, my neighbor who is a lactation consultant, worked with me on some techniques to get Emmeline to eat more efficiently. She also left her scales for me to use. This was fantastic! I really got to see how well she was eating. She weighed 9 lb. 3 oz. on Sunday, up 6 oz. in five days. Connie and our pediatrician are no longer concerned. YAHOO!! She has also grown about 1.5 inches, so now she is 22.5 inches tall.Other events for the week include her first real bath. She wasn't quite sure if she liked it or not.
We went to church for the second time one Sunday. She did very well!
We went over to my grandmother's house for a birthday celebration for David and me. My grandmother LOVES Emmeline!
Emmeline is also becoming more aware of her surroundings, including her feet, as shown above. She also smiles when she sees us now. It is the cutest, toothless grin I have ever seen in my life!

Emmeline - Week 3

2009-08-06T10:00:00.004-05:00

To celebrate David's birthday on July 23, his parent's bought Emmeline a tree, a brandywine maple, which they planted in our side yard. In the fall it should turn the most lovely deep purple color. I can't wait!
We also spent some time just chilling. It was great. We like taking her out on the back patio after the sun sets below the trees. As you can see in the above picture, Emmeline has some silly hair. And it gets sillier every day. She hasn't lost any yet (knock on wood) and it just keeps sticking up and out. I hope she keeps it.
We also had a setback with her weight gain during this week. She hadn't gained any weight at her two week appointment. The pediatrician didn't seem too worried, but suggested that I bring he back for a weight check at four weeks. I let her know that my neighbor is a lactation consultant who offered to work with me and borrow her scales if I needed to. The pediatrician said just to keep her updated on Emmeline's weight. I'll give you more info on that in the next post.

Emmeline - Week 2

2009-08-05T10:00:00.002-05:00

The highlight of Emmeline's second week was a trip to Camp Winnataska for the dedication of the new ropes course.
The climbing tower was dedicated to Roger Soloman for his dedication to camp, especially during the interim between our joint venture with the Boy Scouts and our current independent configuration.

She had a doctor's appointment on her one week birthday. Her stats were 8 lb. 11 oz, up 7 oz. from her hospital release 3 days prior. Other fun events for the week were visits to Samford and the Hoover Public Library. We visited my aunt and uncle, and had many visitors to the house including my mom and grandmother, my dad and his wife, Madelyn, Colin and Annalisa, and a few more. She also went to David's sister, Sharon's birthday lunch and David's cousin, Tandy's birthday party. Thank goodness for the ring sling carrier! She was snug as a bug in a rug at all of her visits.

Emmeline - Week 1

2009-08-04T17:56:00.004-05:00

Friends. I have neglected my blog. I have a good reason, and she is really pretty. Emmeline Violet was born on July 7 and we have spent the last four weeks hanging out and getting to know her. I'll (try to) post weekly for a while with her updates, but I'll spend the next four posts catching up.
I'll spare you the entire birth story, but I'll let you know that I was induced. They started pitocin at 7 am and Emmeline was born on Tuesday, July 7, 2009 at 2:18 pm. She weighed 8 lb. 7 oz., was 21 inches long and had a 14.5 inch head. Right after birth, she had trouble keeping her oxygen levels up. They took her for observation, but she ended up spending four days in the NICU for a pneumothorax and fluid in her lungs.
It was really sad, but for the best. She was in great hands and we got to spend a lot of time with her during visiting hours.I finally got to hold her for more than a second which was GREAT! She was still hooked up to monitors and still had the IV in her head, but I think it made us both feel better.
We brought her home on Saturday, July 11.
For those of you who were worried about the dogs, there was no need. Winni, as you can see, LOVES her. Ginny thinks she is her baby and comes in if Emmeline makes a peep in the other room to see why we aren't running to the rescue. Chica and Calvin love her too.
We really love her and can't wait to get to know her more. I'll post again soon.

One for me and one for E.V.

2009-06-04T17:55:00.001-05:00

So I did some sewing last Saturday. It was really fun. I used two patterns from a great new book by fabric designer, Heather Ross called Weekend Sewing. I made one thing for myself and one thing for the baby. (I'd love to tell you her name, but I'm afraid to jinx it, so we will go with her initials, E.V., for now.)

For myself, I made the Weekend-Away Travel Bag.

Purple make-up bag, approximate dimensions 9" x 7" x 3"

The outer fabric is by this Japanese designer. I ordered it from superbuzzy.com a while back and just got around to using it. For the lining I used some lavender fabric with purple dots from the Hancock that I had in my stash. I liked the pattern, but I'll probably make some adjustments next time I make this bag. I wasn't pleased with how it all went together in the last step, so I'll rethink that before I try it again. Overall, it is PERFECT for it's intended use: a make-up bag to take to the hospital.

For little E.V., I made Lucy's Kimono.

Kimono styled shirt with side ties in a super fun fabric with red Maltese crosses!!

The main fabric is by Amy Butler from her Belle line. The binding is by Sandi Henderson from her Farmers Market line. This was a super easy project. I'm going to make more of these. I'll probably have to adjust the pattern (currently newborn to three months) so that E.V. will have some longer-wearing jackets for the fall. The only problem with this pattern is that it calls for 1/2 yard of contrast bias tape for the binding and I used 1 and 1/2 yards. Most likely it was just a typo, and it wasn't that big of an issue since I made my own bias binding with one of these.

All in all, these were two fun projects that led to some nice "instant-gratification" sewing!

WILL and WON'T

2009-06-01T19:00:00.004-05:00

I'm due in four weeks - June 29 - so most likely I'll have a baby by the end of the month. (Wow!) I was pondering the change from holding my baby on the inside to holding my baby on the outside and I thought I should write some of those thoughts down. It turned into a list of pairs of things I WILL and WON'T miss about pregnancy.

I WILL miss feeling her move around inside of me.
I WON'T miss the use of my organs as trampolines and punching bags.

I WILL miss having a reason to rest and put my feet up.
I WON'T miss my feet being so swollen as a reason that I HAVE to rest and put my feet up.

