sew, mama, sew!

Sewing is a handy skill to have. My mom knows the basics, enough to make some small projects. She signed me up for lessons at Beverly's when I was younger and I ended up making a drawstring bag and I think some shorts or something. I didn't keep up with it, but I remember learning a little. Well, for the past few years, my mom and I have had conversations about getting a new machine and getting to work on some easy projects for our homes and the kids. Then, my dad stepped in. He decided that he could also benefit from such an arrangement and they talked it over. My dad bought me a new machine for my birthday and my mom bought me all the sewing accessories a girl might need.

I kept the box laying around for a few months, gathering dust, but also quietly encouraging me to think more and more of all the things I could be doing. When I ripped a shirt, I looked at the box. When I started thinking about curtains and new pillows for my living room, I think I moved the box to a more central location. I did this because I was now lazily planning on eventually opening it up and to see if I could figure the thing out. I couldn't. Not with having about 15 years pass between my first sewing lessons and this new endeavor. I tried following the quick start guide, (I'm usually really good with any sort of set-up on electronics) but this machine is nothing like what I had used in my youth. My dad bought me the Brother Sew Advance Sew Affordable machine. I decided I needed someone to help me and maybe even to make sure I didn't break the contraption.

When looking around for anything, like most of you, I just google it. So, I googled Bakersfield sewing lessons. Up came a few different things, but nothing caught my eye. I started calling around, but sitting in a class with other people didn't seem so appealing. Then came Queen's Knight Seven, lessons by Judi Carrejo, out of Jo-ann Fabric and Craft stores. I checked out her website and I knew this would be perfect for my needs.

So far, I have taken four lessons and I already have the confidence to at least attempt to start some of my own projects. With her help, I completed two projects (pictured below). Let me just say, she is awesome. She is skilled and experienced. She makes so many of her own things and they look amazing. She taught me how to use my own machine and so many basic techniques she taught by leading me through the projects of my choosing. Also, I should add that she is a delight to hang out with during the lessons. We are cracking jokes the entire time, and she laughs at all my jokes (bonus for me). She is one cool lady. I would recommend her for anyone who is interested in taking lessons.

Because of my newly acquired skills, I not only completed the projects I chose below, but I am making my daughters' their Halloween costumes this year, all on my own, in the comfort of my own home. I'm so happy, and the looks on their faces when they see what their mama has made is worth so much more than the time, money and effort I put into learning as much as I can.

Skittles the Cat

Details, details.

It is a pretty big cat/pillow/riding apparatus.

Luci's Blanket

I told her mean moms don't make blankets like this.

It is a big comfy, super soft, lined in satin blanket of looooove.

more pink...

There are quite a few topics I've been wanting to write about lately but now that I've gotten some free time there is one thing I can't put off any longer!

We are having another baby! And to top it off, we just found out we are having another girl! I'm laughing out loud right now, because yes, that means girl #4. She is due February 15th, which also means that I'm already 6 months (24 weeks!). I have been anxiously awaiting the freedom to talk about this on my blog and even in just my regular facebook updates because I always have a lot to say about everything, right? And now, I can finally share the news.

Here's the backstory: I've been nursing Roslyn so I didn't know I was pregnant until I was already over two months. Then, I waited until I went to the doctor to confirm everything was going as it should and with appointment waiting time that took almost another month by itself. We told most of our family and friends within the next month or so, but we were waiting on one final reveal before we made it 100% public. Not that I could hide it out in public (I'm showing quite a lot already), but we were waiting to tell Erik's mom in person. She had been planning her move back from Florida for the past three months and getting her affairs in order, so we just kept waiting and waiting. Well, she finally moved back last Friday and we were able to tell her. Erik went to pick her up from the airport and when he got back, he walked her into to the living room and told her we had a surprise for her. Then, I lifted my blanket and he told her we were having another. She definitely had a surprised reaction but it was a mix of surprise and excitement.

Now, I'll be able to share all my pregnancy glory with everyone. Like the fact that I cry over everything, even just really touching commercials, or that all I want to do is eat, eat, eat. You know, the good stuff.

We are really excited to have another little girl join our family. We love the idea of a big family, because not only do these kids fill our lives with love like we could never have imagined, but because when we are older, we will have many more family members to love and join our lives. So now, we sit back and wait for her to come and we can't wait to see who she is and how she fits into our family. She is already loved by her sisters, who are all so glad she is a girl. We will have to wait until she is born to see how Roslyn takes it, but she LOVES babies and I know this baby will be no exception.

good news

This post is for my Bakersfield peeps:

When I wake up in the morning, I usually grab my phone to check the time. If the sun is up and my eyes are adjusting normally, I usually check my email inbox in case there is anything interesting. This time, there was!

I received confirmation from a group called Mommy Parties that I was selected to host a Mega Bloks Party! They will be sending me a party pack so I can host a small party for up to 10 kids. The kids will be invited to come to my house and try out a few new products from Mega Bloks. I will be sending home some special gifts, there will be a cool raffle, and we will be doing some really fun activities. I am really excited to be able to do this, I think it will be a lot of fun!

