Raising Cubs in a Campground

If the foot fits

2012-03-02T18:50:00.000-08:00

Our trees, under the weight of ice and snow, reminded me of the trees in Whoville so of course I had to add a little Cindy Lou Who to complete the scene.

We love Dr. Seuss books around here, especially this one.

And look the foot DOES fit!

(My favorite shot of Elsa in her Dr. Seuss hat can be found here)

Elsa Louise at 35 Weeks

2012-03-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

Elsa turned 8 months old yesterday and 35 weeks today. Since today happens to also be Dr. Seuss birthday I took a couple of minutes and pieced together a hat in his honor. Pieced being the key word since it it's really just felt wrapped around an existing winter hat and white felt laid on top. I hand stitched a brim to give it some dimension but I didn't even have enough felt to go all the way around. Oh well...you get the idea....

Moving on to Elsa's 35 week update....
I mentioned in her 34 week update that she likes to make lots of noises and this week she's added 'singing' to her sounds. She quietly sings "ha ha ha" with the same tones every time. It's the first sounds she's ever repeated back to me when I make them. This all started on Sunday the 26th as well as bouncing to music. Gotta love a dancing baby! :) We continue to work on transitioning out of the swaddle but are stuck with what to do about the fact that she likes to sleep on her side now but gets herself to her tummy and can't flip back over. I would be a wreck if it weren't for the video monitor that allows me to watch her like a hawk. On more than one occasion I've had to dash upstairs because she's turned her head straight down into the mattress.

We haven't started solid foods yet so she hasn't had an opportunity to practice picking up small objects. I go out of my way to make sure she doesn't have small objects near her and it dawned on me that she's missing out on practicing her pincer grasp! oops! So I sat down with her a few days ago to see how she would respond to something the size of a cheerio in front of her. She reached right for it and picked it up with her forefinger and her thumb. Good girl!

Miss Elsa you are a ray of sunshine in our lives! The past eight months have been so fun watching you grow and bond with your siblings! You practically attack Sam when he greets you after school. Julia watches out for you and is so excited to share a room with you some day. Sorry, she's claimed the top bunk sweet pea. You have let up on pinching Mama and I am so grateful! Instead you rub your hand across my skin so gently. I will never forget how smooth and warm it feels when you do that. You are discovering new things every day and I can tell that you are starting to remember things you are familiar with. For example - bath time. If I get the sink ready for you but walk away to get you undressed at the changing table you cry because you want to get in the water.right.away.

As the artwork in your nursery says - you are my I love you!!!

Happy 8 month birthday baby girl!

love,
mama

Elsa Louise at 34 Weeks

2012-03-02T17:50:00.000-08:00

Any time Elsa is on her back she's grabbing for her feet. It was during this mini session that she popped one of them in her mouth for the first time. I was adjusting the settings on my camera and heard a sucking sound. I looked up and saw this:

I keep trying to stop using the swaddle but it's been a slow transition. She falls asleep so well when she's wrapped up tight but she is too big and too strong to stay wrapped up. On the 21st of February we started with the swaddle at 7pm and she slept until 2:30. I didn't bother to swaddle her after I fed her and she stayed asleep until 6:00. We're taking it slow...one day at a time. I don't know how many times I've written on the calendar that we've stopped swaddling her only to start up again.

She's always been pretty vocal and when you sit down to read to her it's almost impossible because she's so loud. She loves books and will flap her arms and make tons of noise. She does this gurgling in her throat that the other two never did. She thinks she's hot stuff. Good thing it's cute to think that at this age. :)

The last baby in the basket shot of her seventh month. Sniff Sniff.:

Cloth Diaper info: Elsa is wearing a medium Bum Genius AIO. The same diaper she wore in her very first basket photos. I bought a couple of these as seconds for $10 each. They are really trim and are my go to diaper for special occasions when I don't want to worry about any leaks. They are also the ones I save for when someone else is going to change her. She's only been watched by someone else once but I'm still glad I have them on hand. They won't fit her much longer so I've got them listed for sale on Craigslist so I can buy bigger ones.

Elsa Louise at 33 Weeks

2012-03-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

We have a tooth! Elsa's first tooth popped through on the 16th of February. That's when I noticed at least. I don't make it a habit to stick my fingers in her mouth all that often so it could have been there for a few days but I put the 16th on the calendar. Ironically, the next day Julia discovered another wiggly tooth. Teeth are coming and going around here! The other thing I noted on the calendar about Elsa's 33rd week is that she's become rather attached to her paci. She doesn't NEED to have it all the time, but if you try to pull it out of her mouth she doesn't release her lips. She holds on tight! This means she's not dropping it all the time like she used to. She has a preference for the larger MAM size now. Did you know they make glow in the dark ones? Genius. They hold a 'charge' for a long time - many hours - saves me at least a couple trips into her room since she's very good at finding it and popping it back in when she loses it.

* Cloth Diaper info: She's wearing a Pampered Bunz AIO. The woman I bought two wool soakers from gave it to me for free. It's seen better days but it's a cute pattern and didn't leak when she wore it for a two hour nap. That has to count for something right?

The View From Here - Vol. 2

2012-03-01T18:18:00.000-08:00

Last week a photo of my girls in a grocery cart inspired me to make an effort to photograph and blog photos of life from my viewpoint throughout the day. The following photographs were taken this past week and provide a glimpse into our daily lives. This photo dump sort of post gives me a place to record the every day moments with my family. If you'd like to join in and share the view from where you are there is a linky at the bottom of this post. Post one photo or twenty - it's completely up to you!

My view during Elsa's nap on Friday. Iced coffee, my parenting class book, and the yellow crayon I used as a highlighter.

A new view for the weekly baby in a basket shot. Yummy toes!

A casual comment to Sam about maybe doing a pirate theme for his birthday party turned into a morning of treasure hunts and sword fights. The Science Museum has a pirate exhibit right now but we need to save up in order to go. Wow is that place expensive!!!

Instead I watched Sam ring the bell at REI for free. It was his first time rock climbing and he did great!

Next up was Julia. She made it half way up. Pretty good for five years old!

Monday while Julia was at school I sat with Elsa while she napped. There were 100 other things I should have been doing yet no other place I should have been but gazing at my almost eight month old.

Sitting on my lap and clapping. It's just as blurry in real life that close up as it is in photos.

The light in Elsa's room is so bright during the day. She is almost done using a swaddle blanket so this isn't a view I will have much longer.

I went to Julia's Brownie Stand on Tuesday afternoon. I even splurged on whipped cream topping and a glass of milk. Total cost: 7 cents.

Tuesday night it rained and rained and rained. Julia didn't like the sound of the rain hitting her windows yet the rain on my bedroom windows didn't bother her in the least. She's a really sound sleeper and hardly moves a muscle. Makes for a really peaceful sleepover.

Rain turned to snow between 3am and 4am Wednesday morning and school was cancelled. Julia and I hid under the spruce trees in our yard to get out of the wind/sleet after we made a sled full of snowballs.

Eventually I went back inside with Elsa while PapaBear and Sam continued to build snow forts. I watched from the dining room window.

The power had been out all morning and the house was starting to get cold so we packed up and went to Grandma and Grandpas. Sam and I went sledding/snowboarding. First I wiped out with the pink sled. Then he wiped out with his snowboard.

Sam joined Julia and Grandpa in their efforts to drain water from the driveway.

This calendar is the first thing I see when I walk in the front door. How is it March already?

And there you have it...the view from here!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter J is for...

2012-03-01T11:20:00.000-08:00

JESUS STORYBOOK BIBLE

We were gifted a deluxe version of this wonderful Bible by my friend Tina and have used it as our main children's Bible ever since. This winter Julia took an extra interest in it and has been listening to the audio version at bedtime for months. She can mouth the words right along with David Suchet. It is so special to curl up in bed with her and watch her point out the details of the stories she sees in the illustrations (which are beautiful by the way)

Some day she'll graduate to a more advanced version of the Bible but this version will always hold a special place in my heart as the one that brought God's words for His people to life. The one that whispers the name of our rescuer in every story.

This is how she sets up the book so she can follow along.

Hours later when I go in to kiss her one last time before I go to bed I often find her sound asleep with her face on the pages. These are the moments I don't want to forget!

What Alphabitty Moment do you want to remember this week?

snow day

2012-02-29T17:40:00.000-08:00

The alert for a two hour delay came in around 6:30 this morning. I went out to unlock the gate, not really sure i would be able to with all the rain the night before. It was so peaceful with all the park roads still covered in snow....undisturbed and pristine. I came back inside to find another email alert telling me that school was closed for the day. Phew! I really wasn't looking forward to venturing out. As i nursed Elsa in her room i could hear the creaking sound of her door opening. It was PapaBear coming to tell me that the power was out. Great.

We have a well so no power means no water and no flushing the toilet.
We have radiator heat that has some electrical components so no heat.
We have an electric stove so no cooking.

We were probably going to need to find a place to go for the night just in case all the down trees kept the power company busy for the whole day.

We were outside playing in the snow by 7:20 and sopping wet by 7:40. The three inches of rain we got last night might have had something to do with that. PapaBear and sam made forts while julia and i focused on snowball production. Elsa was content keep me company in the protection of our spruce trees. Speaking of spruce trees....the branches that the kids are standing between will have to be cut down as they broke. It makes me sad because that's the branch i want to hang our new swing from.

After some stories under a pile of blankets we decided it was going to get too cold to stay home much longer so we called Grandma and Grandpa to see if we could stay with them. We stuck a huge pot of snow in the fridge to help keep things cold and headed out. We had to let the kids outside clothes dry before we could go back outside but once it did we did some sledding snow oarding and dam buildong with the waterways created when Grandpa drained the huge puddles in their driveway.

They had so much fun! Boardgames dinner cartoons and dinner passed the time quickly. We heard from park staff that the power was back on around 2:30 so we decided it would be best to sleep at home. Tomorrow is a school day after all. Then again today was suppose to be as well but it turned out to be a SNOW day instead. Did you get hit by this storm? How did you spend your snow day?

(Pardon the typos....im blogging from my phone tonight)

Way above the chimney tops

2012-02-25T18:15:00.003-08:00

If you follow me on Pinterest you know that I'm considering using a rainbow theme for Elsa's first birthday. There is a wealth of inspiration to be found related to rainbows and it apparently rubbed off because when Julia was done making construction paper butterflies to decorate her room I used the leftover paper to make this:

Packages of construction paper come with ten colors - none of which are purple. I wanted purple in my rainbow so I improvised and used a purple pen to add a line from the song, Somewhere Over the Rainbow. The lettering took five times as long as it took to cut and glue the entire rainbow but that's neither here no there now is it? :)

It wasn't my intention to decorate our home for St. Patrick's Day, but this easy rainbow craft that even young kids could do is going to look so cheery above our fireplace mantel. I only uploaded a small version of the photo to the web, but if you'd like I'd be happy to share the full resolution via email.

