Handmade surprises

The girls were lucky enough to be the recipients of these lovely handmade gifts yesterday. Our good friend's mom made them a large knit block with their initials on it as well as a brand new baby sweater for Sadie. The best part? Baby C has had more fun playing with her new block and Baby S' sweater than she has had with store bought toys all day. Fabulous!

Baby C demonstrating how to use thier new toy... notice the "C" on the side?

And "S"

Baby S' new sweater and dress

Baby C "helping" me take the picture of said dress and sweater! Thank goodness for girls that like to help!

its early...

:: Its 4:30 am

:: I have been up more than I've slept tonight

:: I have changed 2 diapers and 1 set of clothes

and I am loving every second of it... why? Because baby cuddles, smiles and coos are just as sweet at 4:30am as they are at 4:30 pm. It also helps that Baby S has fallen asleep in her swing and looks completely adorable!

"Making" Memories

We have been making a lot of memories around here these days. I will never forget my mom telling me "if I don't take a picture we will forget this" for the hundredth time as I rolled my eyes in the way that 8 year old girls can do oh so well. In fact my best friend's favourite memory of my mom is her chasing us around with a camera or video camera (at dance recitals, parades we danced in, birthdays, prom, trips to the mall... just about anything we did has been documented).

I was horribly embarrassed by this habit of moms when I was a kid but now I am so grateful that I have my entire childhood documented in our photo albums. And you know what? She was right! Without those pictures I would forget.... forget that horrible outfit I wore out on my first double date, forget that my prom night was also my grandmother's birthday and we took pictures together, or my fabulous first bathing suit (it was blue with ducks on it!).

I have decided that I too want my girls to be able to look back and remember those tiny seemingly insignificant parts of childhood even if it embarrasses them and earns me a few eye rolls. And I don't ever want to forget things like how their tiny little hands seem to fit so perfectly together.

Lesson Plans

Today (well, the next few weeks really) I am putting mostly everything else aside and working on lesson plans. They have been a thorn in my side for quite some time and I really need to get going on them. I am so close to becoming a Certified Childbirth Educator through Cappa Canada there are only 2 requirements of the course that I have left to finish and the big one is to design the lesson plans for my course. Thankfully my good teacher friend has loaned me some templates to design said lesson plans and it is going much quicker now that I have everything organized efficiently! I keep telling myself that one of these days I will be finished (the problem with a self lead distance ed. course is getting the motivation to finish!).

52 Books :: Week 23 (Book 21)

Another shout out goes to my sister in law for turning me onto her favourite author Tracy Chevalier. I am going to start in on The Lady and the Unicorn today and I'm sure that since Nicole picked it out, it will not disappoint!

Girlfriends...

Girlfriends....

:: Understand when you are housebound with 2 babies under 2 (one that gets extremely car sick) and drive 45 minutes to have a play date at your house

:: Come over weekly to play with your daughter and dazzle her with their jewellery

:: Treat you to a pedicure and hold/rock/shush/change your 7 week old baby so you can enjoy said pedicure

:: Know that a perfect night with the girls only needs to include some wine, cheese dip and 'retro' music

:: Reassure you when you feel like you are at the end of your rope

:: Check in on you to make sure you are really not at the end of your rope

:: Are there for you no matter what, when, or where

Thank you to all my fabulous girlfriends... you mean more to me than you could ever know!

Closer

It might be getting late with no signs of sleep in sight, I might be exhausted, and I might even be the tiniest bit frustrated... but I am holding my babies a little bit closer tonight.



:: Remembering how privileged I am to have these special girls in my life.


:: Losing myself in their beauty, their complete innocent and sweet fabulousness


and


:: Realizing that they will never again be this small and these quiet moments (no matter how few or far between) must be cherished

Next Up

My next project will be one of pure necessity... Baby C has been getting horribly car sick - I can't go further than about 3 km before she is sick which basically means that I have been house bound since January. Not exactly the greatest fate for a mama of 2 extremely little ones. I have been trying out all sorts of different remedies (ie. turning her from front to rear, and rear to front facing, sea bands, anti-static straps on the car, sun shades so she can't see out the window ... any other suggestions?) and in the process had had to wash the car seat once for every attempt. So next up on my list of things to do is to make a very large 'bib' out that I can put on her after she gets into the car that will cover up herself and the seat. I'm thinking it will be made out of a bath towel. Wish me luck!

Shower gifts

The shower gifts are done! I finished a sling to match the nursing cover that I made last week and they are both safely in the arms of their new owners. I remember to take a picture of the sling - but not in use. Baby C my model of choice (because Baby S was in a spit-up-e mood today and I didn't want to christen the baby gift that way) was more interested in her new stroller and wouldn't pose for a picture, so alas I had to use my second choice - the front step.

I just love the fabric, I ended up having a fair chunk left, not quite enough to make anything, but enough scraps that I think I could make a pretty fabulous quilt, maybe something to match Sadie's room. The colours go perfectly with the green/brown/pink colour scheme. Hmm..... a quilt... the wheels are turning!

52 Books :: Week 22 (Book 20)

I might as well just finish it and move on... my 4th mindless read since Sadie has been born (although I don't think that my mind could take anything else right about now - other than a few issues of Mothering Magazine). I'm now reading Breaking Dawn. I know.... I know.... Don't judge me for it!

Making progress... s.l.o.w.l.y

I am slowly making some progress on some mama and baby crafting. I finished knitting a tonne of dishcloths for my mom and mother-in-law for mothers day. I am convinced dishcloths are pretty much crap as gifts, but its what they wanted/needed so I gave it to them. I finished a nursing cover for a friend last weekend and this weekend I will be making a matching ring sling. I forgot to to take a picture of the cover (I wanted it out of the house before it got destroyed in the toddler tornado that has invaded our house as of late) but I'll try to take one of the sling.


I'm still working on Baby S' sleep sack and am hoping to have that finished soon. I also started a new baby blanket for her when I was still pregnant that is patiently waiting in my knitting basket. One day I will get to it I swear!

Generations

Last weekend we were lucky enough to catch this moment on film. My grandma with both of her great-granddaughters and myself. She will be 90 on June 1 - not everyone gets to have a picture like this, and not everyone is lucky enough to know their grandparents so well and for so long. I am so happy that my girls will know her because time with her is the best gift of all. To hear her stories and learn from her experiences. She makes me appreciate what I have and strive to be a better person. I am so grateful that I have this picture and I will keep it close always.

52 Books :: Week 21 (Book 19)

Oh man, I've lost my mind. I think I'm going to give in and admit it... I am liking this series... a lot. Don't hold it against me - there really is a person of substance in here, she is just a little hazy from the sleep deprivation.

There is nothing else to say except... Eclipse is next.

Helping Hands

The only thing that I love more than helping hands, is chubby little baby hands attempting to use a screw driver. The frightening thing is that no one staged this photo, Baby C slipped underneath Poppy, grabbed the screw driver and had it turning all on her own (and no, we don't let her play with tools on a regular basis!).

52 Books :: Week 20 (Book 18)

I was going to start in on the next book in the Twilight Saga but thought instead that it might be a good idea to change things up a bit and save the rest of the series at least until next week.





I am super excited to read Natural Family Living: The Mothering Magazine Guide to Parenting. I've had my eye on this one for a while and I'm sure it wont disappoint.