I WILL miss people's genuine interest in my health and well being.
I WON'T miss being photographed and touched like some roadside attraction. ("Look Ma, its the world's only two headed goat. Can I pet it . . . them . . . it?" If we are friends, it is one thing - if not, lens cap on and paws off, please.)

I WILL miss people telling me how pregnancy must agree with me because I look so nice.
I WON'T miss comments like "Are you sure you are going to make it four more weeks. You're huge!"

I WILL miss being allowed to wear flip-flops to work.
I WON'T miss falling over like a weeble-wobble when I try to put on any shoes but slip-ons.

I WILL miss baby hiccups. (Totally cool and weird at the same time.)
I WON'T miss being out of breath after one flight of steps.

I WILL miss eating ice cream every day.
I WON'T miss being so hot that I feel like I should climb into the ice cream.

I WILL miss shiny hair and nails.
I WON'T miss trying to reach around my baby belly to shave my legs. (Seriously, it's kinda like trying to shave at camp again!)

I WILL miss sleeping (I hear that babies disrupt that).
I WON'T miss arranging five pillows to try to get comfortable in the bed.

I WILL miss knowing that my baby is safe, well and warm inside of me.
I WON'T miss the anticipation of meeting this miracle for the first time.

I really enjoy the duality of life, and this exercise pointed to that for me. We would all like our situations to be perfect all the time. But on the other hand, if they were spotless, how could we appreciate the beauty in the contrast? Would the sunset be so beautiful, if it weren't for the rain clouds? Perhaps that is why pregnancy can be, and birth is so painful - to give you a sense of the wideness and depth of the joy and love you will feel when you finally get to meet your child.

So, for these last few weeks, I'll be getting through all of this fleeting pain of pregnancy to get to the wonder of a little gooey bundle of joy. I can't wait!

100th post . . .

2009-05-29T09:00:00.003-05:00

So this is the 100th post! I thought I'd show y'all a couple of the pictures from the 4d ultrasound. This is especially appropriate because I'm due one month from today. I hope she makes it that long because then she would share a birthday with my grandfather.

She looks so sweet in this one. These were done at 31 weeks. That is her foot up in front of her face and her hand under her chin. At that point she was sitting breach. I'm not sure if she still is. She may be. We will find out at our appointment on Tuesday.

She was totally over the whole process in this picture. This was the last picture they got. After this she turned away. I'm sure she was just warming those lungs up for the real deal.

We are so excited and can't wait to meet her!!!

Dog update . . .

2009-05-26T09:00:00.003-05:00

I thought you might want to get an update on the dogs. They are doing well!Winni really loves the windows in the loft. They are also at the perfect height for her to look out of. She also likes the deck. No pictures yet, but she enjoys sitting out there and looking down at the yard.

Chica is the sentinel. She would sit in this chair all day long and bark at all of the small animals in the yard, the mailman, the neighbors, etc. Ginny likes this spot, too.

Here's Calvin. Still kickin'. He has his annual vet appointment in a few weeks. Last year they said he wasn't doing too great and to watch for his appetite to ebb. He's still first in line (well tied for first with Winni) when it's time for food in the morning. We think it is due to having three young girls in the house that keeps him young!!

Here's a rare still pose from Ginny. Normally she is moving so fast that all the camera sees is a black blur. She is still the sweetest dog of the bunch. A mess, and a digger, and a little attention hungry, but totally the sweetest dog of the bunch.

This is what she normally looks like. - tongue out from running hot laps around the yard.

We are pretty lucky and blessed to have such great dogs. I can't wait to see how they are with the baby. I'm sure they will love her as much as we do!

We're so close . . .

2009-05-23T10:40:00.004-05:00

So the house is coming along great. We are so close to being done!!! Here are some pictures of our progress.

Bedroom with slate fireplace surround and bamboo flooring in

View from the back door toward the dining room and the existing house

Bedroom from the living area toward the loft

Bathroom showing the vanity and tile

Bathroom showing the whirlpool tub, which is working and is FANTASTIC!!!!

Bathroom showing the shower entrance. It is really hard to photograph the bathroom because of all of the angles.

Deck with metal handrail that David welded. It looks GREAT!!!!

So that's where we stand. It's coming long. We don't have too much left to do. We can move into the bedroom as soon as the baseboards are in. I can't wait!!

Long time no blog . . .

2009-03-28T11:49:00.003-05:00

Friends. First, I'm quite sorry that I've been absent for so long. I have a good reason. I've been busy growing a baby - a little girl. I'm due at the end of June, the 29th to be precise, which is my maternal grandfather's birthday. My mom is positive that she will wait until then to arrive. So many of my family members share birthdays, so I won't be surprised if she does wait.

This imminent arrival gives us a nice, firm deadline for completing the addition. Our current bedroom will become the nursery. The baby will be in the new bedroom with us for a while, so I'm glad that we built big, but she (and we) need room for all of the stuff that comes along with having a child. We do have to finish the addition before she gets here since our current bedroom is quite small (less than 12' x 12' and one wall is entirely closet doors). If the baby comes before the addition is done, I suppose she can bunk with Winni. (Just kidding. Seriously.)

I've been thinking about how to decorate the baby's room, so I think that I jinxed us. We had a major plumbing fiasco, which I'll post photos of later in the week. Let's just say that Bay-Bay gets new floors in her room. Old carpet + water = stinky. Anyway, I found this cool tool on HGTV.com. It has user posted rooms. I've added an RSS feed of the nurseries to my google reader for inspiration. It is amazing to see all of the creativity on there.

David and I are thrilled about our new family member. We can't wait to meet her. We are looking forward to this new chapter in our life together.

PS-I won't turn this into a baby blog, but I'm sure she will creep in from time to time.

PV!!

2009-02-15T08:40:00.001-06:00

Yahoo! We won. The shows were great.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, see this link.

Here's a video from 1998 for fun-sies. Who doesn't need a song about B-I-N-G-O to start their day off right.

Tile colors, part 1

2009-02-02T15:40:00.006-06:00

Here is one option for the six color 4x4 tile mosaic for the wainscoting in the bathroom. We have the four tiles on the right, but not the purple and the light green. The ones that we have are slightly more subdued in color than these, but you get the picture. It is hard to recreate on the computer.
Keep in mind that the floors are saltillo tile and most of the walls are chocolate brown, almost eggplant.