Are you humming Over the Rainbow Yet? I know I am - especially because I've been singing it to Elsa at nap/bed time for over a week now.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high,
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue,
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true.

Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far
Behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly.
Birds fly over the rainbow.
Why then, oh why can't I?

If happy little bluebirds fly
Beyond the rainbow
Why, oh why can't I?

Music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg

The View From Here - Vol. 1

2012-02-23T15:59:00.003-08:00

As soon as I saw this photo that I snapped of my girls this morning I knew that this is the type of moment I don't want to forget and the type I want to document more of here.

My life, my view.

I read something the other day that struck a cord:

"If you are always racing to the next moment, what happens to the one you're in? Enjoy the ride!"

Along the lines of Alphabitty Moments, The View From Here is a way to document the every day events of life - in my case, motherhood. I recently upgraded my cell phone and downloaded the free app Lightbox and am so happy with it! But here's the thing..... I took 2,600+ photos with my old phone and only a very very small fraction of those made it on my blog where I am compiling our family memories for a future blog book. That's not OK. So once a week I'm going to post at least one photo I've taken from my perspective. They won't always have a filter applied, there may be weeks where I post ten photos and others where I only get one on here. The point is that the memories will live on because let's face it, I'm lucky if I remember to eat lunch some days let alone remember how little Elsa looked the first time she rode in the car cart at the grocery store.

If you'd like to join me in sharing the view from where you are you can use the linky below. Normally Thursdays are Alphabitty Moment days, but The View From Here will take it's place for this week. Starting next week we'll share our views on Fridays.

Life as we know it

2012-02-21T18:14:00.000-08:00

I usually try to have a nice pretty bow to wrap my posts in but putting that sort of pressure on myself often keeps me from chronicling the day in and day out of our lives. Let's face it, often there isn't a pretty bow to wrap around the days. They blur together, they are sometimes awful, there are days when I fall short on so many levels...

The point I'm trying to make is that I'm trying to be better about writing even if there's nothing all that important to write about. Besides, have you ever noticed when you go back and read something you wrote six months or a year or two ago that things get sweeter with age? At least, I feel that way. Something as simple as writing a few sentences about the each day would be so nice to have later on. Once I tried to find a website that would take all my tweets and compile them so I could print them, but I didn't have any luck.

One area where I did get lucky was with an app for my new phone. It's called Lightbox and it's the closest thing to Instagram that I've found. While the iphone was tempting, getting a Razr during the buy one get one sale was too good to pass up. I'm excited for my mom who is just getting started with a smart phone.

This is a photo of Elsa I took tonight and applied a filter through Lightbox. I'm sure some of it has to do with the better camera on the new phone, but I did enjoy playing with the filters as well. I'm excited to try the "Ansel" filter especially. I think it might be fun to try out outdoors with the snow we have. Granted I really hope the snow melts so we don't have to rent skis this weekend. It's been a huge blessing to have the winter completely off. So Huge. I can't begin to put it into words.

The older kids (and PapaBear) got a chance to play in the snow after school and before dance so now it can melt. (sorry if you like the snow, but I'm ready for Spring!!!) I'm ready for garage sale season. I'm ready for planning my garden. I've actually done more thinking about Summer than Spring lately because we're getting ready to put out the schedule of park programs. I love the planning and brainstorming stage and have lots of new ideas for our weekly Saturday morning program. This winter has flown by (probably helps that I'm not sick as a dog like last year!). Does it feel that way to anyone else? One of my favorite ways to pass the time is listening to books on CD. Sam listened to the entire Chronicles of Narnia series in less than a month. That's over 20 hours of being read to! We also listened to Tom Sawyer from the library and I found that you can listen to books on my new phone so we're listening to Huck Finn now.

I know birthdays are a long ways off but we are brainstorming ideas for parties as well. You never know what you might find at garage sales if we know the theme ahead of time! Sam wants Star Wars and Julia wants Hello Kitty. Guess we'll be having two different parties again this year! I suggested a joint adventure party but so far it's not going over well. I think I need to sit down with them and show them the fun things I've seen on Pinterest. Elsa's birthday is her golden birthday this year so I'm feeling extra pressure to make it memorable. Yes I know that doesn't make sense. I don't care. :)

Well, the blog book I'm working on is finished downloading the remaining posts I needed (hi Molly!) so I'm gonna get back to work. Just wanted to check in and record a bit about life as we know it right now. I want to remember these days of mothering my cubs, dreaming up adventures with PapaBear over lunch (oh how I love that man!!!!!), splashing with Elsa while she plays in the tub, and feeling so incredibly blessed with the life I have.

Have a wonderful night friends!

Pure Joy

2012-02-18T20:32:00.000-08:00

To get the full value of joy

you must have someone

to divide it with. - Mark Twain

Wordless Wednesday - Better late than never!

2012-02-15T06:23:00.000-08:00

at least it's an improvement on last year!

Valentine's Day in BearCountry

2012-02-14T19:24:00.000-08:00

It was a busy one that's for sure!

The day started out with finding homemade valentines in our little pink mailbox we use for sending each other notes. That was quickly followed by waffles made by Daddy. Then Sam was off to school with valentine's for all his classmates. The removable mustaches were a hit I've been told. I can't wait to see the photo that was taken of all his classmates wearing their mustaches! Thanks to Heidi at the Craft Monkey for the inspiration! I tweaked my version a little so I could see more of Sam's face and put the removable mustache with the text so when it was removed the card still made sense.

Julia had her very last first day of ECFE today so that kept us busy for a good chunk of the morning. I can't believe she was younger than Elsa when she went to her first class! Her preschool party was yesterday but she made similar valentines to give to her classmates at dance this afternoon. In just one sitting she pounded out 18 friendship bracelets and then one other session of writing names and taping the bracelets to the card stock was all it took for her to complete her Valentine's for this year.

(Inspiration found here.)

I learned a good lesson this year and that was to set a deadline of Martin Luther King Jr. day as the deadline for deciding on what each child is going to do for their valentine theme. Getting valentine's ready was stress free for the first time this year because we didn't have to rush. We could work on them a little bit at a time (though Julia has an incredible work ethic and can stay on task for a long.long.time).

I love this shot of the back of Julia's valentines because it shows what her handwriting looks like at five years old. I have many cards with her sweet signature on them . I treasure them!

Elsa didn't have a class to share valentine's with but that didn't stop me from making some for her. Gotta remember baby's first Valentine's Day after all right?

After ECFE we went to the library program and then home to get ready for an impromptu Valentine's Day party Julia wanted to throw for Sam, Grandma, Grandpa, Sharon, Jamey, and Josie. We spent the next several hours cutting, pasting, cleaning, & creating so that the house was all decorated & ready for when we got home from dance and a work meeting I had scheduled before I knew we were going to have company for dinner. Like I said, it was a busy day!

Grandma and Grandpa brought pizza and chicken and we all enjoyed a lovely dinner together. Julia was very anxious to start the games but managed to eat some dinner first. When I asked her later she said her favorite part of the party was being the judge of the coloring contest. (We printed out a bunch of copies of a valentine themed coloring sheet that everyone (even grandpa!) colored while Julia waited in the kitchen. Once everyone was done she came in and chose which picture she liked the best. Grandma won!!!!) The next game was pin the flower (in the shape of a heart) on the flower stem. Getting to spin people around was Julia's second favorite part of the night. Jamey won this one! The last game was seeing how many times you could bounce a little ball into a container that sat in the middle of the dining room table. After two rounds (3 balls each round) Grandma was declared the winner! It was harder than it looked!

It was a relaxing evening filled with laughter, making memories, and spending time with those we love. I hope we have many more impromptu parties like this in our future - especially when it means Julia and I get to have so much fun getting ready for it. Her face just lit right up when she'd come up with an idea and I'd help walk her through the steps to make it happen.

Hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day as well!

Easy Do It Yourself Chore Chart

2012-02-12T18:37:00.000-08:00

We have tried and failed at responsibility/chore charts many many times. Finally we landed on a system that works for us. We've been using a over sized desk calendar to write out the chores that the kids are responsible for every day. (feeding the cats, picking up and putting away 15 things around the house, cleaning their rooms, cleaning the playroom, setting/clearing the table, doing their homework, picking up the hallway/putting shoes away)

What makes it successful:

Easy access - It hangs by our front door and includes a pen on a string we taped to the wall.
Easily adaptable - When we first started we only wrote out a week at a time so we could tweak the chores the next week as needed. After the first two months we changed the chore from picking up 10 things around the house to 15 things. They hardly noticed the change because they were so used to 10 things by then.
The math is easy - All chores have to be done for the day or you don't get paid for the day. We pay twenty-five cents per day.
Easy payday - We try to keep rolls of quarters on hand so we can pay the kids on Saturdays, but we've also been able to get away with keeping a running tally* on the side of the calendar.
Mix it up - The chores vary from week to week. One week Sam will clear the table, but the next week Julia will have that job while Sam sets the table. The other chore we rotate is cleaning the upstairs hallway and putting the shoes by the front door into the laundry room where they belong. Feeding the cats is something they rotate every other day to help keep things even.

More Details:
We write in different colored pens so it's easy to remember who the list belongs to.
If we know they didn't do their chores one day we put an 'x' on the day so we can easily tally up their earnings.
We put homework on this list because it's something we really want them to get in the habit of doing every day but we don't really believe in paying them for doing their homework. It just makes sense for our family to have it on the chore chart.

There are many days of the week where we only have to remind them once about doing their chores and they get right to work. It's so nice to see them contributing and developing a good work ethic. It's also really really nice to have their rooms stay clean and to have help setting and clearing the table. I'm sure part of the success is due to the fact that the kids are a little older than previous attempts at doing chores. Regardless, I firmly believe it comes down to the parents being consistent. What do you think?

Do you use a chore/responsibility chart system?

* After Christmas I found a couple of toys on clearance that they really really wanted. They spent a month earning the money to pay me back for them and on Jan 26th they had finally earned enough from doing their chores to be able to open the packages. They were thrilled to have earned so much money on their own.

Elsa Louise at 32 Weeks

2012-02-10T19:57:00.000-08:00

Our little cupid found her toes this week. It's the cutest thing! Hopefully I'll be able to get a basket shot of it soon. I think her wings were too distracting while I was taking photos because the second I put her on the changing table she's grabbing for her feet.

Her interest in the food other people are eating is increasing - perhaps we are closer to starting solids than I thought. I did buy a high chair finally so she can join us at the table for dinner instead of hanging out in the exersaucer that we pull up next to my chair.

She continues to increase the variety of her chattering - dadadada is recognizable now. Her favorite times to 'talk' are in the van when Sam and Julia provide an audience.

