Sawyer & the ducks

Disclaimer: this happened several weeks ago but I'm just now able to write about it without having a panic attack :)

Sawyer LOVES ducks!  A few nights ago he decided to join them.

We were at the park with some friends.  Sawyer discovered the duck pond.  He spent over 1/2 an hour talking to the ducks and throwing rocks and sticks at them for "food." Kyle was standing beside him and I was at the other end of the pond.  The next thing we know Sawyer is in the water flailing.  Praise the Lord Kyle was within feet of the water.  He reacted quickly and jumped in to grab Sawyer.

Thankfully the whole ordeal was over very quickly.  We all got a good laugh at our soaked boys.  It also ended our lovely evening since we had to rush home for dry clothes...by this time the temperature was in the low 60's and our skinny boy was shivering a lot.  

It was only later that night and over the next few days that the magnitude of the event hit us.  Kyle can't get the picture of Sawyer's face under water out of his head.  And Sawyer gets a little whiny and starts saying water, water when you mention ducks.  He certainly hasn't forgotten the event.  But Kyle was most definitely the most traumatized.

Thanking the Lord for his protection!

My cold, soaked boys

Random Tidbits

Nora is a master stair climber, slide climber, and stander.  It would be nice if she would start walking more so all of these other activities would be a bit safer.

I recently ran my first race since Nora was born.  It was a 5K on Malone's campus. I've been running pretty consistently, but the week of the race I developed tendonitis in my foot.  I'm rather prone to tendonitis and get it often but it was discouraging for it to flare up right before the race. So on race day I had very low expectations.  But thankfully after the first quarter mile the pain in my foot went away.  I was able to run with a friend who really pushed me and I finished ahead of my goal time.  I can't believe I'm going to tell you this...lets just say with each child I've gotten much slower...my goal time was 3 miles in 30 minutes.  I haven't even looked up my official time but when we ran across the line it said 28 minutes 45 seconds.  So, I exceeded my goal on a hilly course and I was quite happy with the effort.  Though I was humbled after the race by the fact that my body was DONE for the rest of the day it was like I had run 13 miles not 3 :) And even though it was an insignificant race I still had the old, all too familiar race day pit in my stomach.  I don't know why I subject myself to it...oh how I loathe that feeling.

Sawyer loves to help me cook.  The other night he was helping me fix dinner by pouring ingredients in the pot.  He poured in some oregano and before I could stop him he reached in and pulled some out and put it in his mouth.  His expression was priceless!  But immediately following that he started gagging.  I quickly ran and scraped the spice out of his mouth and then he begged for water.  I think he learned his lesson.

Here's the cook in action making garlic bread

I'm not sure it I've mentioned it before but Eleanora is a momma's girl.  She is quite literally attached to my leg most of the day. As evidenced by the pictures below.  This attachment often makes it difficult to complete tasks, but truth be told I'm enjoying the extra loving by my little girl.  I know it will all end when she realizes there are cooler people in this world :)

I finally bought Nora some shoes!  It's not that she doesn't already own shoes in fact she has quite a selection.  But in her first 9 months of life I think I put shoes on her a total of 2 times.  Why you ask?  Well the girl's got some narrow feet and I couldn't find any that would stay on for more than .2 seconds. Since she is now walking I figured it was time to get serious about shoes.  Some friends suggested Robeez. I tried them and they stayed on her foot but were very floppy and loose, plus she cried hysterically when I put them on.  Then I broke down and did something I swore I would never do...I tried Stride Rite shoes on her feet.  Much to my dismay they fit!  I have deep seated issues with Stride Rite shoes because I too have very narrow feet and when I was a little kid they were the only shoes that fit, but they were not the cool kind of shoes.  That's the brand my mom insisted on buying me because they fit properly and all I wanted were cute shoes like bright pink jelly's!  I've had very strong opinions about my fashion since about the age of 2 :) So as much as it pained me I bought the Stride Rites at a consignment sale.  Hopefully I don't traumatize Nora :)

Lounging

Sawyer has a new favorite lounge spot...

At first I resisted his efforts to sit in the exersaucer.  But then I realized this was a wonderful thing.  He willingly confines himself :)  He sits there when he is watching a video and he can't get out.  It allows me to get chores done.  It allows Nora to roam freely without fear of being jumped on.  I can go upstairs and get ready for the day without fear that he will attack Nora.  It's a win-win situation for all parties!

Fresh Regard {Grand Opening & Giveaway}

**Giveaway is closed.  Winner is Judy L.**

After much internal struggle I finally opened an etsy shop.  As most of you know I LOVE to create things and I worried if I turned it into a business it might turn into more stress and less of an enjoyable creative outlet.  But thus far that has not been in the case in fact my first order required some customization and I loved learning about my client and creating a piece that was perfect for her!

The shop is called Fresh Regard.  Click on the name and the link will take you there.  It's a shop filled with unique, modern items that will liven up your room or wardrobe!  I love creating new items for my house that give me a fresh perspective or make me fall in love with the room all over again or adding the perfect accessory to my children that just increases their cuteness.

The shop will be ever changing.  As the seasons change so will my inspiration.  So check back often to see what's new.  As I continue to add products I hope to incorporate pieces you can use in every room of your house (i.e. living room wall hangings, children's clothes, a wreath for the front door, children's toys, etc).