There is also a neutral granite for the sink and tub surround.

Above the wainscoting will be a neutral tile like this one.

Now, if I can only fine the dark purple tile and the light green tile, we are in business.

edited to add:
Check out this coolness.
Create your own custom blends of tile. This is for 3/4 inch tile, but it gives an idea of what the colors will look like together.

Lest you forget . . .

2009-01-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

We do have dogs. Here's some pictures of two of them.
Winni does love her sticks. Here she is skipping in the front yard. Please do note that all of her feet are off of the ground.

It has been almost a year since her TPLO surgery which is fully documented in that link to all of the posts about her recovery. She is using her leg so well. Knock on wood, we haven't noticed any problems with the other leg either. We have kept her weight down which I'm sure has helped.There she is, happy as she ever was!

And here's Calvin . . .

He's doing well, too, knock on wood! At 13 and a half, he still keeps up with all of his girlfriends. He either has selective hearing of some hearing loss; my bet is a little of both. His appetite is great, which is what the vet told us to look out for as a sign of kidney problems, but he tries to be first in line for the food every day. We are really lucky that he is doing so well!

As for the other two, they wouldn't stay still long enough to be photographed with my sad camera. Perhaps next time.

The tile is lookin' good...

2009-01-12T12:53:00.005-06:00

The tile is going in and it looks great. It really warms the space up.
These pictures were taken a few days ago, so now most of the tile is in as is most of the grout.
They should be done by Wednesday or Thursday. Once all of the grout is in, we will roll a polyurethane sealer over the whole surface to seal the grout and the tiles. We purchased presealed super saltillo tile, but most installation instructions we have found encourage a topcoat after installation which is then reapplied every two years or so.

A few other things . . .
Here's the railing from the loft. David welded it and it turned out really great. I need to get a better picture of it from the bedroom. You can also see how all of the colors meet in this photo.

And one more picture . . .
Here's a panoramic picture of the view from the deck. Click for a bigger view. David said the sunset was great the other day. I've missed them so far, but I can't wait to catch one.

Saltillo tile is muy bueno...

2009-01-05T19:22:00.004-06:00

So we have begun the tile installation. One of David's friends is a tile installer and has started working on our saltillo floors. They look so great. I'm really glad that we went with the saltillo. I love the color variation and the natural look it gives the room.

Sorry the picture is blurry. I really need a new camera.

Here's a view of the house that I don't post very often. I put it up so that you could see another angle of the deck.

In this picture, David has just started the decking boards on the deck. They are done now, and the view from up there is really fabulous.
I guess that's all for now.

Work on the deck...

2008-12-31T13:15:00.010-06:00

So we have started working on the deck.
This is the kind of building that I can get behind and understand. The house construction was so detailed and precise that it was too much for me. This is much more organic and fluid, kinda make it up as you go along. The above is the "plan." It changed a couple of times before we got to that one and then has morphed a little from there.
Here are some in process shots.
Also, here's the colors for the bathroom.
It is hard to get the bathroom into one photo... I'm going to have to work on that. Anyway, the main part of the room is dark brown and the toilet closet and the linen closet are ocean blue. We are going to be using a dark cream colored tiled for the main part of the walls, so the contrast with the brown should be nice.

Y'all have a happy and safe New Year's Eve.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T13:29:00.000-06:00

I hope you all have a wonderful Chrismas!

Closet Panelling

2008-11-28T13:04:00.001-06:00

We are putting the panelling in the closet and it looks great. We are
making some progress in other areas as well. Some of the granite was
installed on Wednesday and all of the painted surfaces are getting a
second coat. Yea for progress!

VOTE!

2008-11-04T08:47:00.003-06:00

Please go vote today. I enforce a strict "if you don't vote, you can't bitch" policy. Seriously, go. NOW. Don't know who to vote for? Give me a call... we'll talk.

I can see clearly now...

2008-10-22T09:08:00.002-05:00

So there's been some window progress. David and his parents got the window sills and the trim up on all of the windows.

David's mom cleaned the dining room windows. What a huge difference!

Ginny really appreciates the sill height on these two. Perfect for squirrel watching.

Here's the colors in the bedroom. It is the best angle I could use to get all of them in.

On another note, remember this incident? I sent them off to get repaired and this is what I got back. Can you see the gobbed up epoxy holding them together? For the love, I can't wear these out... I'll look like an idiot. Who do they employ at the repair division, blind monkeys. And on top of the blobby epoxy, they "buffed" some scratches off of the lenses, but made even more with the buffer.

Geez! They didn't even line up the halves before the blobbing.

They are sending a replacement pair as well, which is good since this hack job was certainly not worth the $70 I paid.

Y'all have a good'n.

Some painting...

2008-10-08T22:44:00.001-05:00

The bedroom painting had begun. The ceiling is a light blue and the
walls are an adobe/custard color called corriander something or other.
It's bright, but we like it.

Also, the bamboo flooring is in. That is the dark splotch in the corner.

More later.

One room painted...

2008-10-05T13:46:00.000-05:00

Lookie! Lookie! We painted the dining room.

Hi...

2008-10-03T07:40:00.003-05:00

So I've been a bad blogger again. It frustrates me to have no pictures to show for the work we've been doing. The lover level exterior is mostly painted. The dining room and the hall are primed. We have a couple of people coming to work this weekend, so there should be more painting done soon.

I'll take some photo with my iPhone and post them. I won't pretend that they are good quality, but they are better than you trying to see the images inside of my head.

A few random items:

1.) This is a cool word cloud that wordle.net creates from your blog. There are many options for color, layout, etc. Check it out.

2.) We met with the mortgage guy. It went well, but not great. I need to call and clarify a few things before I make a final opinion.

3.) If you haven't read the Twilight saga, do yourself a favor and run (don't walk) to the nearest library and check it out. (Or try to. Most likely it will not be there, so go to a bookstore and buy it.) Whichever you choose, just get your hands on a copy. DO NOT follow these directions if you are : a) a boy, or b)worried about missing important appointments for the next week or so. There are 4 books, which will suck you in like a Wonder Years marathon on a cloudy Sunday afternoon... only with vampires, and no 70's soundrack or butterfly collars, and... oh just read them.

