Baby L2 is Here!

And he is a BOY!  I really was shocked- I thought he might be a girl for a long time!  His name is Maclain Chase (McLain is Grant's middle name- we are just spelling it a little differently).  He's such a sweet and good baby.  I've enjoyed being his mom for the last two weeks!

He came two weeks early (just like his sister) and was 6 pounds, 4 ounces and 19 inches long.  We had another great, natural birth at the Birth Center.  This labor and delivery was so very different from Coraline's and that will have to be another post.  Let's just say we made it to the Birth Center with about 40 min. to spare!!

Grant holding Maclain before we go home.

I made this little hat for him.  Each of my babies had a special piece of handmade clothing that they wore home.

She loves to hold him!

I love their slow motion "kung fu" movements.  So cute!

He was sunning a bit and Coraline decided that her dolls needed to sun too!

A New Quilt

I've been racing to get two quilts done before Baby L2 comes! Here is one that I finished just a few days ago.  A sweet mommy contacted me (after she saw a special order quilt that I had made for her cousin) and asked me to make one for her little girl's first birthday.  She wanted to incorporate a little piece of her going home outfit in the back of the quilt as well.  

She was able to pick the design and fabrics she wanted, so it was truly a collaboration.  I used the “Aviary 2 for Free Spirit” (Lilac Palette) fabric by Joel Dewberry.

I also appliqued the name of her little girl on the front of the quilt, but just for privacy sake don't have any pictures of the whole quilt. 

Finished quilt.  Don't you just love the purple and green.

The back- simple, simple.

The patchwork.

My favorite part- a small flower montage on the back that incorporates a little piece of her going home outfit and going home hat.  A sweet way to make this quilt extra special!

Hope she likes it!

Pregnancy Update (Finally)

Finally, a picture worth posting! 

Here I am at 32 weeks. 

This pregnancy is flying by!  This baby is so much lower than Coraline was, so it's making exercising and moving around a little more difficult this time around.  I'm thankful though, that s/he is head down and seems pretty snug there!  Still getting a little heartburn. But overall everything is going well!  Yay!  Only 8 (or 6) more weeks left (I'm thinking s/he will be a little early).

Pregnancy Update

My last entry on pregnancy was when I shared that we were pregnant and now, 6 months later, I'm giving you an update (I'm such a slacker)!

This pregnancy is going very well.  It has been different from the last in that I actually did experience morning sickness.  I never got sick but felt nauseous a lot of the time.  I also have been experiencing heartburn almost constantly and since the beginning of the pregnancy.  This baby better have a head full of hair!  But other than those mild complaints, everything has been great.  I felt the baby move at 16 weeks so that has been very reassuring.  Baby L2 likes to be active at night which concerns me because apparently their pattern in the womb is their pattern when they are born.  Hmm.  We'll have to talk about that one Baby L2. 

I've really started showing recently, so I'll have to get a few pictures up.  It took a while for people to realize I was pregnant which really is a good thing when you think about it!  I'm just glad to be past the "chubby" stage! 

I'm still dancing and am on the treadmill quite a bit during the week.  I want to be in the best shape possible to have this baby and have the energy needed for two when s/he is born.  We are planning on having a natural birth again at the Birthing Center.  So far, everything looks good.  I pray the baby likes that plan too!

I'm trying to prepare Coraline for the baby as much as a 19 month old can comprehend.  I really think she has no idea what's going on but we read books, play with her baby and talk about the baby in "mommy's tummy."  She's such a sweet girl and loves babies and toddlers that I really think she'll be fine.  I can see her getting mad when she wants me to read to her and I'm nursing or something like that but I'm sure every child goes through a jealousy stage.  We are also going to move her to a big girl bed soon so we can have the crib for the baby.  I was so nervous about this but just today she started trying to climb out of the crib which is a great indicator that they are ready to move out of it.  Hopefully, that move will go smoothly! 

Here is a shot of me at 14 weeks.  I have more recent shots (24 weeks) I just have to download them from my camera (talk about lazy)!

Hello out there.

Sorry, I've been MIA for awhile.  No excuses really.  Just haven't had much too blog about. 

I haven't been crafting too much lately.  Although, there is one project that I'm dying to share with you-- I receive the Martha Stewart magazine and they had this neat article on creating a cross stitch portrait of your family.  I used to cross stitch all the time and thought a family portrait would make an adorable wall hanging.  So, I got out the graph paper and started drawing our family. . .  


