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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we have a new address

well, we moved into our new house this past weekend with the help of andrew's sweet parents(who are so good at getting things done), my mother who kept elisha while we moved, and lots of friends from our Bible study group... many many thanks!!!
i guess for only having been here for a week, we are pretty settled. we have figured out some of the quirks of our older home(sorry if you shiver while using our guest bathroom-- don't know why they didn't include a heat vent in there?)... some of the quirks are still a mystery- lots of light switches that don't seem to do anything.
elisha loves his new digs-- plenty of room to run around inside. he has been loading his wagon up with various things and then pushing it at break neck speeds around the house. his room still echos a little, but he sleeps well. otis is desperately missing his doggy door, but maybe in a couple weeks we will have a fence up and get him another door. we are going to get the kind that only opens when he is near it so that elisha won't crawl out of it ;-)
i will try to post some picture soon- i'll try to avoid the desire to get things just so before i do, b/c who knows when things will be 'finished'... with the little one on the way i'm giving myself a year to be settled in totally(pictures on the wall etc)

we found out we are having...

a very modest baby! we went to the ultrasound school to volunteer for students who are learning to do ultrasound scans in hope that they would catch a glimpse of our little one's private parts. well, after looking forward to this and even losing a bit of sleep wondering how it would turn out -- i am very disappointed to be no closer to knowing who is in my belly! our little one had his/ her legs tightly crossed the whole time!
with elisha i just knew from the beginning that he was a boy, and my instincts were correct... this time i am thinking girl- and i am dying to find out if my instincts are correct! don't get me wrong- i will be thrilled either way, i just want to know ;-)

shoe people

a few weeks before andrew and i got married i was moving some of my stuff into what was going to be our apartment before heading to the beach for the wedding week... well some of that stuff just so happened to be a large suitcase plus a huge plastic bag all full of shoes. after hauling them up the stairs for me andrew realized what it was he was hauling... he realized that both of these heavy bags were stuffed full of shoes-- that he was now going to have to help me find a place for. needless to say, he was horrified! he was certain he could could do something about what he viewed to be a huge problem... at one point in our 'discussion' about the shoes he said, " we are not shoe people". at which point i emphatically responded-"yes WE are!" this was something that Had to be dealt with and understood before we said our vows a few short days later ;-)... well the day ended with andrew helping me put my shoes into organizers we had bought at target... he still tries to convince me that i have to get rid of a pair of shoes every time i get a new pair-- sometimes that happens ;-) .... but, it looks like i have passed the shoe gene on to our little one. 2 to 1 this family is made up of shoe people!
e just loves to wear shoes- any one's shoes... and he'll settle for just socks if he has too...

there have been several times that i have gotten him up from his nap and he is trying to climb out of his crib, pointing and yelling to have the shoes from across the room.

he seems to like the cheerful yellow shoes as much as i do! it is so fun to have a little buddy around who likes the same things you do ;-)

blue

as we prepare to move into our new house (we closed wed. and will do the final move next weekend) my mind is so full of decorating ideas... i'm just flooded with plans of how to turn this house into our home. and as it is a bit(well, more than a bit really) bigger we will need some new furniture. as i am looking at furniture and especially fabric for pillows and even picking out paint colors- i am being drawn to shades of blue like never before! green has been my color- and i had definitely loved reds and browns, even oranges and yellows, but surprisingly blue has just never excited me or drawn me. i know water- the sky- all these inspiring things that are blue, but i have never just loved it for my own use-- until now. i have been pondering this change, and it occurred to me that i finally found my blue inspiration: mister blue eyes himself! don't you love the vintage e pic ;-) he looks like such a frat boy-- he's going to be mad at me one day for all the funny ways i dressed him- but hey, i needed something to giggle at during those sleep deprived days!

down on the farm

we went to greenville, al last weekend- andrew enjoyed the opening weekend of deer hunting season and elisha enjoyed pushing a wheelbarrow with nana and riding the tractor with papa john.


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blowing kisses

i wish i had a picture or video to post of elisha blowing kisses... he has been going crazy w/ it today! it was a bit odd for him to be blowing kisses spontaneously to the salesman we just met at haverty's (who wasn't even paying him any attention)... but what is even funnier is that this morning as we were flushing some poo poo down the potty (you can only imagine my delight at having poo poo in the potty ;-) we were saying 'bye bye poo poo' and he started emphatically blowing kisses to the drowning poop!!!! how hilarious! i'm very sorry that i have written about poop, but i guess you realize that this blog documents a young family, and that is just life as we know it...