I'll try to post some pictures this weekend. Y'all have good day!

A test of the broadcast system...

2008-09-24T12:36:00.002-05:00

So I'm trying out the mobile blogger function. We'll see how this goes.

This is the painting progress so far.

I'm off to Hotlanta for the Performing Arts Exchange conference. See y'all soon!

I'm camera shopping...

2008-09-11T18:32:00.003-05:00

My camera has been slowly dying. It used to take wonderful pictures. It has spiraled down toward okay pictures. It is moving toward "only okay to take pictures outside in full sunlight."

Now it won't import to iPhoto. Grr......

I had a whole post composed (in my head) about my new art grouping by our front door. I guess I'll have to save it. It's all about Jesus and Yoda (both of whom are displayed in the art grouping). They both say very wise things. Thematically, it works for me.

Anyway, I hated to leave you without a picture.

This is what was going on here last year. Wow, when you look at it that way, it's pretty impressive.

We're back...

2008-09-01T10:21:00.003-05:00

So we made it back from the beach yesterday. We had a great time. There was lots of sitting on the beach and by the pool. I started the Twilight saga. I love it! I can't believe I waited so long to start reading it.
We only lost one day to the hurricane, and we even went to the beach yesterday morning. Look how much the surf has pick up in the pictures above and below.
Those are from yesterday morning. The rest of the time, the surf looked like this...

So clear and so blue. My family used to go to the beach every summer. My grandparents lived in Florida for a while, but when they moved back we would go to Pensacola, then Gulf Shores, then Fort Morgan, then Dauphin Island. I've also been to the beaches in South Walton county, Florida and our honeymoon in Puerto Vallarta. I don't remember ever seeing water this blue and clear. It was like bath water. You could stand four feet deep in the water and still see the fish nibbling on your toes.

I'm sure that the Caribbean is beautiful; I'd love to go there and check it out. I'm sure that Hawaii is impressive; I'd love to check those beaches out, too. However, Destin has the best beaches I've ever seen. And the crowds didn't get bad until Labor Day weekend. I will definitely be going back. A big THANKS to Lee for lending us the condo for a week.

I'm off to unpack and wash clothes, the unfortunate side effect from any vacation.

So what were you doing two years ago...

2008-08-26T17:48:00.003-05:00

This is what I was doing.

Happy 2nd, David! Here's to a million more.

I have the POWER!!!!!

2008-08-21T19:01:00.002-05:00

So check it out...

This is our old power meter,

and this is the old gooseneck where the power came into the house.

Here is our new power meter,

and here is the new gooseneck where the power comes into the house.

And here is David throwing the switch for the first time!

YAHOO! Power... in the addition.

Flooring samples...

2008-08-20T09:02:00.002-05:00

So we got our flooring samples in. We ordered 8 hardwood samples and 7 bamboo samples.

Here are the winners:

It is the Super Saltillo with rounded edges and the Stained Strand Woven Bamboo Floors.

We knew we would go with the saltillo, but it was nice to see the sample. It was a tough decision on the wood flooring, but it came down to two things. The bamboo flooring is very hard, which is a must with four dogs. It is also a green resource, which appealed to us.

I'll let you know if we make any more decisions.

Long time no post...

2008-08-15T06:57:00.002-05:00

So sorry it has taken me so long to post. Please forgive me. I'll try to do better in the future.

We've made some good progress on the outside of the house.

Here are some pictures of the siding. It is so close to finished!!

The soffit is going in, and really finishes off the eaves.

This is what David is working on now: concrete board in the bathroom. It is hard to take photos in the bathroom, so you'll have to imagine the rest of the room.

Yeah!!! Not far now, Papa Smurf!

The great big decor options post... part one

2008-07-20T10:55:00.009-05:00

So here's where we are so far on flooring, paint, etc.

Flooring:
Hall, Dining Room, Closet and Bathroom: We're looking at this, sealed saltillo tile. I want to lay it in this pattern, at least in the dining room, because it emphasizes the irregularity of the tiles. I may get out voted, though.
Bedroom and Loft: We're looking at this, wide-plank, hand-scraped Alder in the finish called Merbau. Here's what it looks like in a room.

Paint Colors:So this is our color pallet. Valspar puts out a color trends book, usually every season, and this is the one that we like. I love the way the colors go together.

I'm not sure what color is going where yet. Perhaps that will be for the next post.

What a difference a day makes...

2008-07-20T09:40:00.003-05:00

Seriously...

From here

to here

in 13 hours.

Miguel and crew arrived yesterday at 7:00 a.m. and left at 8:30 p.m. Here are some more pictures. They hung all of the sheetrock yesterday, and then started taping and mudding. They were back at 7:00 a.m. today.

Remember this? It is from last November.

I did this one this morning.

One last picture. This is the scrap pile. Yikes!

I'm so glad that we are having this part of the work done by professionals. We would still be working on this at Christmas, and we would never get it as smooth as they will. They should be done in a few days.

Now it is time to think about colors, but that will have to wait for another day...

Look who's back...

2008-07-19T08:35:00.003-05:00

Our furry friend, Stella! Her parents are in North Carolina at a birthday party/family reunion, so Ginny has her best play friend back for the weekend.
We took a few pictures last week because the sheetrock is going in today! Yahoo!! Here's a few pictures of where we were.
I'm listening to sheetrock installation now. Perhaps there will be some more pictures soon.
I think that the sheetrock will make it easier to pick colors. I know it will define the space well. I can't wait to see what it looks like! What is really nice is that other people are doing it. This is the point that David has been waiting on. He has been ready for other people to work on the addition for a while now!
Anyway... Winni hopes that you have a nice day today.

Gee, your yard looks terrific...