She had her best night of sleep ever this week - Asleep by 7:00, woke to nurse at 4:10 and was back to sleep by 4:30. I had to wake her at 7:45 to get the kids to school on time. She spent the entire night in her own bed. The memorable part was that I was able to sleep seven hours in a row! She's been on a roll since we introduced the amber teething necklace, but I had a major deadline for work around that time and wasn't able to go to bed until one or two in the morning. I felt like a new woman once I got to reap the benefits of her new sleeping routine.

Something I wish I would have been recording each week is which diaper she's wearing. I've been trying very hard to make sure every diaper we have gets represented at least once in a weekly shoot. I think it would have been fun to look back at some day and remember the different stages of cloth diapering. We've come a long way since the newborn days. So with a little less than five months to go before Elsa's 1st birthday, I'm going to jump in and share a couple of thoughts on the diaper and/or the cover - maybe it will be helpful for someone who's considering cloth or is looking for a different style. Heaven knows, there are soooo many to choose from!

Today's cover is a new one to us - An Econobum cover by Cotton Babies. I met someone at the Mall of America to buy different diapers (oh how I love Craigslist!) but when they offered me five of these for only $5 more I happily added them to my stash. I've been using them for a week with microfiber inserts, kissaluvs fitteds, totsbots fitteds, and not one leak. They are the cheapest option for a one size cover that I know of so I'm happy to have them as part of our rotation.

Here's one of my favorite shots of our little angel this week in an Econobum One Size Cover:

I was inspired by Jessica's post and made my own version of angel wings. I added leftover feathers to a plain white headband with a white paper clip - obviously not something I'd let her wear for anything other than a few photos because of the small pieces.

Don't forget to enter my amber teething necklace giveaway by the 14th!

Beautiful Butterfly Snack

2012-02-09T19:34:00.000-08:00

Julia and I share a love for creating. Yesterday I came home to find our house decorated in construction paper hearts just because she wanted to surprise me. So when I showed her this pin on Pinterest, she was so excited to make some for her preschool class.

We don't usually purchase Goldfish and we certainly never ever buy the colored ones, but they were just too perfect for butterfly wings to pass up. There is only 1/4 cup in each bag so it's not the end of the world.

The steps are pretty self explanatory but I thought it might be helpful to share a couple of things we learned along the way as far as quantities of supplies. I have a feeling this is a snack we'll be seeing more of. Maybe with trail mix, carrots, grapes, or Chex mix in????

But this time, it's all about color.

1/2 cup of goldfish per sandwich bag is just about right. It's for a school snack, not a meal after all.

The big boxes of goldfish have ten serving (or 55 goldfish if you really want to know) which meant we were able to make 20 butterflies with 2 boxes. This was perfect for us since there are 19 kids in Julia's class and 2 teachers. One child is gluten free so we packed an apple for the teachers to cut up and put in the baggie and then attach to the clothes pin for him.

Step 1) paint the clothes pins. A sponge brush worked great - Julia did this all by herself.
Step 2) glue on the eyes
Step 3) cut pipe cleaners in half and then fold them to create antenae - another kid friendly job!
Step 4) Add 1/2 cup goldfish to baggies and seal
Step5) fold baggie in half and then carefully divide the goldfish in half

Step 6) Clip the baggie with the clothes pin and then the pipe cleaner.

Step 7) Enjoy!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter I is for,,.

2012-02-09T18:36:00.000-08:00

Imitate.

I have a small folder of oldies but goodies on my laptop from when Sam was really young and thought this was the perfect one for Imitate. He's got some pretty big shoes to fill if he wants to grow up to be like his daddy!

He's on his way though...He already loves to learn, remembers everything, loves to fish (and eat it!), loves to play baseball, camp, & loves us with his whole heart.

For more information on Alphabitty Moments click here. Feel free to leave a link to your post in the comments...

Elsa Louise at 31 Weeks

2012-02-09T18:29:00.000-08:00

My dear sweet Miss Elsa - how is it that we are past the half way mark of your first year? It might have something to do with the fact that I get lost in those blue eyes and all that chub and the days slip right on by! You turned seven months old this week. If I had to guess you have maybe put on a half a pound since your six month visit. The only thing I've had to retire is your kissaluv contour diapers. I've had those diapers since your sister was six months old. But now we're moving on to new territory. Mommy is slowly grabbing hemp and bamboo diapers when I find a good deal on Craigslist. We're even venturing into the world of wool diaper covers and prefolds. I'll tell you all about it when you get older. :)

I started to teach you the sign for 'nurse' this week. It will be fun to see how quickly you catch on to it.

You made Mama so happy this week when you started reaching for your Daddy. You are a mama's girl but it warmed my heart to see you want to be with someone else and express it by reaching out.

Now that you are an expert sitter upper I can pop a yoga DVD in the DVD player and do 10-15 minutes of yoga while you play next to me. It's nice to know that all you need is for me to be close by, not always holding you. Don't get me wrong, I love to hold you. In fact I miss you at night now that you sleep in your crib.

Tomorrow I will wake to see your smiling face and whisper yet another prayer of thanksgiving for the gift of you.

Love you baby girl,

Mama

Amber Teething Necklace Review & Giveaway!

2012-02-05T15:25:00.000-08:00

Contest is now closed

Congrats to Susan - Random.org chose you as the winner of a $25 gift card to Hazelaid!

Thanks to everyone who entered! Don't forget that you can receive 10% off your order by using the code 'cubs10' when you click on the pink button for Hazelaid on my right sidebar.

Back when Elsa was one month old I was given an amber teething necklace from the nice folks at Hazelaid. She wore it occasionally, but it wasn't until recently that the signs of teething meant it was time to bring the teething necklace out again for a more thorough review and boy am I glad I did! Elsa has not been a very good sleeper from about 4 months on. That means for the past three months I've been getting one 3-4 hour stretch of sleep a night if.I'm.lucky. Much of the time I'm nursing her back to sleep.

When the drool and the gnawing on her hands started in earnest I knew she had to be working on some teeth. Within 24 hours of wearing her necklace she was sleeping/falling back asleep on her own for 10 hours in a row. It has been two weeks now and she's still going strong with long stretches of sleep between feedings. I can put her down at 7pm and often don't need to feed her until 3am. She had been a good napper as well until the past month or so when she'd only sleep 20-45 minutes and then wake up crying. Darn teething again! Now she consistently takes 1.5-3hour naps in her crib two times a day.

I'd heard how amber can help with teething pain but now I've seen it first hand. But how does it work? I highly recommend reading more on the Hazelaid website but here's a snippet from their site:

Baltic amber is not a “stone” but a natural resin. As it warms with the body’s natural temperature, Baltic amber jewelry releases healing oils containing succinic acid which are absorbed into the skin and bloodstream.

Baltic Amber has some of the highest concentrations of succinic acid found in nature, and this is what makes it so special. Succinic acid is a natural component of plant and animal tissues, and its presence in the human body is beneficial in many ways.

Commonly known as "teething jewelry" in Europe, Baltic amber has been a natural remedy for pain relief for hundreds of years.

Amber is also known to reduce inflammation of the throat, ear and stomach and to fight irritation, infections and respiratory disease as it dramatically improves the body’s immunity.

Natural Baltic amber jewelry is a completely non-invasive remedy for side effects associated with teething, such as lack of appetite, redness in the cheeks, swollen gums, diaper rashes, upset tummies, earache, fevers and colds. Baltic amber is also a natural analgesic that will calm your child and is recognized by allopathic medicine specialists as antispasmodic and anti-fever. Many adults report improvement of arthritis discomfort and carpal tunnel pain in their hands when wearing amber on the wrists. You can think of it as a natural Ibuprofen.

It is meant to be worn against the skin and as you can see the 12 inch version that Elsa has still fits her despite my initial concern about her outgrowing it too fast. She wears it 24/7.

The clasp is strong and made with two plastic beads meant to match the amber. It blends in nicely don't you think? She doesn't even know it's there and has never reached up to grab at it even when she doesn't have a shirt over it.

Elsa and I (and hippo) are happy to announce that Hazelaid is giving a $25 gift card to one of my readers so you too can benefit from amber or Hazelwood! The good news is that if you don't win or don't want to wait for the winner to be announced, you can use the code Cubs10 to receive 10% off your order! The giveaway is open to everyone, not just in the U.S.

How to enter:
Manditory: Become a public follower of my blog (at this address, not the old one)

Bonus entries:
1) visit Hazelaid.com and come back and tell me something you learned about their products
1) leave a comment telling me your favorite product Hazelaid sells.
1) Tweet about the giveaway
5) blog about the giveaway and leave the link to your post in the comments

Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Giveaway closes on February 14th at 9pm central.

Disclosure: Hazelaid sent me a necklace for the purpose of reviewing it, but all the opinions I've shared are 100% the real deal.

The weeks in wicker

2012-02-04T23:05:00.000-08:00

* click on the image to make it larger *

We are past the half way mark with BabyBear's weekly basket photos so I thought it would be fun to do a collage with some of them. While I took pictures every single Friday from 8 weeks on, I wasn't always consistent with the angle I shot from. I'm glad I was able to find a few from when she was 2 days old, 6 days old, 4 weeks old, 6 weeks old, and then from there on I found my groove.

I love that the basket provides some perspective and for the most part, consistency. It was around 14 weeks that I began adding a hat that coordinated with her diaper cover.

It is my goal to do something with the photos for her 1st birthday celebration in July. It IS her golden birthday after all! I've already begun work on a Baby in a Basket book when I find a few minutes between making blog books and I bet you can guess what the letter W is going to be for Elsa's first Alphabitty Moment book (which will double as her baby book).

Do you take your child's photo with something every week/year? Do share!

Tickled Pink

2012-02-03T17:10:00.000-08:00

Elsa Louise at 30 Weeks

2012-02-02T19:24:00.000-08:00

Don't hate me but this week we experienced a complete 180. Elsa went from sleeping with me and eating every hour or two to:

awake every 45min- 1.5 hours but only fussed for 30 seconds before putting herself back to sleep after jabbering a bit to on January 22nd, sleeping in her crib from 7pm until she woke at 12pm but fell back asleep after a few seconds of making noise. Then she slept until 5am ate then slept with mommy until alarm woke us both right before 7am. This is huge progress and I'm happy to say that so far it isn't a fluke. She's still sleeping this well (and even better) over a week after I first started to write this update.

I'm excited to share what I believe to be the reason later this week. It involves a review of her amber teething necklace so I want to give it its own post. Stay tuned for that and a giveaway!

New in her 30th week:

* first babysitter - slept for three of the four hours but woke up happy and didn't cry for Wendy.

* napped on the 23rd for three hours in her crib.
* figured out how to put her pacifier in her mouth on her own.
* learned she's going to have a new cousin six weeks after her first birthday.

This whole thing sleeping thing could be a fluke. It could all change in an instant but so far so good! If this is the new path we are on I am so glad I can look back at those first six months of snuggling with my baby all night and know that is exactly where she belonged. She wasn't ready for her crib. I didn't force her. She did it when she was ready. I have no regrets about avoiding sleeping training at all costs.