I plan to do this party in a few weeks, in November. The kids I will be looking for will be preschool aged, at least one year old, but not yet starting Kindergarten. If you are interested, or know someone who might be, please stop by my Facebook Page to submit your information. You can also visit my page, "Like" it, and then use the "Share" feature in the bottom left hand corner to share the news with someone who has a child that might be interested. I will take information until this Sunday, and announce the lucky kids on Monday. It's gonna be funnnn!

make room, sister

I totally neglected my blog for the past two days. I had a lot of organizing to do and between that and doing the daily routine with the girls, I didn't have much time left over. On Sunday, we took on the task of moving Emme back into Luciana's room. She had moved in there for almost two months when we had relatives staying with us temporarily, and it really worked out well. Although we were able to leave quite a few things in Emme's old room the first time, this time we are completely moving her into Luciana's room. This means, two beds, two dressers, lots of toys and tons of books. We decided to do this for two reasons. First, Erik's mom is moving back from Florida and will be staying with us for awhile. Also, Roslyn is just about ready to transition from co-sleeping with us to her own bed (update to follow in the near future on that!). So, eventually, our plan was to move Emme and Luci into a room together and give Roslyn her own, at least until she was sleep trained. Emme transitioned so easily from one step to the next, as she often does so amazingly, so we wanted to get Roslyn on the same track.

Luckily, Erik is so helpful and we make a great team when it comes to doing the kids rooms. We are like the East side version of the Novogratz family. We worked all day Sunday and were so excited for the finished product. Luciana and Emme were both extremely excited too, and are doing really well together. However, Emme tends to wake up earlier than Luci so we are trying to get her to stop waking her sister up too early in the morning. The last thing we need is more than one grumpy, tired female in the house. All in all, everything is falling into place. All we need is a grandma to fill our empty room.

I don't have any before pictures of Luciana's room the day we started, but I have a picture of what her room looked like when we first moved in. Since the first picture, we added a big dresser, curtains, and a few other details but for the most part, this is the way her room was for a long time.

 Her bed and reading area

 Her desk

Small storage solutions

Seeing as to how this was over a year ago, she has taken on so many new possessions. Random toys, a zillion books, a thousand stuffed animals, and other stuff. Now, we had to streamline her things, as well as combine everything with Emme's. This is how the new room turned out:

 The view from the door.

 The new reading area. Roslyn spends most of her time there.

 See, she loves it.

 We moved the desk to maximize space and minimize Roslyn's climbing temptation. Emme's dresser is on this side of the room.

Luciana's dresser, a few books to minimize mess, the rest are in a drawer. We bought one of those toy slings to keep their stuffed animals out of the way. 

 Luciana sleeps on top bunk and we moved Emme's toddler bed down to bottom so she stays safe.

Emme wishes this was her bed. She doesn't realize she'd fall off on night one. 

Streamlined compartment storage for loose toys. Most of these are for Roslyn. The rest are put away so I'm not picking up 30 toys a day. 

Besides the closet, this is it. In the closet we have a hanging storage organizer for shoes. There are three built in drawers which hold art paper, writing paper, coloring books (no colors though), and more books. We like to store messy toys like blocks, puzzles and games up in the closet. We take those out for them when they want to play with them and put them away right after they're done to keep things clean and organized. 

I realize to some people this is meaningless, but for me, this sort of organization makes my life 10 times easier and more manageable. I can't imagine not having things neat and easy with all these rugrats plotting to take me down mentally. Mama's sanity is here to stay girls!

If anyone has any cool tips or advice on better organization for siblings sharing a room, please share. With birthdays and Christmas coming up, I know I am going to have to keep up with new ways to organize their room.

Oh, and I apologize for the poor quality pictures. Please direct all complaints to Erik, so that he can buy me the nice camera I so obviously deserve. Thank you.

what they ate: vol 3

My kids have a favorite go-to phrase around here, and it is "I'm hungry". Now, before you call CPS because you think I might not be feeding them enough, give me a chance to explain. Ever since Luciana could speak, the second her eyes would open in the morning she would say, "I'm hungry". I am not joking when I say the second they opened. I think she might have even said it before they opened on one or two occasions. I used to have to sleep with a sandwich bag of dry cheerios she could snack on in the early morning hours so I could get an extra hour of sleep. Yes, this was back when I had one child and twice as much sleep as I get now. Now, Emme, in true follower fashion, utters this phrase at every stagnant moment. It's like her "filler". If it gets too quiet, "Mama, I'm hungry". If she is sitting in one place for more than five minutes, "Mama, I'm hungry". And of course the baby walks right in the kitchen, points at the pantry (where I keep the cookies) and grunts her desires to me. So, I try to keep snacks and meals interesting. And of course, healthy and filling and all that CPS friendly stuff. I find that if they enjoy the meal more, they stay satisfied longer. Not just because they are eating more, but because they are paying attention and it seems to affect their satiety. Go ahead, google it, no one else can see you.