2008-07-11T07:19:00.004-05:00

This is what the yard looked like when I got home the other day. Most people would be sad, but not us.
This sight meant that the inspector was coming for a final sign-off on the plumbing. It also meant the bill for the plumbing, which was $3000 more than expected. We have had such good luck with most of the contractors' pricing, that it was bound to happen sooner of later.
"Is that new air condition unit listing," you ask. Why yes, yes it is. David had to lean it up and rest it on bricks because it was installed on top of two of the drain lines that the plumbers put in. David said it is no big deal to put it back.
What makes the atrocious state of our yard even more humorous is the activity level of our new neighbors. They are out of control with the yard work. In the past few weeks they have cleared out about three trees and a huge privet hedge, painted the interior of the house, planted all of the flowers available at the Home Depot and spiffed up their front porch. It looks wonderful and I'm so glad that we have such conscientious neighbors. However, they work entirely too hard; so hard, in fact that I get tired just watching their progress.

Y'all have a good day!

Happy Birthday, Winni!

2008-07-04T08:42:00.004-05:00

So today is Winni's birthday. Actually, it's my best guess as to Winni's birthday. She came to live with me on July 1, 2003 and the vet said she was about one, so we decided on an Independence Day birthday. That makes her six and means that she's been with me for five years. She's had a great year, what with a new sister, an upgraded leg and a trimmer waist.She does love sticks, so that's what she got for her birthday. A stick all of her own, and some alone time to chew on it on the front porch.
The story of how she came to live with me is below. If you don't know the story, it's a good one. She wrote it herself and wanted it posted, so there you have it. It's long, so settle in. Y'all have a good 4th!

July, 2003

(Winni asked me to read this over. My comments are in parentheses.)

My name is Winnie. The girl monkey (that’s what she calls humans) left her computer on so I thought that I would tell you my story.

The monkeys I used to live with were not very nice to me, but they did one very kind thing that you might think was not very kind. They abandoned me. They put me in their fast-scary-thing (that would be a car), drove me to the front gate of Camp Winnataska, and told me to stay. And I did.

I hadn’t been there long when a silver fast-scary-thing with two very pretty monkeys (aw…thanks) drove by. They didn’t stop, nor did the other 10 or 15 fast-scary-things that came by that Sunday morning. Soon, I was alone again in the grass and gravel by the gate of Camp Winnataska, very confused and a little scared.

Soon it got hot and before long, the silver fast-scary-thing with the two very pretty monkeys drove by again. This time she stopped. She played with me for a minute and then the chocolate headed monkey (that would be me) talked to the yellow headed monkey (that would be my room-mate, Karen). I didn’t understand it very well but it was something about isn’t that sad, and maybe whoever left her will come back, and but we’re on the way back to the lake. Anyway, they went away again and I was once again alone in the grass and gravel by the gate of Camp Winnataska, very confused and a little scared.

But not as scared as I was going to be. Soon it got dark, and then it started to rain, but the monkeys that dropped me off told me to stay, so I did. Some of the monkeys from the Camp brought me some food and water and played with me so I wasn’t too lonely, but since I was told to stay, I did.

After staying in the rain and getting very muddy on Monday I was very confused. Were the mean monkeys coming to get me? Were the pretty monkeys going to come back? Were the camp monkeys going to come and play?

It was almost dark when a blue fast-scary-thing (Karen’s brand new Jetta) came down the camp road. It was the pretty monkeys! Yea! They will stop and play with me again. But they didn’t. The chocolate-headed one started crying when she saw me. Later when they were leaving, she was crying again and said something about new car, muddy, tomorrow, Seth, truck, Winni. I thought that that meant something good so I wasn’t too upset. It was very hard to sleep with the rain and the confusion of what the monkeys said, but I did my best.

Tuesday morning lots and lots of fast-scary-things came by, but didn’t even stop. (It was the last day of camp so all the kids were going home.) They came and went with barely a glance at me, shivering and muddy, by the side of the road alone in the grass and gravel by the gate of Camp Winnataska, very confused and a little scared.

But at last, a very nice fast-scary-thing stopped. A monkey called Debbie and her puppie-monkey (daughter) named Erin put me in the back of their fast-scary-thing. I felt bad for getting the cow-pillow dirty, (that’s what she said that leather smells like, don’t ask me) but at least I wasn’t getting rained on. Now, I may be a dog but I didn’t think that this was what the pretty monkeys from the night before were talking about, but since Debbie-monkey and Erin-monkey kept calling me Winni, I thought that it must be part of the plan.

They dropped me off at a place with lots of dogs and cats in cages and monkeys in masks (she means the vet’s office) and I was overwhelmed. The monkey in a mask looked at me with lots of stuff and said something about a fection, tapes, and lots of other big words. (She had an infection and worms, but medication cleared them up). I stayed there all day, wondering what would happen and then I heard my name. They put me on a rope and took me out to another room and guess what…the chocolate-headed monkey was there. HOORAY!!! She was so happy that she was crying.

We got into her silver fast-scary-thing and went to her house. It took me a while to get used to being inside and a few days to realize that the squeeky thing and the rope were what the monkeys call toys for me. I hadn’t ever had those before. Sometimes we just lie on the sofa and look at people in a box (that’s a TV). The Elin-monkey loves me very much and I love her too. I give her kisses and smile at her when we go on walks. I’m home, and I sure love it!

(Let me fill you in from my side here. I called Kidd animal clinic where mom’s dog Merlin goes, on Tuesday morning and told them that Seth was bringing in a stray that I was going to name Winni and to look her over and I would pick her up on my way home from work. Seth called me from camp and said that after an hour of looking, they couldn’t find the dog anywhere. I called to cancel the vet appointment and the receptionist told me that one of her littermates was just dropped off, and the family that dropped her off, named her Winni as well. To which I replied, there were no littermates, only MY Winni. I was in tears so the receptionist gave me the name of the family that brought her in. I left a message, in tears again, for Debbie that if she didn’t want Winni to please let me know and I would take her. Debbie called me back and said that she was so glad that a Winnataska girl wanted her and to meet me at the vet after work. She wanted to make sure I was a good person, I think.)

(Ever since 1998 when Cindy Wiley adopted Percy, another mistreated Camp Stray that has grown up to be the “Quintessential Dog,” I have known, if God saw fit for me to have a dog, that it would be a Camp Stray. I must say that I didn’t know if I was ready to be a pet owner until the first time Winni and I took a walk. She kept tripping because instead of looking where she was going, she kept staring at me with a tremendous look of gratitude on her face.)