Here is the finished product--

Oh, yes, you've noticed the little addition in yellow-- he/she will be here sometime in April!  I shall call him/her Baby L2.  I guess that little one may have prevented me from crafting and blogging recently.  We will have to do better Baby L2 if we want any readers!

Definitely more crafting to come!

Special Baby Quilt

Although, I've taken a small break from quilting I was able to create a very special quilt for a friend recently.  I used fabric from two of her baby blankets to produce a new quilt for her little girl.  I will admit that I was nervous taking someone's special treasures and cutting them apart, but I knew I could do it and create something really special in the process.

The finished product. 

Her little girl's name surrounded by applique flowers from her baby blankets.

 The center piece was an applique elephant that was the primary focus of one of her baby blankets.  I made it the center of this quilt as well.

I used pink gingham and the light pink bunny fabric from her original baby blankets and filled in with other coordinating fabric.  I did get some help from the ladies at the quilt shop and found them to be very helpful.  If you ever have questions about scale and color, ask the workers.  They know what they are talking about and it was very reassuring to get their advice.

I love the back print because it incorporates all the colors of the quilt.  The mom-to-be's designing the nursery in pink and brown and her baby blankets had light pink, yellow and turquoise colors.  I wanted to make sure all the colors were represented. 

 I also got new tags from here.  Super reasonable and very nice quality!

What do you all think?

New Outfit

I wanted to tackle a few of the cute tops that I have collected on my Pinterest site for Coraline.  There are so many cute ones to choose from! I found this material at Joann's and thought it was perfect for her.

Here is the link to the top.  I found it very easy to construct.  I followed her pattern which is for a 12-18 month size, but it was a little snug on my 15 month old, so I tried it again and added 1/4 inch all the way around the pattern and it came out to be a much better fit for her.  I made it a top, but you could easily add some length and make it a dress.

I've gotten some compliments on it, so I think it's a winner!

The bloomers are my own pattern- hopefully, I can make a tutorial for you on that soon.  However, you could do a search for bloomers or diaper covers and come up with lots of tutorials.

Happy sewing everyone!

Summertime Bucket Hat

I've wanted to make a bucket hat for Coraline for awhile.  I think they're adorable and perfect for keeping that head covered during the summer.  The problem is that she won't wear a hat (or any hair accessories) right now.  Oh well, I had some extra fabric, so I went for it anyway.  It's a two-in-one hat (reversible).  It's a little big because I followed her pattern which is for a 2T.  But, I figured if she wouldn't wear it now she may in the future. 

Here is the tutorial I followed.  Very easy.  I did include one side of interfacing to stiffen it up a bit and I did do 1/4 inch seams all the way up the brim.

Since I just used boring old white fabric for the inside (more of a liner), I may add straps so she'll keep it on.  This will take away the reversibility function. 

Oh how much fun I could have with this pattern!

What to do . . .

When your baby has a diaper rash that needs a little airing out but it is too blazin' hot to go outside and besides said baby likes to eat handfuls of dirt.

*    *    *

Why you bring the pool indoors (minus the water) and let her have at it.  BTW, it did help the diaper rash.

Dirt

My child likes to eat dirt.  All. the. time.  And I'm not talking about a little piece but a good handful of the stuff.  I really don't even to like to go outside much (well that and the 90 degree weather) because all she does is eat potting soil.  Hones in on the stuff.  Really?  It can't taste good.   

Here is a little proof. 

Going for it.

 Feels so good in my hands.

Uh-oh, mom caught me- better drop this handful.

 I'll try it again, since she's busy with the camera.

 Triumph (this is not the usual handful like previously mentioned).

Ahhh, tastes so good.

Tea Party Time

My friend, Yvonne, and I decided that we must do a tea party together before she leaves for Florida.  We both love tea and any excuse to eat cucumber sandwiches is okay by me.  I've been in an English mood lately with all this Jane Austen and the Royal Wedding stuff. 

We even went to a tea store and bought special "tea party" tea.  We had a great time as we always do.

Here are some pictures of the day.

Here are the girls playing.   

Our set up.  We had raspberry scones (I substituted raspberries for blueberries), devonshire cream and some cucumber finger sandwiches.   

 Almost done.  Delicious.

Yvonne and Miss C even dressed up for the occasion.

What a fun play date!

A fine day indeed . . .

It's a good day to be a mother.

My loves got me a fun basket filled with little treats.  And my mom left a little surprise on my door.  Everything was food or food related.  Wow, my family knows me well.