I want my products to combine beauty and function.  For example, I am selling fabric embellished dish towels.  These towels are meant to be used around your kitchen, but it's always nice to have a little extra pretty around when doing the dishes :)

Here's a sampling of some of the items in my shop.  You can also peruse the selection on the right sidebar of this blog or visit the shop.

Re-purposed burlap and t-shirt wreath

Bright and cheery fabric wreath with felt flowers

Green fabric wreath with jewel tone flowers

Ruffle dish towel

Set of 3 coordinating dish towels

Custom embroidered state map

Bow tie applique on gray onesie

Neck tie applique on blue t-shirt...cute boy with a ornery grin is not included :)

And in honor of the shop's grand opening I have a giveaway!  The winner will receive 1 item of their choice from my shop.  There are 2 ways to enter:

1. Leave a comment on my blog telling me what item you like best at Fresh Regard (if you don't have a google account you can leave an anonymous comment just be sure to include your name)
2. Like the Fresh Regard Facebook page

The giveaway will end at 11:59 pm on Saturday, April 28th.  The winner will be randomly selected and announced next Sunday.

This giveaway is open to all those with a US mailing address.

Bathroom Inspiration

As we near the end of the bathroom remodel I get to start doing the fun stuff...styling the bathroom!  This bathroom is the main house bathroom.  It is the largest in size and it will be used by the children and guests.  So I have to keep a few things in mind when decorating this bathroom:

1) I need to keep it semi-neutral for resale purposes.
2) It needs to be kid friendly (i.e. not a bunch of breakables).
3) It needs to be inviting for guests.
4) It needs to be functional and have good storage to keep all the kids bath toys out of sight.

So here are a few inspiration pictures:

via Censational Girl

Love the dark vanity with the white countertop

via Knock Off Decor

I may add some ruffle to the shower curtain for a little feminine feel in this neutral bathroom.  I've seen shower curtains with horizontal ruffles, but I thought it might be interesting to do something with a vertical ruffle. I'm thinking a white shower curtain to enhance the clean feel and play off of the white trim, toilet, and sink.

via Design Seeds
And these are a few color schemes that caught my eye.

I will add color through the accessories.  For art I'm going to hang prints from our travels.  And I think I will bring in a pop of dark turquoise in the hand towels and accessories to add a little more color.




Oh the fun has begun...can't wait to show you the final reveal!

6 month pictures

These may be a little late (Nora is over 8 months old) but I couldn't help but share a few of my favorite pictures from Nora's six month photo shoot.  I LOVE them!

When I showed Kyle the pictures he was completely taken aback...not the reaction I was expecting.  He thinks they are adorable, but I think they scare him a bit.  Seeing her all dressed up in pearls made him realize just how quickly she will grow up.

These were taken by my wonderfully talented sister-in-law Candace.  Check out her other work here.

Nora's Tricks

Here is Nora doing her tricks.  She has also taken a few small steps!
This video is pretty boring, but grandparents if you make it to the end you may get a smile.




The video is quiet because we were being sly.  She won't stand on command.  In fact if she knows you're watching she will crawl to you.  Yes, she is playing with trash. She is also blowing a lot of bubbles lately which you can hear her doing in the video.  And no those are not my legs in the video.  Wouldn't want you all to think I have hairy, muscular legs :)

Dada & Son

My two favorite boys!

I think that smile of Sawyer's is going to break some hearts

 Lately when Daddy comes home Sawyer runs to find his football.  He never wants to play with momma only dada will do.  Kind of hard to catch the action on camera but here's my best attempt.

Another one of Sawyer's favorite games.  Playing hide-n-seek with Daddy's hat over his head.  It's adorable because he looks through the little holes and then chases after you with the hat on.  He gets really turned around :)

Bathroom Remodel {update}

Kyle and I have both been busy trying to wrap up the bathroom remodel.  I think we've made most of the important purchases like lighting, sink, etc.  I think the only thing we still need to buy is a mirror

The last few weekends have consisted of me painting the walls, trim, and vanity.  Kyle laid the floor and put in a new toilet.

New Floor

Who knew a toilet could be so pretty

We obviously still have some work to do.  Like the rigged light?

Hopefully this weekend he will get the vanity and installed.  Then we'll just have finishing touches to complete!

Easter 2012 {Part 2}

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Romans 5:8-10

Hallelujah!  What hope we have in Christ's life, death and resurrection!

We began our Easter Sunday with Easter baskets filled with gifts and candy from the grandparents.  Sawyer loved all of his Elmo items, his new bath toys, and a light-up spinning toy!

Poor Nora doesn't have a traditional basket yet, but I found a cute bag at the $1 spot in Target.  She received some clothes, stuffed animals and bath toys.  I also made her a bonnet for summer.

Then we attempted some pictures of the kiddos.  This proved to be a bit difficult.  I think I took about 200 pictures and this is what resulted... I kids will probably hate this as they get older, but I made Nora's dress and headband.  I also made Sawyer's bow tie...he kept it on for several hours, but at Sunday School he decided it made a better chew toy.

Sawyer demonstrating a choke hold

This one did not want to sit still

Unfortunately we didn't get a family picture, but on the way out the door Kyle got this one of  Nora and me

After church we went to our friends house for a delicious meal.  After several hours of eating we went home and enjoyed naptime.