Happy BIrthday, Calvin!

2008-07-03T09:39:00.003-05:00

Calvin turns 13 today.
Almost two years ago, the doctors said they didn't think he'd make it much longer.

Apparently they don't know Calvin.
Here's to bonus time.

Happy Birthday, best black dog ever!

I'm back...

2008-07-01T07:39:00.001-05:00

So I made it back from camp. It was a blast. I came home to this friend.

This is Stella, our friends' sheepdog. Colin and Annalisa are out west, so we are up to five dogs until Saturday. She's behaving for the most part, and having a great time with our other dogs here at Camp Glenn.

Anyway, our week at camp was wonderful.
We always have a theme for the week that we are director, and this year's was "All I Needed to Know I Learned at Camp Winnataska." I learned many things...

My family is both weird...

and wonderful.

This is a "family former" picture of me, Seth, Marcie, my mom (front row), Bee, Tricia and Dollie (back row) after Tricia was Galahad last week. Mom and Marcie, Dollie, and Bee are cousins and Tricia is Dollie's daughter. We are pretty sure that Tricia is the first 3rd generation Galahad, which is quite cool.

More lessons learned...

Country Night dances are a workout.

"Cats on the couch" will always be funny, even when it enters the second generation.

Catching up with old friends is always good for the soul.

Again, I'll say that we had a great week. Last Sunday was Winnataska's 90th Birthday Party and there were over 300 people there. I hope it is still around for 90 x 90 more!

Now really, I must go clean this house and bathe Winni and get off of blogger / facebook / etc.

I'm a terrible blogger...

2008-06-21T20:25:00.003-05:00

I'm so sorry that I've been such a bad blogger of late. And now, I'm only blogging to say that I'll be gone for a week. I'm off to be a weekly director at Camp Winnataska with my mom, my brother and my friend, Karen.

I hope that I'll have so much fun, and I expect to. It is always good to get back to nature. My great-grandmother was a camper at the first session in 1918, so I've always been drawn to Winnataska. Even my dog Winni is from there.

Speaking of dogs, I should tell you about Calvin. He went for an ultrasound because our vet found elevated liver enzymes when they ran his blood work and thought he should have his liver checked. The vet that did the ultrasound was the one that did his surgery two years ago as well.

If you don't know, Calvin had a 10 pound cancerous tumor removed in August 2006, just two weeks before our wedding. He was given four to six months to live. At our rehearsal, we all prayed for Calvin. We prayed very hard. David and I know that those prayers are the reason he is still with us today.

The new from the ultrasound could be better, but it could be worse as well. The vet said that Calvin is nothing short of a miracle. He couldn't believe that Calvin was doing so well. He found some spots on his liver that weren't there in 2006. He said that his first symptoms of getting sick would be loss of appetite and lethargy. We figure since he finishes the girls food and then chases them around the back yard, he is doing pretty well for and almost 13 year old cancer surviving, pound rescue, mutt-dog.

We would still appreciate all of your continued thoughts and prayers for him. He is such a wonderful companion and has seen David through some really rough times. We hope that his good health and wonderful attitude continues for... well forever actually.

That's all I have for now. I'm going to hug my dogs. I hope that you will do the same.
See 'all in a week!

Another quilt...

2008-06-05T19:06:00.004-05:00

A friend called me yesterday and commissioned a quilt for her cousin's yet to be born baby boy. It is SO much easier to find girl fabrics, but I love a challenge so I looked through what I had in the stash and found...
these two fabrics from the Ginger Blossom line by Sandi Henderson for Michael Miller.

I took them to Hancock today to find something to go with them but struck out on finding stuff to match. Which was GREAT because I found these wonderful selections...
which I like even better. (Click for a larger view.) I have used the navy paisley on simple quilts before and I love it. I'm so pleased that I found three coordinating fabrics to work with it. I have realized that finding things to coordinate with designer fabric lines can be difficult, but that may be a mental thing, since they are introduced as a set. But it could be the matching of multiple colors across different fabrics.

Any way... I sketched three options for the top design...

Tried and True

Squared Away

Round Peg

I totally just make up those design names (and the designs) so there's no need to go googling for the patterns. I can't decide which I like the best, so I'll have to think about it. If you, dear blog readers, have any suggestions, just leave them in the comments.

I also bought myself this pattern. It uses 3 yards of knit, and I'm trying to stash-bust, so I might make two versions; one black and one in something else.Vogue 1027

One more picture, and then I'm going to concentrate fully on So You Think You Can Dance, which is my guilty pleasure, since Lost is on break.

Ginny on her perch.

So I took two dogs to the vet today...

2008-06-03T18:31:00.003-05:00

Calvin and Chica were due for their ($600) annual visit to the vet. I'd love to say that they were perfect angels (Chica had to be muzzled in the back) and that I had tons of pictures (Calvin DOES NOT LIKE the exam table), but alas, only text.

They are in perfect health, as far a the vet could see on his examination. Dr. Kidd said that Chica is "very muscular" (which I think means obstinate, strong and scary). He said that Calvin is doing very well, too; a few bumps and cataracts, but at one month shy of 13, that is no small feat.

We are still crossing our fingers that the blood work comes back good. The regular rounds come back tomorrow and Calvin's "special," old man, post-cancer, blood work comes back Saturday or Monday. After the long wait on the blood work after his 10 pound tumor removal, I don't relish these next few days.

It will be a long wait, and I hope that what Dr. Kidd says holds true.

Also, did you see in the news about the shooting at the polling location. Yea, I got there about an hour after that happened. It wasn't all that exciting; just a stray bullet from across the street. No one was injured. Good thing I took the dogs to the vet and missed the whole thing!

Some dog pictures...

2008-05-28T21:18:00.002-05:00

David took some pictures of the dogs today.

Ginny, panting after her full sprint of the yard.

And then she was tired and had to lie down.

Winni...

...likes...

...chewing...

...sticks!

Y'all have a good day.

A baby quilt

2008-05-17T21:09:00.002-05:00

So my boss commissioned a baby quilt for her niece-to-be. The shower was today, so I think it is safe to post pictures now.