This is my first Mother's Day.  This year has been wonderful.  Who knew being a mother would be this great?!  Little Miss C has rocked my world (for the better, of course) and I am thankful she has.  I wouldn't trade a single day with her.  I hope the next year is just as great! 

Love her.  And I love Grant for making it a special day for me! 

Happy Easter!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.  We had pretty weather over here and were able to celebrate with both Grant and my family.  It was a busy day for us, but Miss C did pretty well.  She got to wear not one, but two pretty Easter dresses!  Lucky girl! 

Family picture. 

Her first (and only) egg!

Coraline Meets Santa's Beard

I love going back to my Alma mater, Peace College, any time I can.  That place houses so many good memories for me.  So, I jumped at the chance to take Coraline there for a fun, free event-- Christmas story time and a chance to meet Santa himself!  

I love Peace at Christmas!  This is the main building (I lived on the third floor my junior year).

Cute and sweet librarian, Anne, reading the kids two stories- can you spot me (Coraline got covered up by the book page)? 

And Miss C meets the jolly man himself, but was distracted by his beard, which she found quite entertaining! 

Peas and Carrots

Miss C has started solids.  According to her, her world will never be the same!  If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you probably realize that I'm not very traditional.  Well, after reading this book--

I decided to skip the rice cereal route all together and just dive right in to real foods.  And so we did.  She's had bananas, yogurt and cinnamon, kefir, peas, carrots, green beans, pears, apples, white beans and turkey.  All with a little pat of butter or coconut oil and some mild spices.  One of the take home messages from the book that I've really taken to heart- babies like food to taste good too!  If it's bland to you, it will probably be bland for baby.  I haven't pureed the heck out of the food either- a little chunkiness is not harmful. 

(Yum, turkey, peas and carrots)



(She LOVES her food- she has yet to reject anything I've given her)

One of the things I've found extremely helpful in preparing her food is this little workhorse- the Beaba Babycook.  It steams, reheats and chops food.  Sure, you can make baby food without it, but it sure is easier to have one little machine do it all and within 15 minutes or so.

Coraline Quilt

So, I finally got around to making a quilt for Coraline. I love how it turned out.  I really fell in love with the pattern when I saw it at the Moda Bake Shop.  A very simple pattern that really shows off the fabric.  I used the Wonderland series by Momo for Moda Fabric.  I've had this fabric for awhile and am glad I got to use it.  I have another quilt in the works with some of the remainder of the fabric.

Her new tummy time blanket!

I think she likes it. 

I love my Moby Wrap

The moby wrap is awesome. Whenever Coraline needs to be held (but I've got things to do) I put her in it. She instantly quiets down and eventually falls asleep. I can then finish dinner or vacuum or finish whatever else needs to be done.


I was so intimidated by it when I was doing research on slings (it is one long piece of fabric), but the manager at the boutique walked me through it and it really couldn't be easier. There are detailed instructions that come with the wrap, so I won't go into detail here.

Too sweet

Isn't this quilt adorable! I think it will be my next project for Coraline. Detailed instructions can be found at the Moda Bake shop.

Cloth Diapers

(Coraline in an AIO cloth diaper)

I love being able to cloth diaper Coraline. We save lots of money and we are helping the environment! To start our stash off, I bought a lot of different covers, pocket diapers and all in ones, since I didn't know what would work for us. But through trial and error, I have finally found the system that works for us.

Grant and I both love the BumGenius All in Ones (AIO). Essentially AIO are treated just like disposable diapers except you put them in the washing machine instead of the trash. They fit her well, they are easy to put on and they contain blow outs well! So, I like to have 10 AIO and I also will continue to have two Thirsties diaper covers and prefold cloth diapers on hand. With this stash, I do diaper laundry every other day.

I'm thrilled that we are able to cloth diaper her at night with no leakage. The AIO allow for inserts to be put into the diaper, so you get more protection at night.

(diaper laundry)

(another cute cloth diaper and baby legs shot)

Fourth of July Skirt

In an attempt to be festive (and since it is Coraline's first holiday) I wanted to make a Fourth of July skirt for her to wear to our family barbecue.

Without spending any money I wanted to use things I had in the house. Unbelievably I did not have any red or blue fabric that would work from my quilt scraps, so I went to the pile of clothes that are slated to go to the church's yard sale and found the perfect material- one of Grant's old work shirts. It was red, white and blue! Perfect. I added a little red ribbon to the bottom, so she would stand out in a crowd. If I had more time I would have freezer stenciled something on to her white onesie. Oh well, next holiday!

(Grant's old work shirt)

(her festive skirt)


(she was thrilled- can't you tell?)