Did I mention that Sam and Julia are already asking for another baby? Now Julia wants a baby brother.
I simply remind them that Josie will have a baby brother or sister this summer and that they should be happy with the baby we already have. They just love her so much they want more! Can't say that I blame them. :)

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter H is for...

2012-02-02T18:47:00.000-08:00

Hooks.

Preschoolers, Kindergarteners, and First Graders, (and maybe Second Graders too?) have hooks for their coats and backpacks at school. They are one of those little things that you don't realize are part of being little. Sam has already graduated from wanting me to walk him to his class every morning to being totally fine with me dropping him off at the door. It won't be long before he'll be one of the 'big kids' slamming their lockers closed in the mornings.

I took my big camera with me yesterday to get some decent shots of the hooks in the hallway/entryway and am so glad I did. Now that I look at them I see so much more that has been part of their early school years.

Sam has used that same backpack since he started preschool in the Fall of 2008. He's also been wearing that same hand-me-down Spyder jacket for three winters. I'm so used to seeing them that I don't think I'll ever forget them, but without these photos, chances are I would. The photo tag on each of their backpacks were made a couple of years ago as well - just a little something for them to have in case they missed us while they were at school.

It's going to be strange to not be at the preschool building for the next few years.I've had a preschooler for the past FOUR years. Next year Julia will have a number by her hook instead of her name and photo. I want to remember those photos that her teacher takes during her before school home visit and the excitement Julia felt about being old enough to go to school THREE days a week.

What Alphabitty Moment do you want to remember this week?

***photos filed under Elsa 30 weeks***

Valentine's Day Teacher Gift

2012-02-01T10:35:00.000-08:00

I turned a fun Earth Day project into a Valentine's gift the kids could make for their teachers. It was easy, fast, used things we have on hand, and except for tracing and cutting out of the red and white paper and the oven part, the project was done entirely by themselves.

What you need:

Muffin Mix
Mini muffin tin
egg carton*
construction paper
markers
glue
decorative paper (I used wrapping paper)
scissors
hole punch
string
tape

*I recommend getting a dozen eggs that come in a carton with a removable label so you have a blank egg carton underneith. It also makes for an instant template. See?

Step 1. Remove label from carton and use as a template for cutting out the decorative paper.

Step 2. Use the label again (minus the part that folds over the edge of the carton) to trace around on a piece of construction paper for the inside of the lid.

I wrote out the words for my seven year old on the back of the template to help him be more aware of the amount of room he had to fit all the words.

Step 3. Glue the decorative paper into the lid and let dry. We used Elmer's glue for the top and tape for the inside, but I'm sure you could glue the construction paper on as well.

Step 4. Add any additional decorations your child comes up with. We did simple hearts because our paper was 'busy' enough.

Step 5. Make a batch of muffins - One box of muffin mix made 24 mini muffins - the perfect amount for the two cartons we made.

Step 6. After the muffins cool transfer them to the carton and secure with a piece of string/cord/ribbon. We added a construction paper tag that reads:
Baked with love by _______

What fun things have you done with egg cartons? (I do a scavenger hunt program for our park in the summer using them so we never ever get rid of them. I have at least 20 of them waiting for a second life and would love to hear your ideas!)

Bible Character Night At Awanas

2012-01-29T12:25:00.000-08:00

Sam knew right away that he wanted to be a wise man for Bible Character night so besides whipping up one of these, I needed to come up with some royal clothes for him to wear. When I think of 'royal' I think of purple so my mind automatically went to my Sukura Bloom linen sling. I draped it over one of my bathrobes which worked really well to cover the bulk in the middle (the result of shortening the robe to fit a seven year old). Add a crown and a bag of foreign coins from my my trips across two continents and wa-lah! A wise man costume that didn't cost a penny.

Julia didn't know what she wanted to be so I suggested she look through her Bible until she found a girl character. I giggled when she suggested Eve. The irony of finding a costume for a woman who was naked in the garden of Eden was lost on her. But then I got creative....if she carried an apple with a bite out of it, then she could wear a fig leaf costume! So that's what we made. She put on three different green shirts, I wrapped her in my Sleepy Wrap and tucked strands of felt leaves I'd strung onto fishing line around her. All that was missing was the serpent but that wasn't a big deal considering how much my kids love snakes. Another free costume and two happy kiddos!

What Bible character do your kids like to dress up as?
Do you every use your baby carriers/wraps for something other than babywearing?

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter G is for....

2012-01-26T18:01:00.000-08:00

Good Guys vs. Bad Guys

You know how a picture can say 1,000 words? Well this is one of those pictures. Cowboys and Indians, Fiddle Stix, Little People..these are toys from PapaBear's childhood as well as mine. Then there is the giant Simpson's book that I got PapaBear for Father's Day last year....

Then there's the boy behind this scene. Sammy Sam. Oh how I love to see the creations he comes up with when I walk into our playroom! We recently upped the responsibilities on our chore chart to include cleaning the playroom every.single.day so now they can have room to play in there and not just use that space to chuck the toys they brought back upstairs. What I want to remember about this picture is the sound effects that go with ALL of Sam's playing, the constant turning of everything into a weapon, and his ability to play for hours with a few simple toys.

What G moment do YOU want to remember this week?

It's been five years

2012-01-24T18:37:00.000-08:00

Five years ago I carved out a tiny little corner of the interwebs for myself. As it is for so many people, my blog is a catch all of thoughts, memories - some good, some bad, lessons I've learned, and a place just for me. The interesting part of my blogiversary falling on the eve of my birthday is that it maginifies my desire to reflect on another year. But like so many of the times I sit down to tap on these keys I find that there is only silence. It's a conundrum. So much rattling around in my brain so much of the time but my noggin springs a leak somehow and I come up empty. Part of it is having a baby in the house - a baby that until very recently didn't sleep very much at night without being attached to me.

I applogized to PapaBear tonight as I made dinner. I'm sorry I fail. Any time there is more than one thing on my plate I feel like that plate becomes impossible to hold. Everything slips off. Rarely does a single one manage to stay balanced until I can put it exactly where it belongs. I

Sometimes I don't even bother to pick up the things I've dropped.
They are just too heavy. Too much.
I can't do it all. I know I'm not suppose to.

I want to celebrate the times I get it right. The times I get permission slips returned when they are suppose to, the times a healthy dinner makes it to the table, the times I forgoe all the housework to rock Elsa during her entire nap. Times like today when I'm hurry to meet a deadline but I found the time to make muffins with Julia so she could have a bake sale in our living room and made smoothies for Sam to sell at his "smoothie shop".

Tonight as I wrapped Julia in my arms, all snuggled into her fuzzy purple blanket I realized that she was not even four months old when I started writing here. Now she's almost ready for kindergarten. Tonight I'm so grateful that despite dropping this blogging 'plate' countless times, I'm so glad I keep picking it back up and coming back to this space, my little corner of the interwebs where I get to be me and I get to know you.

Linking up with Heather today for Just Write

Elsa Louise at 29 Weeks

2012-01-24T08:24:00.000-08:00

I was this close to giving up on the infant car seat this week. This.Close. So while I mourned the life of easily transporting Elsa I happily shopped for hats for her to wear with her winter coat. I found this adorable one on clearance for $10. It's fleece lined and oh so warm. Warm is good considering winter has finally arrived. We did have one last heat wave though and I took full advantage of the upper 40 degree days and took some pics of our sweet pea in the dusting of snow before it melted.

Then it got cold and for the first time in the series of basket photos I've been taking every week since she was only a few weeks old, I had to shoot indoors. Thankfully the sun was shining that day and I was able to get some decent ones.

New this week for Miss Elsa is the drool. Lots and lots of drool. Put a bib on and then change it an hour later kind of drool. She's discovered that if she waves her arms hard enough she can hit herself in the belly and make a funny noise. She practices this new skill often with great delight. We've had to give up the Miracle Blanket that we loved so much because she's just too big for it. Instead we use a Sleep Sack swaddler from my sister. It works really well and makes at least a couple of feedings a day pain free for me. (she's a pincher and a scratcher when she eats) Even with a swaddle wrap she isn't napping for more than 45 minutes during the day. Maybe it's taking so many naps in the car and not having a regular routine that is causing the sleeping trouble? On one hand I wouldn't mind her settling into a routine but since our schedule varies so much I don't feel like it pays to even try.

Hopefully the cold she's been fighting all week will take a hike soon. It doesn't keep her up at night any more than usual but she hates having her nose sucked out. Can't blame her! Maybe she's teething? Just in case I'm going to start using a amber teething necklace again in hopes that it can relieve any pain she's in. Julia had at least four teeth by now and I think I can see some breaking through Elsa's bottom gums.

Elsa Louise at 28 Weeks

2012-01-24T08:15:00.000-08:00

Elsa is almost 30 weeks now so I'm playing catch up with posting her weekly photos. I take them every Friday, but sometimes they sit on my camera until I get a chance to upload them to my computer - a computer that is FULL of pictures. Every time I want to add more I have to remove others. It's a time consuming task that I hate doing! I'd much rather be playing with this cutie and her siblings! The days are going so fast, but I guess in the winter that's a good thing? Not taking very long naps and not staying asleep when I put her to bed at 7pm are the 'highlights' of the 28th week. I used to be able to put her down at 7 and she'd stay asleep until at least 11. This wouldn't be that big of a deal except that I'm working at night and the constant running upstairs is slowing me down. I told myself after the holidays we'd work on 'sleep training' but I just can't bring myself to do it. This to shall pass and if she needs me at night then I' going to be there for her. I'm exhausted during the day from never getting more than 45minutes of sleep in a row for a week straight, but she's worth it!

Instead of a hat this week Elsa is showing off her new crown that I made to go with Sam and Julia's crowns. Happy 28th week Princess Elsa!

Soaking it up

2012-01-15T18:10:00.000-08:00

Before I hit the {blog} books tonight I wanted to take a minute and write about our weekend. I had the privilege of spending a few precious hours with some women I met through blogging [gasp] three years ago. It was lovely to laugh to pass around the [four] babies that were there and to have conversations that were more than 140 characters long. I soaked up that time and will hold it close for those moments of motherhood that make me want to pull my hair out. We.are.not.alone.in.this.

After we all went our separate ways I spent some time wandering Babies R Us. So.much.stuff. I wanted to tell every couple with that registry wand beeper thing that they didn't need half of what they felt pressure to get. I wish someone would have told me that back when I was one of those stressed out moms-to-be trying to figure out what exactly I needed to be ready for our first baby. A swaddle blanket, a bouncy seat of some sort, a sleep sheep, a video monitor, and a sleepy wrap - those are things that I couldn't live without this time around.