The highlighted fabric is Ginger Blossom by Sandi Henderson. You really should follow that second link and check out her blog where you can see her new line, Farmer's Market.
The light pink background and backing and the green binding are fabrics I picked up at Hancock. The quilt is about 30" x 42" and I used flannel instead of batting in the middle so that it would be nice and portable. The binding is hand sewn to the back, as shown in the picture below.
This was really fun to make and I can't wait to do some more. I think I might make a new quilt for the living room next.

I hope that it was a hit at the shower.

Don't be jealous...

2008-05-16T07:34:00.004-05:00

but my sweet husband bought me some prizes at the Thrift Store today.

Just watch out. I'm so glad that I am now the proud owner of a Wheel of Fortune fanny pack. David suggested that I give it to my grandmother who is a HUGE Wheel fan. IS HE CRAZY!!! How could I let such a piece of Americana go. Fanny packs, while convenient, are ridiculous, as shown in the picture above.

If you are still using one, STOP. There is no need. Just stop NOW! Girls, carry a purse. Kavu make a nice one that is easy to carry across your body. Boys, I shouldn't even have to tell you to stop. I don't care how handy it is, STOP with the fanny pack. I'd rather see a man with so many tools on his belt that he looks like a poor imitation of Batman than a man with a tragically un-hip fanny pack. STOP!!

The only exception to this rule occurs at Camp Winnataska. For some reason, they are fine there, but only for the Comanches. Camp had fanny packs made for the asthma camp a few years ago and the Comanches still carry them. They look cute, and are the only people on the planet who look normal wearing them.

PS-I went to Hancock yesterday and bought Simplicity 3790 and 2971. Everyone working at the store was nice. And some were helpful as well. Perhaps things are looking up.

I'll post some pictures tomorrow of the quilt I made for my boss's future niece. It turned out really well.

Birmingham News article about Hancock...

2008-05-15T17:15:00.001-05:00

I saw this article today while looking at al.com. It is about the renovation of the Hancock store in Hoover. I hope that it helps. Seeing that it is one of few fabric stores where I can conveniently feed my fabric addiction AND touch the merchandise, it won't change things much. I'll still shop there, but it would be nice not to be disappointed.

The rest of the article goes on to mention that "the prototype is to help customers and free staff to help with sewing projects." Um... I shop there about once a week, and there is only one friendly AND helpful employee. Some are friendly and some are helpful, but only one is both. Some are downright rude, not to me (most of the time) but to other people.

So there will be renovations and reorganizations and remodeling and sections... that's great. I hope they hire some helpful employees. Cut the bottom twenty, as my old employer used to say. I'd like some more people working there who know about fabric. I'd also like someone who works there to know about ordering some nicer fabrics. Like this, or this, or this, just to mention the quilting ones. I asked once if they had any Amy Butler fabrics. The two women at the cutting table said "WHO!?!?!?!?!" They then proceeded to tell me how no one would buy it and what they had is great. Shocking. Really shocking. Every once in a while you can find Alexander Henry prints in there, but it is rare. And most of the fashion fabric is poly blends. There is some lovely wool suiting on sale at 60% off right now.

And one more thing... quilting cotton does not have to equal scratchy 120 thread count grossness. It could be nice. And just because it is a printed woven cotton fabric doesn't mean it is destined for a split rail quilt... you can make a cute skirt or a top or a dress out of it. It is only "quilting" cotton if you make a quilt. Otherwise, it is woven cotton fabric.

I shouldn't be too hard on them. I have found a few really cute not too juvenile or geriatric cotton prints there, but that is the exception. I have bought some decent knits there, but most are scratchy polyester or no Lycra cotton.

Perhaps they are trying to play it safe and stay middle-of-the-road. Too bad that's where you get run over.

Geez. I should get off the soapbox.

If I get any more riled up, I won't be able to go to Hancock this afternoon.

End of an era...

2008-05-12T09:47:00.003-05:00

It's a sad day...

It had to happen sooner or later. Theses are my best bargain find ever. A $200 pair of Serengeti sunglasses that I bought for $18.

Man... I might need to go home and cry.

She's mighty, mighty...

2008-05-04T07:36:00.002-05:00

Well we have a brick house, okay a partially brick house, but it is one more thing off of the list. It looks great. Here are some pictures of them working on it.

It took them about three days. There was a crew of four guys and they did a great job.

Another in progress shot.

Here are some finished shots.

We (David) had to put a tarp over the fireplace so it wouldn't rain into the bedroom. The original cap was made to fit the wood on the top. Now that we had them brick to the top of the chimney, we will have to have a new cap made.

Here's one more...

Just a tease for the next post... but we've breached the hull, cap'n.

The roof, the roof...

2008-04-22T07:23:00.003-05:00

Well, it's not on fire, but it is on the upper level.

Yahoo! David got that part on today.

We went with the highest gauge galvalum (which is really classic metal roof silver) with no exposed screws. David has learned a lot about how to install it and we are saving about $10,000 by putting it on ourselves. He said that the roof itself isn't as difficult as the flashings and trim pieces. Anyway, here are two more pictures.

Another front view.

And from the back.

We also passed the framing and electrical inspections. We are free to go ahead and start on the brick, but the sheet rock will have to wait until the plumbing inspection.

Also, happy Earth Day! If you are looking for a way to celebrate, may I recommend the following:

Two-Bite Chocolate Macaroons from Whole Foods. YUM!

They are sooooo good. Two of them are only 130 calories and much more satisfying than a 100 calorie pack desert.

Have a reduce/reuse/recycle-able day

Some updates...

2008-04-19T10:25:00.002-05:00

House update:
David and Tim got the flashings on the upper level roof yesterday. Here's one in progress pic.
"What's that in the background?" you ask.

That's the scaffolding.

"So what is David standing on?" you ask.

Yikes!! I'm not even sure what to say.

Dog update:
Winni had her 12 week TPLO check up on Wednesday.

She's doing great!! All Smiles!!

Dr. Ballagas said that she can start out with one hour unsupervised with the other dogs and one mile on leash walks. Then we are to build up from there.

