diy play kitchen

i have mentione this site to several people and wanted to be sure everyone sees how great these are... such inspiration!

http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/toys-kids/roundup-diy-play-kitchens-069808

take a look!

mean mama

andrew may kill me now and elisha may later for dressing him up in his sisters clothes... but i had to see how it would fit! hannah andreson had a huge sale just before Christmas and i got this dress for our daughter to wear next fall( and a matching sweater for elisha) ... i got sizes thta i'm hoping will fit for two years... and i think it will work. the dress will be a tad big(worn over super cute funky fairisle tights) next fall and then the next year- when she is exactly elisha's age now(see why i had to try it on him?) it will fit like you see below- a cute top over jeans... maybe the sleeves will be quater sleeves instead of long- but who cares? he was a great model-- he loves to spin around ;-)

in defense- it isn't even pink... so i don't think it was such a crime!

one nap worth

here is what i did during elisha's nap today. i got the idea from a cool blog i read : http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/inspiration/reader-makeover-the-fisherprice-baby-bouncer-remodel-055042 ... they have multiple posts a day, but some really cool pictures and ideas. i especially love all the diy kitchens they have posted.
i am still figuring blogger out and have posted my 'how to' pics backwards- sorry. i hesitate to even show any b/c i did it so sloppily... but hey- at least this baby girl will have a nice calm background in all the pictures we will inevitably have of her in this bouncy seat... and the nice soft linen will wear better/ wash better and be softer to her skin than the man-made fabric from before which was already full of pills and stains. so here is the finished product- a slipcover that fits over the old bouncy seat cover w/ slits cut for the seat belt. i zig zag stitched around the openings i cut b/c using the actual button hole setting on my machine gives me a headache- beside she'll be sitting on that part, so who cares if it is a bit messy.
this is the part where i tried it on for size and pinned my darts and marked where to cut the openings for the seat belt.
i pinned my three pieces of fabric together and then sewed it inside out.(just look at how the original was constructed when making your own)
i laid the original seat cover on my linen and cut w/ generous(perhaps 1.5-2 in.) margins.

here is our original bouncy seat- cut... not as loud as some, but just not really what i want competing with my daughter's face as we admire her while sitting in it... besides, it's not like she i looking at the animals behind her head anyway!

Christmas report

here are some pictures from all our many Christmas celebrations w/ family... i think e expects to do presents every few days now!


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long time coming

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here is a brief tour of the downstairs of our new house... still very much a work in progress... we have painted the kitchen and hung some pictures since these were taken even. we are still waiting for some furniture to arrive as well... who knows maybe down the road i'll do some before and after pictures...

Christmas eve

i just put elisha down for a nap and we read a new Christmas book. he really liked it and i did too... i saw it recommended in a comment on simplemom's blog. it is "Santa's Favorite Story" and it is delightful. it has lovely watercolor illustrations and it is a nice little tale about santa in the woods telling animals about the first Christmas. at one point santa laughs and tells the animals that Christmas has nothing to do with him... i think it will be a good way to help our children understand what Christmas is really about while also letting them enjoy some of the magic of santa's kind personality.

we have been raking leaves and enjoying a fire inside and will soon be headed to the candlelight service at our church. we are starting the tradition of Christmas morning at home and we are excited about it!

merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

trip to alabama

elisha wispers "papa" whenever he sees this shirt folded up... he loves to wera it b/c it is like "papa's"... here they are together in their matching shirts.

elisha and his cousin had a great time playing together while we were in al...

they definately ebnjoyd decorating the little cake house that nana put together for them.... well, everyone but elisha decorated-- he just ate smarties and licked icing... which led to a rather interesting nap time. he just turned circles in the pack-n-play. i'm serious-- i went in there and he was laughing and spinning and falling against the side, then getting up and doing it over again--- hilarious!!!

despite everyone involved getting a stomach bug(except e- thankfully) we had a wonderful five or so days with andrew's family...

and baby james barker was born while i was in town! he is the sweet first child of my college roomate sarah (whom i have to thank for my meeting andrew).

Christmas list

i thought i would post a few things that elisha might like for Christmas since i know some family might be wondering ... late as this is it may be helpful. it will at least be a reminder for me when his birthdaycomes around:
finger paint
bath toys
books about trains-- his nana has a great one about the train to timbucktoo
and books about buses(or w/ buses in them)
... i'm sure i'll think of more...

happy boy

here is elisha smiling at the camera-- this time without even being asked to. he has been so happy to sit and play with the train track his cousin gave him for Christmas. turns out it was a great gift for me ;-) i was able to get most of my Christmas baking done in peace !

o christmas tree

oops! my pictures uploaded backwards.... so here is our Christmas tree shopping trip in reverse. we came home with a beautiful tree on top of our car.

here is our boy wearing his santa hat in the car on the way home. this is the first picture that elisha "smiled" for-- it is now his favorite thing to do when we pull out the camera. he was trying to take the hat off and i told him to wait and smile for a picture first-- and sure enough- he did!

here we are at home depot with our tree-- it was quite cold so we tried to be quick about it... although usually deliberating over the perfect tree is one of my favorite holiday traditions.

another tradition that andrew and i started a few years ago is to eat at waffle house before getting our tree. elisha was a hit in the empty waffle house we went to last thursday night, and he got a hat... another one of his new favorite things ;-)

this darling little coat is for...

our baby girl! that's right-- we are having a sweet little girl! we found out as our ultrasound tech was listening to beyonce and let me tell you-- this little girl can dance! she was just dancing and dancing. the tech was trying to get a good picture of her feet and they were just prancing to the music ;-) i am getting so excited about things like pigtails and daisy chain crowns... and luckily elisha has a lot of friends that are girls and he just loves them-- so we are hoping he will take to his sissy immediately... we'll see.

thanks giving

the Christmas season is here-- but i don't want to miss the chance to cover our Thanksgiving... and some fall stuff in general. we are feeling very thankful these days. our fall was crazy busy-- but oh so fruitful. we are so thankful for the new little life that is becoming part of our family and for God's blessing of our new home --and really how the whole process went. in the past few weeks we have had the chance to start a couple of fun fall traditions...

elisha had a blast helping with the loads of leaves that were dumped in our yard... 'big mama' got him the little red rake and he has really enjoyed it. but daddy's new wheelbarrow may have won the prize for most interesting new yard tool as far as elisha was concerned.

we made little turkeys out of baby/toddler hand prints... i think the grandparents will be as excited as i am to have a new little gobbler every year.

...and those owl cupcakes are just so cute! they are going to have to visit our house Every year!

we also spent time with my family over the break and even made it to the beach. the slideshow below is a recording of those trips:


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