I called home before I left the parking lot only to find out that the power was out at home again. Third time in six months that someone has taken out a power pole on our road. What are the odds? I mean really? So with PapaBear's blessing, Elsa and I went to the mall. She hung out in the ring sling and I pushed the stroller with the diaper bag. It has become increasingly difficult to get Elsa buckled in her car seat so I picked up a couple of hats on clearance since she's going to have to leave the cozy warmth of the infant seat any day now. Oh how I wish car seat makers would make the straps six inches longer! What's the point of saying a car seat is good up to 30 pounds if the darn straps only work up to 22 pounds? *sigh* I'm going to miss being able to let her continue a nap when we arrive at our destination or be able to sit and play with her toys while I get the older kids settled in their classrooms. It's winter here and man the timing of this car seat switch stinks.

At least the temps have been incredibly mild so far so I shouldn't complain. We've been able to be outside soaking up vitamin D on many occasions, including today.

The dusting of snow we got yesterday won't be here for long so the kids soaked up some winter fun while they could. Sledding, snowball fights, & shoveling.....just for the fun of it. I could get used to winters like this!

and endings to weekends like this...

How I made felt crowns

2012-01-13T18:48:00.000-08:00

It was Bible Character night at Awanas the other night so I whipped up a couple of costumes for the kids, coincidentally they each wore one of my baby slings. I'll do a separate post on their fun costumes another time. Tonight what I wanted to share was how I used some sites I found on Pinterest for inspiration when I made a crown for King Sam and a crown for Queen Julia.

The inspiration for Sam's crown came from here. The genius in this tutorial is when you DON'T cut out two pieces of felt but instead cut out one, stitch it to the other full piece before you cut. No more matching and pinning like crazy to line things up. Saved a TON of headaches! Instead of making this a one size only crown I used bobby pins to close the back.

We live almost an hour from the nearest craft store so while Pinterest provides a ton of inspiration, we often have to improvise because I'm not running to the store to pick up one or two things every few days. You know what though? That's one of the best things about Pinterest...I find uses for things I already own and don't spend a penny. In fact, I SAVE pennies. Lots of them! Like when I made a huge batch of wipes to replace paper towels in our home. A subject for a different post... Back to the crowns.

This time Julia's:

The inspiration for her girly version came from here. Like I said, I can't run out and get supplies every time the kids ask me to make something for them. (Someone please tell me that they are going to remember that I spent so much time creating things for them to play with. please?) Anyway, I didn't have any pretty cording so I went with the old standby, sequins. This time I figured out how to sew them on without the bead in the center and I really like how it turned out, minus the uneven line of course.

This is what I was talking about earlier in the King's crown - you only cut out the top layer of the crown. Add the embellishments, pin the two layers together, and then stitch it all together. Once you've done that, you can easily cut the back layer out. I don't have big pieces of felt so I had to use white for the back of the crown. Not my first choice, but free is free!

My favorite part of Julia's crown are the flowers. I made them up as I went along. No two are alike. It was fun to see how much depth I could create with a few scraps of felt, some thread, and a needle!

The best part was playing castle when we were all done. Julia didn't know what to do when both Mommy and Daddy were doting on her majesty and Sam was a really good sport about letting Julia crown him King. All the sword fighting we did so he could earn the title of King might have had something to do with it.

Not to be left out, I made a little crown for Miss Elsa as well.

Instead of elastic, I sewed a long ribbon on the bottom and for Julia's I used bias tape. This way they'll be able to play in kingdoms far far away for as many years as they want.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter F is for....

2012-01-12T16:04:00.000-08:00

Face Painting!

So fun for the few minutes the design isn't smudged but then what a mess when they get an itch. :) Oh well! They are only young once!

What Alphabitty Moment do YOU want to remember this week?

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-11T05:50:00.000-08:00

Jenney, this one is for you.

A girl & her pearls

2012-01-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

Inspired by this shot I found in Pinterest.

She's ready for snow

2012-01-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

My niece, Josie, turn 9 months this past Saturday so I pulled out some backdrops and set up my mobile studio to capture her sweet personality yesterday. The c.r.a.z.y part is that I was able to shoot o.u.t.s.i.d.e on my porch (where I take most of Elsa's weekly basket photos). It was 50 degrees outside in JANUARY!

Josie might be all dressed and ready for snow, but me? I can live with this uber mild winter! (I DO love snow, but it makes getting around with Elsa SO much easier.) It also makes it possible for me to have access to more natural light for photos! Our house is SO dark with a huge wrap around porch and giant pine trees around the side.

The Shepherd Shuffle

2012-01-09T17:25:00.000-08:00

For the past four years we've enjoyed participating in the preschool Christmas program. It will be a few years before we get a chance to watch Elsa up in front of the church. Until then we'll treasure the memory of this little shepherd and her classmates doing the shepherd shuffle.

Elsa Louise at 27 Weeks

2012-01-08T18:52:00.000-08:00

Our newly six month old tipped the scales at 22.1 pounds the other day. I was pleasantly surprised to get a green light from our doc to WAIT on solids until Elsa is 9 or 10 months old. Obviously if she shows signs of being hungry before then, we'll jump on board, but for now I'll keep nursing on demand as I have been from the beginning. Her nursing sessions have decreased from every two hours to sometimes making it five hours before she wants to nurse.

Two things are different this week for our sweet pea. The obvious one is that she's sitting up to play (and doing it well I might add - she almost completely skipped the wobbly stage and if she does happen to lean too far for a toy she can already self correct). The more subtle change is that you can see more hair coming in! No more bald spot in the back!!!

I lost every.single.pacificer this week and had to go out and buy more .again. She's partial to the 6months+ Mam brand unlike her siblings who used the Nuk brand. If I hold a paci in her mouth she automatically knows to make noise when I move it back and forth. She's getting the hang of using her fist for her favorite noise making activity as well - that and blowing raspberries. :) Miss Elsa is a chatter box much of the day but start to sing a favorite song and she quiets down and focuses on my face while I sing. I reorganized her room the other day so we spend more time in there (it's where the most natural light is) reading books, chewing on stuffed animals, & looking at her colorful curtains. Anything to keep her from grabbing my face, my hair, my chins, the skin on the underside of my arms...I'm surprised I'm not a walking bruise with the way she clamps on to me!

With a face like this I can't stay mad for long! I just keep distracting her and offering her things to hold. Speaking of holding....I made it a goal for 2012 to wear her at least once a day. I used to rationalize that if I wasn't going to wear her for a long stretch it wasn't worth the effort to put on a carrier/sling or that I didn't want to her to fall asleep on me and then I'd not be able to get as much done while wearing a sleeping baby. That's hard to admit since I really really do enjoy being able to sit and hold her while she naps, but the reality is that at 22 pounds I NEED a break from carrying/holding - carrier/sling or not!

Now that Elsa can sit up, she's got a whole new perspective on the world - one that I can't wait to experience right along side of her! Happy 27 weeks baby girl!

Elsa Louise at 26 weeks

2012-01-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

Notable this week:
Sat up for the first time on the 26th (in a pile of wrapping paper during Christmas #5)
Slept 8 hours on New Year's Eve

Dear Elsa,
You are the sunrise in our days with your huge grins and babbles first thing in the mornings. Sam and Julia fight over who gets to play with you while you lounge on Mommy & Daddy's bed when you wake up. I don't know how you do it considering how often you wake at night, but all thoughts of those sleepless nights for Mommy vanish when I look in your beautiful eyes. They are four shades of blue those eyes of yours. Navy on the outer edges, blueberry mixed with periwinkle comes next, and a steel blue right around the irises.

Somehow your half birthday is upon us and I can't help but choke up at the thought of how blessed we are to have you in our lives. Three children were not part of 'our plan' but thankfully God's plan for our lives is so.much.better. YOU make me better. You help me slow down and breathe in your soft silky hair as I marvel at the imaginations of your older siblings as they play 'school' with Daddy. Your absolute delight when one of us walks into the room is often the highlight of my
day. We don't deserve you but are so very grateful for you!

2011 was a year I won't ever forget. It was the year God gave me you.
Happy (almost) half birthday to my BabyBear!
I love you!
Mama

Perfection

2012-01-08T12:14:00.000-08:00

It's that moment when all is right in the world. Her breathing quiets as does my heart. That anxious feeling of being pulled in so many different direction falls away and this moment is all there is.

Her and I.
She and me.
It is a connection that leaves me speechless and bursting with words of love all at once. The words are there, but they get tangled up so much that so often they get lost before they make it the distance from my heart to my fingers over the keyboard.

She is so dependent on me and that can be so draining. It is also what gives me the strength to keep going. She needs me and I need her.

It is a perfection that only God could have known when he created mothers.

A day of babywearing

2012-01-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

I wore Elsa in my fleece KangarooKorner sling

At a birthday party
At the children's museum
On a candlelit walk
On a hayride
While looking at the stars & planets through a giant telescope

For a grand total of 7.5 hours.

I have plenty of photographic proof, but my fingers are numb from being outside for the last 2.5 hours and the kids and I are very.very.very.tired.

Good night. Sleep tight.

Don't let the bed bugs bite!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter E is for....

2012-01-05T10:32:00.000-08:00

E is for Easter Bunny! It really hit me this year as I watched Sam climb up on Santa's lap how quickly the time goes and how close we are to nearing the end of an era of the magic of the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus. These photos are from 2009 - after they were no longer afraid of the Bunny but before they look so big sitting with him. (Photos filed under Tutu & Pretzels)

If you'd like to share an Alphabitty Moment please leave a link in the comments! I'm on the letter E but that doesn't mean you can't jump in and join the fun at any point!

For the Record

2012-01-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

My pillow is calling my name but before I lay my weary self down for the night I am pushing onward with my resolution to put more time into writing about what's happening with the Bear Family. I get behind in my blogging and feel like I can't write about what's happening NOW until I catch up on the old stuff. Then the snowball grows and I never get anything written. Today that stops.

Today Julia discovered she has a loose tooth. I'm not surprised since she wasn't even four months old when that tooth popped through. My baby is growing up. She is SOOOOO excited and told all her friends tonight at Awanas. Speaking of Awanas...Sam started Sparks and Julia started Cubbies. They are excited to go back next week despite Sam being very nervous about tonight.

He only had good things to say about it during our snuggle time at bedtime though. That snuggle time is something that I had been missing out on since I had gotten into the habit of rushing through bedtime. Now that they are older and don't need as much from us I'd check on them before I turned in for the night and feel that tug in my heart that I should have spent more time with them that day. It wasn't a good feeling. So one of my goals for 2012 is to not rush bedtime and to make sure I am more available for night time conversations that seem to be so important to Sam especially. Julia is more interested in listening to her Jesus Storybook Bible at bedtime so she and I have our one on one time during the day.

Another goal of mine is to drink more water. It's pathetic how late in the day it is when I realize I haven't had a single glass of water yet!

I turn 35 later this month and need to take better care of myself. One small step I'm going to take is to make sure that even if I didn't put make up on that day that I will wash my face before bed. I love my Norwex anti-bac towels and will keep one available for faces only.

