I am a list maker.

So, I've been all, "I should blog" for weeks now. But I just can't seem to find time/opportunity/motivation.

I decided making a list would be a good idea (thanks Valli). So,

• Our dog ate my SD card from my camera and with that, about half the photos of Nathan's life. I now have a mostly empty baby book and a dog looking for a new home. (At least scrapbooking 2010 won't take me much time...)


• We have found the dog a new home. He will hopefully be moving in with his new family this weekend.


• Perhaps we are not dog people. I suppose we must be cat people then?


• Nathan will turn ONE in less than a week.


• His first birthday celebration will be monster themed. It required purchasing a new Cricut cartridge and stamp set.


• I finally bought a new camera to replace our Canon Rebel that was stolen in September out of our van. I used my Christmas & birthday money because I am tired of saving for a new Rebel and decided to buy something less expensive.


• The girls have been busy. They went to cheer camp a couple weeks ago. Both girls were selected to have some artwork featured in the school district's art show. Yay!


• I bought some adorable clothes for my sweeties to wear for Easter. I spent less than $25. Have I mentioned how much I love consignment shopping?


• Nathan is starting to say "words". We have now deciphered "Laura", "Lindsay", "dog" & "Daddy", though they sound nothing like the actual words.


• We STILL have quite a bit of work do finish in our house addition (painting doors, baseboards, casings, railings, some casings that still need to be cut, nailed, etc., curtains/window treatments hung, decorating)


• We are planning to put a patio in our courtyard this spring. We will be replacing our driveway at the same time. (See photo below - how trashy are we?!) We are excited to get this project underway so that we can enjoy our courtyard this summer!


• This post is really boring. Sorry.

Baby Shower Keepsakes: Tag Albums

These have been really popular since I've been offering them in my Etsy shop.

The idea here is for these tags to be laid out on a table(s) and then for each guest to write a favorite piece of advice, a blessing for the baby, a message to mom and/or baby, etc. This makes a great keepsake and can also serve as a "guest book" of sorts so that the mom-to-be will have a record of who was at her shower.

I love the challenge of matching a specific theme for someone. Some people request that I match the baby's room decor or bedding. Some have requested that I match the baby shower invitation.

These would also be great for anniversary parties, bridal showers, birthdays, good-bye parties, etc. I am thinking about making some for Nathan's first birthday. We'll see.

Oh, the CUTENESS!

So, my boy. He's nine months old. I simply can't believe how fast he is growing up. He's crawling. He's getting into everything. He's cruising the furniture. He's standing on his own. He eats everything (food or not). He babbles constantly (just like his sis Laura). He loves to empty the dishwasher (a huge help). He loves to wrestle with Daddy. He loves to watch the dog. (Oh yeah, we got a dog.) He nods & shakes his head no. He dances. He loves to put items in & out of containers (or the trash).

He hates his snowsuit. He doesn't like apples. He hates his car seat. He HATES getting his diaper changed and he HATES to get dressed. He pretty much hates sleeping though I can usually still manage to force two naps a day.

I spent a small fortune on these 9 month photos because, well, the cuteness. Irresistible. I guess I will have to take on a few extra orders this month to help pay for the huge bill...

The stress of the holidays...

has been getting to us around here.

Nathan is getting a tooth. He is not a fan:


The sign I found taped to Laura's door after a "root beer spilling incident" last evening:

Hope your Christmas season is less stressful than ours!

I'm slightly concerned.

Okay, that may be a bit of an understatement. I'm downright terrified. If this is what he's doing at *just* over seven months old, WHAT will he be doing when he's three??? Fifteen???

Pray for me...

Pumpkin Patch

This is one tradition that the girls have grown to love SO much! They ask often when we will be going to the pumpkin patch. This year we missed our original date because Laura was sick. We picked a later date - she was sick again but did manage to at least pick out a pumpkin.

Nathan was most interested in picking up dirt & rocks to eat as I frantically tried to get him to look at me so I could take some cute photos. I think I got a few but wow, nothing like making a fool of yourself just to get a couple of photos.

Auntie Beth made Nathan's pumpkin shirt - it is too stinkin' cute! You can't see it that great in the photos but his name is embroidered under the truck. She has been busy sewing away and making the CUTEST shirts and other goodies too. She is amazing - I can't believe how fast she can not only learn new things, but master them.

6 & 6

Ahhhh, I just can't seem to stay caught up with my life, whether it be blogging, house cleaning, orders from my shop, etc, etc. Actually, forget stay caught up, I can't catch up at all, let alone stay there! Life is busy, but good.

We have dealt with lots of sickness already this school year so that's not cool. Laura has been sick a bunch. I need to figure out something to get her well and keep her that way. She's always been so healthy, this is unusual for sure. She is home sick again today. She has no voice and sounds like a seal when she coughs. I keep teasing her that she sounds like a monster. Appropriate for the season I suppose.

I have been wanting to post these photos for awhile now. My little cuteness turned six years old late last month! She wanted an ambulance and a wooden train set for her birthday. She has wanted the train set for many months and she has also wanted the ambulance for awhile. She is so sweet. She thanked us at least 20 times for her gifts.

The weekend before her birthday she got a very quick, impromptu visit from her cousins and aunt & uncle. She loved that! Her cousin Karilyn is held in highest regard in her book! Karilyn is almost exactly one year older than Lindsay. We had a pizza & pinata party. Unfortunately it was getting dark & my photos didn't turn out but, trust me, a good time was had by all!

For her birthday dinner she wanted "chicken-in-a-pot" and green beans. (A whole chicken cooked in the crock pot with onions & carrots.) She had cupcake cones for her cake. She took in Play-doh with her name on it for her birthday treat at school. She chose a hot dog book (a history of hot dogs, actually) for her birthday book from the school library which Jeremy & I thought was hilarious!

As for the other six, my baby boy is SIX MONTHS OLD! He is absolutely precious, though all boy, I am beginning to see. He grunts & growls, he "passes gas" like it's his job. He throws everything on the floor, he can clear the table in about two seconds flat. He's rough, a hair puller, a head butter, a skin pincher. And, I love every ounce of him so very much! At his six month check-up, he weighed 14 lbs, 10 oz (10th percentile). He was in the 30th percentile for height.