checking in

I've been feeling really guilty lately for not posting around here. I'm so sorry there's no crafty goodness to share.
We've been finding our groove with 3 little boys and everyone is doing well.

Amazingly, we're coming up on the 10 week mark with baby boy. It's a cliche and so true: it goes too fast, much much too fast. There are play dates, lots of help from Daddy, time with family, a dirty house, and more love coming our way than I can believe. It seemed so appropriate that I would find a heart-shaped strawberry while berry-picking this last week with my mom and the boys.

Love seems to follow and buoy us these days. We are so lucky,

Sending good thoughts for a fun summer and lots of love in your home.

I'll be back soon.

Welcome Home

Our newest little man arrived 2 weeks ago and has completely stolen my heart. It's so true that love multiplies with each child, rather than being further divided. 

Sorry it took me this long to sit down at the computer with an update. Hopefully, there will be more frequent sewing updates in the near future (I am working on a quilt for a friend that I can't wait to show you!). 

We've had lots of snuggling, diaper changing, and good behavior rewards for the big brothers, along with less sleep and fewer play dates. 

This is life with a newborn and we are very grateful for it.

Go hug your loves, be they tiny or grown up. And I'll be back with some sewing fun before too long. 

Take care!

tick tock

Hello, hello! I hope you're all having a wonderful start to spring and enjoying all your crafty endeavors. 

We are all about baby around here. I've got less than a week to go until my due date and cannot wait to meet this little man. Shockingly, I'm not feeling desperate or miserable...yet. Maybe by the third time around I've learned enough about this pregnancy thing to know that babies come out eventually whether I cry and beg or just eat and sleep a lot.

And I finally made something on the sewing machine! Not only have I been taking a break from blogging, but I took a real honest to goodness break from sewing. To get back in the swing of things, I started simple with a car seat cover for the new little one.

They're nameless fabrics (one yard of each is all it took) from my local discount fabric store.
And I referred to both of these tutorials to put it together: Make it Do, & Cluck. Cluck. Sew.
I was really happy with the coordinating prints (light on the outside, dark on the inside) and with the finishing work
...after my little sewing hiatus, I was worried I had lost any skill I might have once had...

 

And, in anticipation of our little miracle, here are some maternity photos taken by the WONDERFUL Sarah of Sarah Jayne Photography here in San Diego.

I am absolutely in love with all the images she captured and now my only dilemma is choosing which ones to print...
how many pictures would be considered too many??

This is our last time on the baby-go-round and I'm really glad that we were able to capture this growing little one. My husband and I agree that we could have 15 kids and it would be fresh & amazing every time. Not that we have any plans to head into the double digits. No one needs to be worried about that. I think a family of 5 is just right for us.

Hold good labor thoughts and I'll be back with a baby update whenever our newest little man decides to make his entrance.

Very best to you and yours!

hiatus

We've got one busy house right now with baby #3 on the way, our house on the market, and 2 little monkeys who keep me very busy. 

So, I've decided to take a break from the blog for awhile to enjoy all my guys and concentrate on what needs to be done at home. 

While my head is always swimming with new sewing projects and ideas, I just can't get it all done right now. 

Sometimes, I feel bad for my much neglected sewing machine and unused fabric...

but it will all be waiting for me when I can carve out some more time. 

I appreciate you all understanding and hope you are having a wonderful start to 2011!

Thank you for being here and checking out my crafty antics.

Happy New Year! (and the giveaway winner)

Happy New Year to you and yours!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed lots of time with family and friends.

We are lucky enough to have a ton of family within driving distance and got to see most of them over the last week or so. I had big plans to take fun pictures of what we did...and, in the end, I just wanted to enjoy the moments and left my camera in the bag. 

Sometimes, it's so much nicer to be present with those you love and leave the picture taking for another day.

On the crafty side, I'm learning to knit. A dear friend organized a yarn group for a bunch of us to crochet and knit. I crocheted years ago but got bored with it and decided I'd try knitting. While it's decidedly terrible for my hands (tendonitis, not a big deal, only annoying), I really really want to make that wonderful clicking noise that experienced knitters make when they work. Do you know what I'm talking about? It does sound a little nutty. I know. What you see there was the beginning of a scarf...which I completely tore apart. I hope to have something more substantial to show you in the near future.

I also have some lovely fabrics (from Fabric Depot when I went to Portland) which will soon be turned into a reversible cowl. The cream is an organic cotton/silk blend that feels absolutely delicious. I haven't decided quite how to go about it, but have been thinking about making a cowl for several months now...let's hope it turns out well.

Oh! And the giveaway winner is Danielle, comment #81. 

Congratulations!

I love doing giveaways, so look for some more fun in the new year...

You deserve something, too...

I was supposed to post a giveaway on Monday...it's Wednesday now! How did that happen?? Ack. 

Christmas has taken over at our house, which is generally wonderful, but leaves little time for anything else.

So, please accept my apologies and a chance to win yourself a little something.

I just LOVE giving gifts and jumped at the chance to give you this.

You work hard to get ready for the holidays. 

Cards, decorations, school activities, gift shopping, family dinners, parties with friends...one month seems too short to fit it all in.

I think you deserve something for yourself after taking care of everything and everyone else.  

How about $80 to spend on anything you want at CSN stores?

I thought you might like that.

CSN has just about everything, from corner tv stands to bedding to shoes.

And $80 could get you a lot...just think of the possibilities.

So, how do you win? Just leave a comment. 

{make sure to include your email if it's not visible in your profile}

If you want an extra entry, blog/tweet/facebook about it and include the link, if possible.

I know the holidays are hectic so the giveaway will be open until January 1st and then I'll pick a winner.

The fine print: the winner must be a resident of Canada or the US. 
I'm so sorry. They're not my rules, but I do have to follow them.

God Bless you and yours.

Have a wonderful and safe Christmas and New Year's!

Giveaway Winner and Christmas Goodies!

We have a winner for the Sew Mama Sew giveaway! 
Carol, who was comment #57 (picked by random.org), and will be getting these in the mail.
Congratulations!

I was inspired to try out a bokeh shot by Cheryl

We've been having a lot of edible Christmas goodies around here, too...
I do love Christmas baking. There's even an ornament from last year attesting to the fact.



The boys and I have been busy in the kitchen making all sorts of cookies.
Chocolate Crinkles, just like my mom always made (and still does).

Our tried and true Spritz Cookies.
What boys wouldn't love shaking colored sugar all over these?

My little man wanted to take come cookie pictures, too.
Not bad at all, my sweet boy.

Another one by my little helper.
It's just a shame these break so easily...
I can't be giving away or setting out broken cookies so I have to nibble them up.
Someone has to make the sacrifice.

 Snowballs. My favorite to make and eat.

Lots of snowballs...

Peppermint Bark, just like I made with with my dear friend in Portland.
Did you know how easy this is??
2 bags of white chocolate chips melted and mixed with 5 or 6 broken candy canes. Done.

Study in Peppermint Bark, taken by my 4 year old.

He might be better with the camera than I am...

A package full of cookie love for the neighbors.

As much as I would love to eat them all, I'm pretty sure that's not a good idea.

As a reward for making all the way through my cookie baking odyssey, 
you get a heads-up on another giveaway next week...involving a sizable gift card...
Stay tuned - info will be posted Monday!