I'm also on the hunt for a good series of yoga workouts that are about 20 minutes long so I can add some exercise back into my life. It's not realistic to be able to do anything longer or louder than a simple yoga video.

Before 2012 is over I WILL have one year of my blog converted to a blog book if it kills me.

Those are all the goals I can think of at the moment...I'm running on fumes at this hour so you'll have to excuse my random train of thought.

Did you set any goals for this year?

Merry Christmas From The Bear Family!

2011-12-25T06:03:00.000-08:00

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty Five

2011-12-25T05:47:00.000-08:00

Today is the final day of the series and like the last time I posted 25 ornaments, I'm ending with a nativity ornament. Both the older kids received these ornaments that they Sunday school kids put together. We are so blessed by the children's program in our church and will treasure this ornament forever.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty Four

2011-12-24T11:36:00.000-08:00

Tonight we hang our stockings by the fireplace at Grandma and Grandpas house in hopes that St. Nick will soon be here. In honor of this, I'm sharing the very first ornament Julia stitched by herself - Santa's boot. She loved doing the blanket stitch, but that particular needle is REALLY sharp so we turned a stocking into a boot and continued stitching with a smaller needle.

Santa is bringing exactly what the kids asked for this year. I can't wait!!!

Elsa Louise at 25 Weeks

2011-12-23T17:45:00.000-08:00

This week for Elsa was all about reaching, grabbing, and holding. Her favorite thing to grab is my hair unfortunately but she does enjoy grabbing a hold of toys too which makes her much more content when I put her on her boppy under her gym. I love watching her eyes take in all around her. She's been practicing her sitting and is showing great improvement. I'd be surprised if she was sitting up completely on her own by six months like her siblings, but that's because I'm not helping her practice much. Shame on me!

I wore her on my back in the Kozy Carrier for the first time yesterday and if it weren't for her pulling those little hairs at the bottom of my pony tail I'd be sold on that style of babywearing. She's got the head control for it now and is content to play with my Mommy Necklace while I'm busy in the kitchen.

Before we headed to see PapaBear's brother who flew in from Alaska today I snapped the last basket photos of the year. On the porch in December. Who would have thought it would be warm enough this long? It's gonna be 40+ on Monday!

Ho! Ho! Ho!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty Three

2011-12-23T11:35:00.001-08:00

This ornament is one of the first Julia sewed by herself. She LOVES to stitch/sew and is constantly asking to make more ornaments. She made five in a week. Not too shabby for a five year old!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty Two

2011-12-23T11:05:00.000-08:00

We had our annual get together with the friends we go camping with last night. As part of our gift we gave every family an owl ornament.

The inspiration came from an Etsy shop that of course I can't find now. If you go to Etsy and search owl ornament thousands of choices come up. Who knew?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty One

2011-12-23T10:36:00.000-08:00

This homemade ornament I made a couple of days ago, but I can't take credit for the design. That can be found here. I'm giving this to Julia on Christmas Eve as her ornament for 2011. She had a gingerbread house making playdate a few days ago and also made a gingerbread church at a Christmas VBS last Sunday. She loved it and was very detailed in her decorations. No surprise there!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Twenty

2011-12-23T09:08:00.000-08:00

Another homemade ornament for our tree...This one I created as I went along and so happy with how it turned out. Pink blanket like the one that Sam picked out for her. Purple string because of all the purple outfits she wore as a baby. Pearl beads like the ones on her stocking, and of course The Basket. Elsa's first of many ornaments made with love by her mama.

Elsa Louise at 24 Weeks

2011-12-23T09:00:00.000-08:00

This week Elsa experience the fun of picking out our Christmas tree for the first time. See how excited she was about it?

We'd considered trying a cut your own place again, but it's just so easy to go to our local wild balsam guy. And much cheaper this year too! We got our 9ft beauty for only $30!

Elsa doesn't know how lucky she is that this has been a mild winter so far. This is only one of a handful of times she's had to wear her snowsuit. I'm trying to make it as far into winter as I can without having to abandon the infant car seat so I can avoid the whole squirmy, heavy baby in a coat and since she is much more content in the carseat and can work some of her toys by herself I'm not in any hurry.

She visited another Santa this week and wasn't scared a bit (I think it helped to have these two to distract her.) I can't say that for other people though as she's still very much timid around anyone except Mommy, Daddy, Sam, & Julia.

Her sleeping at night isn't any better - she still wants to be attached to me mostof the time but she wakes up happy and sometimes even sleeps until 8am which of course makes us late for school. I hate having to wake a sleeping baby so I wait until the last possible second. Her hair continues to come in but is nowhere near as thick as her siblings at this age.

I've noticed her eyes are getting lighter in the middle but are still dark around the edges - a pretty combination if you ask me! We are approaching the six month mark - her half birthday falls on New Year's Day which is kinda fun. Speaking of fun...all the Christmas festivities are in full force and I still don't have her stocking done. oops!

For this week's basket photo I chose the one that shows her talking because she is SUCH a chatterbox now. She loves it when we repeat the sounds she makes. She brings so much joy to our family and is more and more fun every day.

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Nineteen

2011-12-19T18:00:00.000-08:00

Continuing the homemade theme of this week I'm sharing this ornament fresh from the oven...or at least it's fresh from my hands! I decided rather than buying the kids ornaments this year I would make them.

First up was this felt slice of pepperoni for Sam. The kid would eat pizza every single day if we let him. Maybe that will change, maybe not, but it's a fitting ornament for his tastes this year for sure! Tomorrow I'll tackle Julia's ornament in between shopping and stitching Elsa's stocking. Have I mentioned I'm even sewing in my dreams? I enjoy sitting by the tree, watching a movie on Netflix, and creating something from nothing. Have you made any ornaments this year?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day 18

2011-12-18T19:14:00.000-08:00

It's time to share those homemade ornaments folks! All this week that's what I'll be posting. They aren't all going to be one's I've made personally though. Sometimes they will be ones relatives have made for me or that the kids have made.

We made a batch of homemade ornaments for gifts this year and I had to make an extra one for our own tree because I loved them so much. I'm not going to show those though until after I've given them away later this week. In the meantime, this ceramic moose is the one I wanted to write about tonight. I made him in 2003 when I was part of a pottery guild. I used to make wheel thrown pottery but don't have the time anymore. It's a shame because I loved it! One year I took cookie cutters into the studio and made a bunch of ornaments out of rolled out clay. The moose were my favorites.

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Sixteen

2011-12-16T18:38:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not one of the top keyword search that brings people to my blog is related to the movie Home Alone 2 - Lost in New York. It's because of this post I wrote two years ago about the significance of two turtle doves.

Years ago I had shared that story with my aunt Lori and come Christmas this turtle dove ornament was under the tree for me from her daughter, Elsie. I was Elsie's nanny for almost five years so we share a very special bond. Today happens to be Elsie's 12th birthday. Where does the time go?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Fifteen

2011-12-15T18:58:00.000-08:00

A preschool ornament compliments of Sam's teachers when he was in the 4 year old class.

They are so generous with their talents, time, and love. Mrs. W & Mrs. S are like guardian angels watching out for our kids in their first years of school.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter D is for...

2011-12-15T18:51:00.000-08:00

Dinosaur. I used this same word for Sam a couple of years ago and I thought it was high time I recorded Julia's love of dinosaurs as well. She might not know as many facts about them as Sam but she's always been able to hold her own and can identify at least twenty different kinds.

Summer

or Winter - makes no difference to her!

What Alphabitty Moment do YOU want to remember this week?

Photos filed under :FMSC and favorite things

Wordless Wednesday - Santa Baby

2011-12-14T18:37:00.000-08:00

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments Day Twelve & Thirteen

2011-12-13T18:36:00.000-08:00

We're in homemade ornament making mode in BearCountry, but since I'm not sharing homemade ornaments until next week, I'm sharing the next best thing - an ornament made for me by my grandma. Sequins & felt. Both a familiar sight in our house at Christmastime.

Another felt ornament, but purchased as far as I know is this angel my parents gave me when I was two years old. Those are dried flowers in her hands that I can't believe have survived 30+ years!

I try my best to pick out ornaments for my kids each year that they too can have for at least that long. What criteria do you use when choosing ornaments for your kids?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Eleven

2011-12-11T18:00:00.000-08:00

When I was a junior in high school the Badgers won the Rose Bowl. I grew up 20 minutes from Madison and attended a game once with my high school band. This ornament rarely gets a spot in the front our tree because PapaBear is NOT a Badger fan. He still shakes his head in disbelief that I would drive to California to see them play in the '99 Rose Bowl. To be honest I went because it was a fun road trip and the price was right.

This ornament reminds me of the carefree days of driving cross country on a whim and the stories I brought home after a week in a car with three friends.

Do you and your significant other disagree about which ornaments get top billing in your house?

It was one of those days

2011-12-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

and I don't mean that in a bad way. It was one of those days I don't want to forget. We had our chores done by 8:00am so the rest of the morning was spent fluffing a Christmas tree for the living room, creating paper chains, watching Sam's birthday DVD from when he was 2 and 3, playing battleship, gazing at a napping Julia, making cookies and letting Julia help despite the extra clean up that involves, playing Risk, playing monopoly, eating cookies fresh from the oven, unwrapping Christmas books, listening to Sam read two beginner books as well as a few pages in his first attempt at a chapter book, dancing to Christmas music, teaching Julia how to sew, tearing up at seeing the joy on her face when she could maneuver the needle all on her own, teaching Julia how to sew sequins onto an ornament she designed, wearing Elsa in the Sleepy Wrap, being thanked by PapaBear for making the house look nice, listening to Elsa giggle because of her brother's antics, watching Daddy & the big kids have a tackle fight before bed, doing our "thankfuls" with Sam, Sam telling me he said a prayer before he settled down for our sleepover, hearing Elsa sigh in her sleep,

It was a day that didn't involve a single trip to town, a day where I didn't spend a penny, and a day that didn't require stepping foot outside other than to open the gate to the park. As I prepared dinner this evening I pondered why a simple day at home put me more in Christmas Spirit than a day of shopping for gifts, visiting the Big Guy, or making Christmas crafts/Christmas gifts. I'm still mulling it over as I write this post. Obviously not being in a hurry to get somewhere on time makes a big difference in my stress level. I think another part of it is that last year we barely had a Christmas. It wasn't until the week before Christmas that I was able to be downstairs for any length of time. Whatever the reason, I want to bottle this feeling up!

How was your day?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Ten

2011-12-10T18:08:00.000-08:00

Another ornament from my travels, but this time from South America. We saw lots and lots of Inca ruins in the month I spent in Peru and I turned this piece I purchased from a kid at one of them into an ornament. If I remember right, I paid for it with a pencil and a few crackers.