The other dogs are doing well, too!

"I can sit still... sometimes."

Chica and Calvin spending some quality time on the futon.

Me update:

I went to Massage Envy yesterday afternoon and got a massage. Boy, was it great. When I win the lottery... every day, a massage every day.

Also, here's my breakfast this morning. I'm not sure why I took a picture, but not only does it look good, it was very tasty and quite filling.

Egg beaters omlette, whole wheat toast, black berries, and two slices of salsa cheddar cheese (one is on the omlette), and a cup of coffee. Yum!

Y'all have a good day!

New banner...

2008-04-07T16:15:00.002-05:00

This new banner picture was taken by our friend, Amanda, at the lake over New Year's Eve. It is so cool that I had to put it on the blog. There are a few more so I'll try put some more up later!

7000 words...

2008-03-31T16:57:00.003-05:00

So if a picture is worth a thousand words, that's what I have today, plus a few captions for good measure.

Front view as of last weekend, March 29, 2008.

I sure wish this was working

The fireplace has been in for a few weeks, but I'm just now putting it up on the blog. Who knows why.

The doors and windows are in in most of the house, including these in the loft.

Didn't this turn out SO cool. We got almost all of our windows at the Habitat for Humanity Outlet Center. They were a great deal, plus the money we paid goes to build more Habitat houses.

Chica and Ginny love to play in the wide open space.

Chica isn't quite sure why David is up so tall.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope to have some more updates soon. We are almost to the point of sub-contractors. Maybe next time I'll tell you the Tale of Two AC Companies. Boy, is it a doozie!!

You must be kidding...

2008-03-24T20:54:00.003-05:00

Dad, I am underwhelmed. I don't see why I must protect my squeekers from Chica and Ginny, much less you.

Seriously, can't we just get back to Shreck?

I'm over this.

Peace out-
Winni

In case you missed this in the 80's

2008-03-10T08:34:00.000-05:00

Really, you should watch it. It is sooooooo strange, really really strange.

I do love the internet though. My friend Jennifer was talking about this song yesterday, and now, here it is for you to watch. I remember my dad thinking this was the coolest video. I'll let that slide and chalk it up to the "novelty" of MTV.

Have a good day, and if you get a chance, take a fish head out to see a movie!

Not sure why but...

2008-03-02T09:39:00.004-06:00

My sidebar has migrated below my posts. I'm working on it, but I'm no great shakes at HTML, so it might be a while.

Right now I'm off to get ready to go to my niece's Christening. I'll try to fix the blog this afternoon.

Edited to add: I've fixed it! Yahoo!

Leapin' Lizards it's COLD!!

2008-02-29T08:01:00.003-06:00

What's wrong with this picture?

This is what's wrong with that picture.

Yea, the heat has been out for two days. Interior temperature: 58.1 degrees. Last night wasn't as bad as Wednesday night. It is just a bad breaker, which David is fixing today, but really... why does this happen when it is SO COLD.

In other news...

Winni has a new squeeker.

She now has a flamingo and a parrot. Oddly enough, the parrot is noisier than the flamingo, who Chica must have "regulated" on.

Winni went back to the vet on Wednesday and is doing very well. She is using her leg very well now. She can have a little more freedom in a week and isn't due for another recheck until her 12 week final one. YAHOO!

Happy Leap(in' Lizzards) Day.
Can you tell I loved Annie as a kid?

Stormy weather...

2008-02-26T07:35:00.003-06:00

So I had hoped to post about the work on the house and my progress on the items for the Spring Show, but I thought I'd let you know about our bad weather.

So the bad weather started at about 3:45 a.m. and lasted about 30 minutes. David (and the weather) woke me up and we were in immediate panic mode. It really sounded like a freight train was going by the house. Then the hail started and there was a lot of it. Right when we woke up, the power went off, and the weather radio is out in the addition, so we were a little uninformed.

The power came back on about two minutes later and we tuned into NBC13 who let ups know that there was a tornado warning for the eastern Jefferson county. HELLO!! That's where I live! Did the sirens go off? I don't think so; normally they wake us up.

Finally it started calming down, but then we couldn't find Ginny. Where was she... outside in the RAIN AND LIGHTENING! Perhaps she wanted to go off the Oz and we should have left her name Toto. We got back to sleep around 4:30 and all we really wanted was a good night of sleep.

Here's what we woke up to this morning.

Why yes that is a walk board from the scaffolding that is set up BEHIND the house. It blew OVER the house and landed about 20 feet from the front door. Could it land on my car? Of course not.

That piece of walk board blew off and was leaning against that window in the corner. By the way, that window and about 10 more were installed YESTERDAY. Thankfully, it didn't get damaged.

The hail/wind BLEW THE PAINT OFF THE HOUSE. Really, that is a bit much. All the black trim on the two back french doors looks like that. One more thing on the list.

Anyway, we have lots of windows in and I'm about halfway ready for the Spring Show craft fair. More on that later.

Four Weeks And Two Days...

2008-02-22T08:03:00.002-06:00

and she is using her leg about 25% of the time. Yahoo! She uses it when she isn't thinking about it. If she realizes what she is doing, she starts tripodding it again.

I'm off to get ready for work.

I'm doing a craft fair on March 1 and here's a few weekend goals:
-6 make up bags
-15 onsies
-cut out Burda 8087, the Janina pants (not for the craft fair, but fun none the less)

Off to get ready for work!

TGIF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mama, oh mama...

2008-02-20T17:55:00.004-06:00

Why did you leave me here in this kennel.

I only have my flamingo for company. He doesn't talk much anymore.

Here I sit... my knee hurts, I've squeeked my friend until he can't squeek no more. Why can't I go sing in the choir with you. I have a lovely voice. Just stop and get me a new squeeker on the way.

I'll be good... please...

pretty please.

Oh well. I'll stay here. Too bad I can't watch ants. (Yikes! If you click that link, I'm a little chubby in the picture. Dr. Ballagas said I was doing good with my weight loss. I'm down to a slim-for-me 58.5 pounds.)

Bye mama. Have fun singing. Maybe I'll go next week. Perhaps it would be too much for now. Why yes, I do believe I'll have another nap.