This week I have been a little busy watching Mad Men doing a lot of important tasks around the house so I have two simple meals with the same ingredients. I have been getting into the Halloween spirit around here (no mom, not with seances or Ouija boards), so I decided to make it a Halloween themed lunch.

Meal 1

"Jack O'Lantern Sandwich, Moon Cheese and Pumpkin Chips"

First, let me settle your fears, no the chips aren't made of pumpkin. They are just plain old BBQ flavored potato chips, but calling them pumpkin chips made Emme more excited. I bought a 2 dollar pack of Halloween cookie cutters and Walmart and cut a moon shape out of Colby Jack cheese. I made a regular turkey sandwich and cut the pumpkin shape and then used small pieces of apple and cheese for the eyes, mouth, and nose. She ate it last because she loved looking at it. EASY!

Meal 2

"Scaredy Cat Sandwich, Apple Spears and Pumpkin Chips"

For Roslyn, I made an open faced turkey sandwich because I only give her one piece of bread. I used the scaredy cat cutter. I sliced some apples and spread some of Emme's leftover cheese edges from her moon shape as little decoration around her plate. Just put a few chips and voila, done. This one doesn't have so much of a theme as Emme's but Roslyn is only 1 and to her, I'm Picasso, baby.

So, that is it for this week. If you excuse me I have more important tasks I must attend to. Queue Mad Men!

For more ideas see what they ate: vol 1 and what they ate: vol 2. 

Also, feel free to share your favorite fun with food site with me because I am always looking out for new ideas!

babywearing 101

In honor of International Babywearing Week, I thought I could talk about a part of my parenting style that I love, love, love. Babywearing! Just how does one wear a baby, one might ask. Well, first you find the zipper for the removal of their baby skin and... okay, I'm kidding. It's simple, really. Babywearing International, defines it as "holding or carrying a baby or young child using a cloth baby carrier". But, I will say there is much more to it. It's the benefits that make it so wonderful for me. What better way to offer comfort to your baby than wrapping them in a tight cloth held close to your body? For newborns, it is the position they have been in for many months of a pregnancy. They feel comfortable and secure. Trust me, a lot of newborns have emailed me about just how much they love it and wish their parents would wear them more. That's not true either, but I am positive that if they had the manual dexterity and communication skills to execute such a task, my inbox would be flooded.

Who can wear their baby? Anyone can wear a baby, as long as they can find a baby to wear. Please ask permission from the parents first, if it is not your baby. Seriously though, babywearing is for anyone. They have slings with patterns for the hipsters out there, and they have solid colors for those who like to keep it neutral. I have a plain black one that Erik coordinates with his hat and shoes. Well, it works out that way at least. And boy does he look cute wearing our cute babies.

Real men wear babies

So why do I like it so much? Well, besides the fact that it keeps my babies close to me, calm, and comforted, its extremely convenient. I can have my hands free to do anything I need. Clean, make a sandwich, browse through department stores but not committing to any purchases, play Xbox with Erik, you know, things I need both hands for. The brand and style of sling I bought even allows for discreet nursing. No peeking! It really is an awesome way to incorporate your baby into your everyday life without having to push an extra stroller around. NO WAY I'm pushing a triple stroller. I draw the line at the double. 

If you want to get into the research about the benefits, there are always resources for that. Just check out Babywearing.org and they have fact sheets and a lot of other information about babywearing. They talk about how babywearing is a skill and the different types of slings or carriers there are. 

So, I just wanted to share this information because I have seen a lot of happy babies snuggled closely to their caregivers and all babies should be happy. I honestly don't even know how I stumbled onto this practice. I was only 20 when I had Luciana but somehow I just KNEW I had to wear her close to me like this. I've been wearing babies ever since.

Look at that face of pure joy

Remember, its not just for infants. Older babies can be worn too. I mean, I'm not wearing Luciana anytime soon, her days of me wearing her are over. Now she's just wearing me OUT!

'tis my season

I love Halloween time! It marks the first holiday of fall and means that my other favorite holidays are close by. Of course, my kids love seeing all of the cool decorations and deciding what costume they want to try this year is a lot of fun.

We started decorating a little this past week. I am ready to add more and more as the weeks go on though. I can already feel Erik rolling his eyes, but I can't apologize for wanting this holiday to be fun, fun, fun! But, I am also excited at the idea of building up our decoration arsenal each year for these fun holidays. I usually buy most things at the 99 cent store if I can. I will splurge here and there for something cool from Target or Walmart though. When I'm all done with our decorating, I'll share some pics of our creations. For now, I'm still browsing the web for cool DIY crafts that the kids can help with. I added a bunch to my "Halloweenie" board over at Pinterest, so feel free to take a look. Here are a few snapshots of the crafts I recently added to my new board obsession.

Happy Decorating!