The Big Guy

2011-12-10T06:59:00.000-08:00

Sam wasn't scared in the least to sit by Santa this year and though he was shy to talk to him, he did manage to ask Santa to make him an imperial walker for Christmas.

Julia was willing to sit in the front of the sleigh with Elsa and had me ask Santa to bring her a puppy guitar. She also wanted me to ask Santa to make a blanket for Elsa. Thanks to a great garage sale find we will be able to fulfill all three wishes this year! Usually Santa brings one small toy or two for their stocking and the bigger gift comes from mom and dad. This year we're trying something new and letting the Big Guy get all the credit. I can't wait to see their faces on Christmas Day!

When I put Elsa on Santa's lap I told him it would be better if she didn't know who was holding her. I snapped this photo the moment she turned to see who exactly I'd handed her to. I love it!

I also loved this rustic wagon that was outside by the donkeys and reindeer! All my garage sales and thrift store shopping paid off this year! I paid less than $8 for each dress and coat that the kids are wearing, but my favorite part is that their outfits match. I might need a matching holiday outfit intervention.

What about you? Do you dress your kids in matching/coordinating outfits for holidays?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Nine

2011-12-09T19:33:00.000-08:00

We got this ornament for Sammy for his second Christmas, long before we moved to BearCountry and before we adopted our Bear Family names. Ironic isn't it?

It's sad that I don't have any memory of why exactly I chose that particular ornament for him that year. My guess is that I was so sleep deprived from having a 2 year old and a 2 month old in the house that I just picked the first cute one I saw that day at the mall kiosk I bought it at.

Elsa Louise at 23 weeks

2011-12-09T18:45:00.000-08:00

We returned from our first vacation as a family of five yesterday. Elsa was a dream as was her cousin, Josie. Both babies slept almost all the way to the hotel and did sleep all the way home. Out of six hours in the car there was less than five minutes of fussing combined between both babes. Impressive huh? We had so much fun! I can't wait to share the photos of our adventure, but since this is Elsa's weekly update, I should get back on track. Not much extra time as I'm sure is the case for everyone. Christmas is just around the corner and I'm behind on so many things. Thanks to this little cutie I'm not really all that stressed about it. I'm embracing this time with my kids as much as possible and I gotta tell you that at the end of the day when I look at their sleeping faces before I crawl into bed it feels really good to know that we made the most of our time together!

How cute is Elsa in her cousin Elsie's strawberry hat from 10 years ago? She's the fourth kid to wear it and from the looks of it she'll get to wear it next year too.

And now for some updates from the past week and a half:

Sat on Santa's lap for the first time.
Went to her first tea party.
Slept over at Grandma Gayle's house.
Went on first waterpark adventure.
Slept in a hotel for the first time.
Started saying Ba Ba Ba Ba.
Her eyes are turning a lighter shade of blue.
Her hair is really starting to grow.
I also noticed how LONG her eyelashes are getting - they curl up so perfectly.

So beautifully and wonderfully made sweet baby girl! Love you!

Elsa Louise at 22 weeks

2011-12-09T18:28:00.000-08:00

December 1st and we're still outside for these weekly photos? Who would have thought?!?!
Our peanut is so content these days. Her growth has slowed some so she only wears 12 month clothes now - at 5 months old. I can sometimes get her in some 9 month stuff if I'm lucky. She jabbers all.the.time. and for a couple weeks now has been diving forward to give snuggles (mouth wide open). It's really sweet and keeps me on my toes! She's a chunk so her full body wiggles and lunges require a strong grip. It seems way too early for stranger anxiety but her first holiday gathering (Thanksgiving was last week) didn't go very well for her. If I held her she was fine and would interact with other people but hand her off to the many loved ones who wanted to see her and she'd stick her lip out, look back at me, and the tears would flow. Christmas should be interesting!!!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Eight

2011-12-08T05:21:00.000-08:00

Is December flying by for anyone else or is it just me? I've been scheduling these posts ahead of time because we are always going, going, going, recovering, going, and then going again. It's mostly fun stuff and lots of time with family so it's all good, it just leaves very little time for blogging.

The kids and I spent a lovely weekend with my mom and my sister, Katie, and her daughter and hubby. Lots of memories, lots of pictures but they are still on my camera.

Speaking of lots of memories and lots of pictures...back in the day of film I took 18 rolls of film with me to Europe and along with three months of memories I also brought home this ornament inspired by Gustav Klimt. We went here to see one of his most famous pieces, The Kiss on one of our first 'forced marches' Sometimes I can hardly believe the things I was able to do in college. They sound too good to be true and like I'm talking about someone else's life.

Do you have any ornaments you've collected from your travels?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Seven

2011-12-07T07:32:00.000-08:00

He used it as a gift tag. Pretty clever if you ask me. It's not fancy. It's plastic and looks it, but you can be sure it's going to have a place on our tree forever.

My dad gave it to me. I thought it was a fitting ornament to share today.

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Six

2011-12-06T07:20:00.000-08:00

I didn't mean to start a trend in posting wooden ornaments but it turns out I have lots of them. I gravitate towards them since I try to avoid fragile ornaments that might end up broken down the road. Like my parents, we give the kids an ornament every year. Dinosaurs have been numero uno around here for years so it is very fitting that we have a couple of them on our tree. Watch for Sam's in a later post....

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Five

2011-12-05T07:08:00.000-08:00

I collected angels when I was growing up so I have more than my fair share of angel ornaments. This particular one was given to me by my cousin, Deb. One year for Christmas she gave me a spider plant that was a descendant of our great grandma's plant that was potted in dirt from the cabin up North. Part of that same gift was some awesome homemade bread (she grinds her own flour), a More With Less Cookbook, & this ornament. I also remember cookies in the package. Homemade oatmeal chocolate chip. My favorite.

That thoughtful, personal and most perfect set of gifts was one of my favorite Christmas gifts ever. I will never forget it with this quirky angel as a reminder.

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Four

2011-12-04T06:55:00.000-08:00

Whenever we sat down to eat Christmas Eve dinner with my mom's family there would be an ornament from my Aunt Joan there next to each place setting. This mitten is one of those ornaments and always reminds me of her generosity. I chose to share this ornament because Joan has been on my mind a lot this week. She's fighting cancer had surgery earlier this week. Would you keep her in your prayers? Her twin sister passed away from cancer earlier this year. Joan has a good prognosis and for that the whole family is grateful!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Three

2011-12-03T06:39:00.000-08:00

Another old one on our tree is this little wooden rocking horse that my parents gave me when I was two (almost three) years old. It seems that every year one of these vintage ornaments bites the dust despite careful packing so I'm glad I at least have the photos of them in one piece. I think after all these years the glue is disintegrating.

Did your parents give you ornaments every year when you were growing up?

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day Two

2011-12-02T12:10:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas tree isn't up yet and won't be for a while yet due to some traveling we're going to be doing and the fact I don't want to return to a dried up tree. So where am I getting these photos? Before I took the tree down last year I snapped photographs so I would be ready for for this year. Little did I know that seeing the ornaments in my archives would be the only decorations I'd see for the first two weeks in December!

This wooden ornament was given to me by my childhood friend, Rhonda. We have kept in touch over the years and I still consider her one of my very best friends. She and I attended youth group as teens and she was a huge part of what helped me stay grounded in my faith during our high school/college years. This ornament, given to me when we were in college, is a fitting reminder of our friendship.

Do you put up any ornaments up from childhood friends? Until I can gain access to my linky tools account again (read I forgot my password and it apparently takes a while for the new one to be sent to my inbox) you'll have to leave a link to your post in the comments. Hope to get that fixed ASAP!

Elsa Louise at 21 weeks

2011-12-01T20:07:00.000-08:00

I decided to switch things up a bit now that I've run out of winter hats to put on Elsa for her weekly basket photos. This week I used a blanket that was lovingly made by her great aunt Helen. I'm also running out of different diaper covers/diapers for her to wear. She turned five months old today so it was bound to happen some day right?

Besides I didn't want to cover what's changed the most for her this week and that's her hair. You can actually see hair on her head now! The super soft fuzz is slowly but surely growing out. The bald spot on the back of her head is filling in. Will there be curls someday? We're only 4 weeks away from when we discovered them on JoJo.

So what's new for week 21? This new way of holding her feet for one thing. The other thing I want to remember about this age is her affinity for lunging forward (mouth wide open) for a huge snuggle. I have to be careful that we don't knock heads. She's certainly not careful! She practically tackles me as she buries her head in my shoulder.

It's a.d.o.r.a.b.l.e

and so is she!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments - Day One

2011-12-01T18:36:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago I hosted a blog carnival where we posted an ornament and the story behind it during the 25 days leading up to Christmas. Since I barely touched the surface of my ornament collection with those 25 ornaments I decided to share another 25 this year. If you'd join me keep in mind that the third week I will share homemade ornaments so you might want to hold off on posting those until then.

If you'd like to include a button with your post - here you go:

My ornament for today is the oldest on our tree. It was passed down from my grandma to me when Sam was a baby. It belonged to his great great grandfather. It's amazing it's lasted this long considering it's a glass ball and has to be almost 100 years old! We have a few antique ornaments like this - hopefully they will survive to pass on to another generation!

You'll have to leave a link in the comments to your post until I can gain access to my linky tools account.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter C is for....

2011-12-01T08:19:00.000-08:00

Castles!!!! (and everything associated with them) catapults, swords, shields, knights, battle, canons....he's interested in all of it. What this usually means around September is that whatever he's interested in at that time becomes the theme for a birthday party and sometimes a halloween costume. When something sparks his interest it consumes him. He gets books from the library on the topic, his drawings are all focused on that subject, and his imaginative play revolves around it. Reading the Chronicles of Narnia was the inspiration this time. Before long he'll have moved onto another interest, but I wanted to mark this time in his childhood when his interest was in all things castle related.

What C moment do you want to remember this week?

Sunday Sweetness

2011-11-27T18:38:00.000-08:00

What could be better than a baby girl in ruffles?

A ruffle wearing baby girl playing pat-a-cake with her big brother!

Just like her big sister, Elsa is smitten with Sam!

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble, Gobble, Gobble.

2011-11-23T18:57:00.000-08:00

So much to be thankful for this year, most of all the makers of these handprint turkeys.

Inspired by Lori.

If I had time to blog....

2011-11-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

* I would write about how we are finally being consistent with using a chore chart and giving the kids an allowance. We've tried many things over the years but it requires so much discipline on the part of the parents that it's sad to admit that we've always let it fall by the wayside after a week or so. Not this time! We are closing in on a month of consistency. The kids are developing good HABITS and I'm so proud of them!!! They earn $1.75 a week if they do the following every day: homework, setting/clearing the table, feeding the cats, picking up 10 things on the main floor, putting shoes away/picking up the hallway upstairs. I'm still waiting for the day they don't leave their stuff laying around in the first place but it's a start!