our unborn

beware: slightly political content...
i am feeling such a burden right now the most vulnerable unspoken for subset of our population... the genocide of our unborn is such an atrocity! a friend just shared with me that 90% of babies with downs syndrome are aborted!!! support groups are closing down b/c there just aren't many being born. we are like russia -they sent their mentally retarded off to live elsewhere, yet we are so much worse b/c we are just killing them off! while they are completely unable to fend for themselves. there are 4,000 human aborted (killed) a day! in the US... this is a blood bath
this issue is so huge, i can't even scratch the surface... especially not spur of the moment during nap time, but i am just feeling so burdened... i know when speaking of the upcoming election and political issues people say there are other important issues that lead them to vote against their conscience on the abortion issue... all i can say is: how are we judging importance? because in my book life or death pretty much makes the cut for extremely important!

but i guess it doesn't affect how much money you have left after taxes to spend on stuff... and if you are claiming the lives of soldiers in iraq(who signed on for the risky job they do) are more important- just look up the stats... the lives of soldiers lost throughout the entire war compared to one year of abortion, you will be blown away. it is time we spoke up for these lives

torture...?

this is how our day started... yes, at one time my recipes were organized into categories-- not anymore!

then we went to a cute kids salon... i realized when i approached elisha with scissors in hand the other night that paying a few extra dollars to go to the children's salon( where they have movies, toys, fun seats, and most importantly stylists that are used to hostile clientele) was going to be worth it... here he is having fun in the car and holding the car but slightly perturbed that the lady keeps bothering him...
here he is holding a comb b/c he kept trying to take hers, but is just using it to swat her away...
notice the arms up while giving her a look...
this is when he started to really take after his cousin and father(who have many childhood pictures w/ giant amounts of hair b/c of their desperate fear of hair cuts). he is calling mama and reaching for me-- this dissolved into crying and climbing out... the haircut was completed w/ me holding him screaming and kicking. sweet liza was unruffled...
this is the rough draft... he was still unsure about being out of my arms. he eventually he calmed down as we colored in the corner. i noticed a few strays and decided to go a bit shorter in the back since we weren't going to be attempting another haircut for quite a while... so after he was totally back to himself we took one last go at it... me holding him screaming- lisa calmly snipping here and there. i can understand how scary it must be to have scissors or noisy clippers right around your face and ears... but come on - it doesn't hurt... it doesn't have to be torture. but unfortunately it was... for both of us!

make someone happy

i think this is sure to make at least one someone happy! i found this at old navy for $15 and as soon as we saw it e starting saying "ee ee oo uuee"... plus he loves bananas... today he got one out of the fruit bowl on his own and peeled it from the bottom like monkeys in the wild do... he really is my little monkey. sorry i couldn't pick just one pic, they are so cute... but you have to pretend that he is making his little monkey sounds while you look at them!

our little family...

...is growing! you may have been wondering what our sudden motivation to move into a bigger home was... well, we are expecting an addition to our family! i am pregnant... almost eleven weeks along. so sometime in early May elisha will get an early birthday present (and andrew will too). our children will be almost two years apart and we are so excited. we are certain to have a wild time at first, but it will be such a joy to have another little person in our midst... keep us in your prayers!

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here are some pictures from our neighborhood pumpkin patch...

if you double click in the middle of the box you can see a larger version of the slide show (i recommend doing that)

silly boys

don't really know what i can add to these silly pictures... they speak for themselves ;-)


but i can give a bit of an update: we are still waiting for the bathroom construction to be finished... it will be so nice to no longer have a toilet sitting in our bedroom-- not to mention the smell of drywall dust! as soon as the work is finished we will be listing our house on the market... hopefully in a week! o my! we scrubbed our deck and planted pansies and mulched, edged... we have been busy this weekend getting ready. e tried to help... but i'm afraid he really did more harm than good with the pansies.
we also have plans to close on a new home at the end of october!!! not the ideal order of operations- but i have to say this house will definitely show better when i get the dog and the toddler out of it ;-) andrew and i have felt like junior high kids in love... staying up late talking in the dark about our infatuation with this house we are buying... it is just outside of the perimeter... so not tooo far out, but it sits on close to 2 acres of land!!! and not only that, our land connects to a great park... it really is a dream come true for my husband, who never intended to live in a big city. to be able to get to the woods from our back door is going to be such a blessing! that's what this really is-- just such a blessing. we feel like God has picked out the perfect gift and is lavishing it on us!
that's i can keep my eyes open to tell you tonight...

say what?

i have been asked to document the words elisha says these days... it is true, i can't remember when he started saying so many of them... now they are just part of his repertoire. of course he has his own sweet version of each of these, but if you are paying attention to him and realize his ability-- it is obvious what he is talking about.

-- so here is the list of e's words at almost 16 months... roughly in order of acquisition:

mama

dada

duck

otis

bwee bwee(thats 'paci')

milk (mee mee)

thank you

no

ball

block

papa

nana

nana (banana)

hey

bye bye

shoes

mouth

nose

eye

ear

ice

more

boo boo

poo poo

outside

all done (sounds a bit like "alyon")

in

bath

splash

eat

uh oh

amen

i think that's about it... however, if noises count... moo moo meow chugga chugga..... the list could go on and on... ;-)