* I would post pictures of what Sam and Julia are interested in these days and not just photos of Elsa in her basket: Sam and a friend from school were playing ninjas for the past few weeks so lots of drawings have come home of ninja fighters. Oh joy. He's moved on though since they completed a project where they made cards for soldiers. Now it's huge, elaborate drawings of bombers, destroyers, submarines, and aircraft carriers. Julia is cranking out art projects like there's no tomorrow. I can hardly keep up with her some days! I keep saying we are going to celebrate the beginning of winter with a brand new box of crayons because the ones we have are about shot! Her favorite thing to do is play 'school' with Daddy. She asks every single day and he's so good to take the time to do it. Love him.

* I would write about how we are slowly trying to cut out more processed foods and especially refined sugars. We went two weeks with only whole foods and it was rough. The kids hated it more than we did, but I was inspired to start being more careful about what 'foods' are in our home. No more sugary granola bars!!!

* I would write about how I'm using a three ring binder to organize my weekly menu, shopping list,and coupons. I've always stunk at making a menu but I've finally found a system that works for me. Two websites I recommend: 100daysofrealfood.com and allrecipes.com (All Recipes has an app called Dinner Spinner which is really really handy!!!!)

That is if I had time to blog, but since I don't....I better get off the computer!

Elsa Louise at 20 weeks

2011-11-22T11:38:00.000-08:00

Her chubby little dimpled fingers reach for everything now, including the wisps of my hair that don't quite make it into my ponytail. ouch! She had lots and lots to say this week which put us on the receiving end of lots of smiles from strangers who were drawn to the squawky/talky in the stroller.

She had a touch of a cold again for a couple of days but rather than keeping her up at night, it made her sleep more than usual. I'm enjoying longer stretches of sleep and since she's not eating every two hours anymore I can get quite a bit done in the mornings before she and I sit down for some quiet time together. If she eats around 6am it can be 10 before she wants to eat again which with two kids who have two different start times for school that comes in real handy!

She is all smiles when she first wakes up and will often entertain herself with her fist, thumb, or edge of her swaddle blanket for an hour before I need to go in and get her. Yet another reason I love, love, LOVE having a video monitor!!! I keep saying I need to write a post about my favorite baby gear because eight years after the first time I purchased baby items I look at the baby aisle with a completely new perspective! Actually, I rarely go in the baby aisles anymore. We don't buy disposables and I buy her clothes second hand so there isn't really a need, unless I'm down to one pacifier. Then I can guarantee you will find me smack dab in the baby section of Target with yet another new package of those blessed pieces of silicone and plastic in my cart!

For the record, the day after I took this photo we received our first dusting of snow. Elsa will only be five months old this Christmas but Sam and Julia are excited to share the wonder of the holiday with her and so am I!

Elsa Louise at 19 Weeks

2011-11-22T11:18:00.000-08:00

Yikes! Time is getting away from again! Elsa will be 21 weeks on Friday and I'm just getting to write about her 19th week. It was a breakthrough week for our little cub so it was easy to remember what I want to write about.
Silence. In. The. Car.
Oh my is that nice to be able to say! Sure she still cries sometimes when she's had enough of being carted around but those times are fewer and far between and it all started in her 19th week. It helps that she can reach out for the toys hanging from her carseat. She loves the noisy lady bug and I added the horse, also from Aunt Sharon and Uncle Jamey, to spice things up for her. Finally we can sit with her on our laps without having to bounce or constantly entertain her. She's so much more interested in the world around her and content either on her gym or in her Boppy. I would LOVE to hold her all day but my back can't handle the strain and even babywearing has its limits.

I do enjoy holding her for naptimes when I don't absolutely have to get something done. I have the messy house to prove it! I know how fast the time slips away - just look at how much she's changed since her first Bear Hat photos. Before I know it she'll be wearing the Julia's purple version that Lindsay made for us!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter B is for....

2011-11-17T18:33:00.000-08:00

Beads...specifically the ones from B. Are you familiar with their products? We have a few of them and I've got to tell you, they get used a lot. We gave Julia a set of their beads for Christmas last year and she still plays with them almost daily which says a lot in my book. She loves to create crowns, necklaces, bracelets, rings...she also used the beads as food for animals when she plays with her brother. Speaking of animals...Grandma and Grandpa gave her this vet kit a couple of years ago - also a hit. They gave her the microphone for her birthday last year and we also have the art table that really helps tame the art clutter that tends to overtake our home.

None of these toys have broken parts despite heavy use. I have nothing but good things to say about them with the exception of a couple features I feel are missing from the microphone (it only plays music, doesn't amplify or record your child's voice. Bummer.)

The only thing Julia wants to ask Santa for is this B. product. I've seen it in action during one of our trips to Target. I'm not usually one for toys that require batteries, but this is one exception I'm completely willing to make!

Sure I HATE finding the beads all.over.the.house, but some day I'm going to miss having evidence of her creative mind at work (and her mission to move on to the next project before she cleans up from the previous one!) In the meantime I'm working really hard to take this saying to heart and to remember that these little things are what we miss the most when they are grown!

What Alphabitty Moment do YOU want to remember this week? Go ahead and leave a link in the comments...

The opinions of the B. products in this post are mine and mine alone. I wasn't compensated in any way for mentioning their products. I wrote about them because I love them and want to share good quality toys with you! If you have a favorite B. toy feel free to share! I'm sure there are lots of people looking for gift ideas this time of year!

Elsa Louise at 18 Weeks

2011-11-11T07:25:00.000-08:00

Same basket but new location. I will have to remember this spot next year as it was just gorgeous the day we went to play at the other playground in our park. Elsa didn't mind the breeze one bit as you can tell from her smiles. She's jabbering more so the shot without the hat is more of a mid-jabber face, but I still love it. It's her. It's her personality shining through. It's obvious she recognizes us now. She has different grins for each of us. The ones that melt my heart the most? The smiles she gives her siblings. The flip side is that she is starting to be timid around strangers and since she spends most of her time with just our little family, she cries for pretty much everyone else. Her little lip comes out and she looks back at me to be rescued.

By the way, does the hat she's wearing look familiar?

Her new thing this week is blowing raspberries. Not that she needs to produce any.more.drool. but it's still adorable to hear her making her new noises on the changing table. The other thing I want to remember about this week is the time both PapaBear and I were sitting with her. Her eyes went back and forth, back and forth, taking us both in, marveling at the fact that we were BOTH doting on her at the same time. Don't get me wrong...she get's lots of attention, but we often tag team in order to get other things done around the house.

Autumn is fading here in BearCountry, in fact the first flakes fell yesterday (Nov 10th) but I tucked a few of these yellow leaves away for my BabyBear so we can hang on to a piece of her very first Fall.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter A is for....

2011-11-10T08:54:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Alphbitty Moments! This is the meme for preserving the every day things of childhood one letter of the alphabet at a time. Click over on the button on my sidebar for more information and inspiration as you record your family's memories! You can also grab the code to add the button to your post. Every Thursday I will post a Mr. Linky so we can share our word/photos/memories with each other. I used to create a scrapbook page every week, but I've learned that for me it's easier to stick with just the photos I want to use (and a note to myself about where to find the photos later) so that when a deal comes along via Mixbook, Picaboo, Blurb, Shutterfly, Snapfish, or any of the other book making sites out there I can quickly put one together. I think it also helps me to have all my ideas together before I begin creating that first page. Sometimes I use a two page spread for each letter and other times I only use one word per page to save money.

Feel free to post a complete layout or just the photo(s). And this is an important part so read carefully. IT IS OK TO MISS A WEEK! Believe me, I've done it and it's not the end of the world. Catch up the next week or fill in the missing words/photos when it's time to make your book. No matter what you will still be ahead of the game if you participate as often as you can because you won't have so much work to do at the end. Ok...enough rambling....let's see what A stands for this time:

A is for.....Animal Artwork

photos filed under: Elsa 18 weeks

I know you aren't suppose to pigeon hole your kids by saying "she's the artist in the family" but it's the truth. The rest of us don't hold a candle to Julia and the creative things she comes up with. In the last year I've noticed a trend in her work...there are lots and lots of animals. Perfect for 'A' week!!!

What Alphabitty Moment do you want to remember this week?
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Alphabitty Moments - Y & Z are for....

2011-11-03T06:34:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Alphabitty Moments! I'm wrapping up this round with two letters this week. Y is for Yoga and Z is for Zoo Animals. The kids love to join me in a yoga session so I picked up a kids yoga tape at Goodwill a while back. It's pretty corny, but it's so worth it to see them exercise and enjoy it! And the zoo animals...simple toys but the kids use their blocks or Lincoln Logs to create a zoo for them. Animals are a huge part of their imaginative play. h.u.g.e.

What Alphabitty Moment do YOU want to remember this week?
If you were waiting to join us when I got back to the letter A - NEXT WEEK IS YOUR WEEK TO START!!!! Hope to see you then!

Elsa Louise at 17 Weeks

2011-11-02T18:10:00.000-07:00

Elsa turned 17 weeks old this past Friday and 4 months yesterday. So why does it look like she fits in the basket all of a sudden? I removed one of the blankets so our little chunk could fit in it a tad bit longer. I like my basket pictures, what can I say? Speaking of chunk - she weighs 19.5 pounds (97%) and is 24.5 inches long (75%). That makes her almost a pound lighter than her sister at this age.

So what's new this week? This:

Also, she's finally stopped screaming when we set her down. Hallelujah! It is so fun to hear her 'talk' to us - it's more of a squawk/squeal but it's music to my ears. She learned to reach for toys this week too. Her favorite hangout is her floor gym. I think her hair is getting longer, but you'd never know to look at her bald head under her hat. I try to write in her journal at least once a month so I'm gonna save the mushy stuff for there....

Halloween Humor

2011-10-31T10:37:00.000-07:00

Just one of the many decorations at our Halloween Party on Saturday night. Have a safe and fun evening everyone! I'll be back with Elsa's weekly update and photos of our party soon!

"Once a King or Queen of Narnia, always a King or Quenn of Narnia"

2011-10-26T17:51:00.000-07:00

Liz had me cracking up when I read that quote from the movie in her comment yesterday. She guessed correctly that Julia is going to be Lucy from The Chronicles of Narnia and that Sam is going to be Peter. It only took her two guessed to figure out that Elsa is going to be Aslan, the lion. Way to go Liz!!!

That leaves Edmond and Susan for PapaBear and I. Luckily Walmart sells bow and arrow sets for $6!

I enjoyed hearing from you on whether or not you decorate for Halloween or not and found myself nodding in agreement with everyone. We have spent more time prepping for this Halloween than all others combined, but the house is coming together nicely for our first ever Halloween Party. PapaBear hammered, drilled, & cut while I traced, cut, tied, & taped today. Tomorrow I'll make a Target run for a few things I didn't get the other day and we'll shop for the food. Our menu is pretty simple because everyone brings an appetizer or dessert to share. We're making six batches of chili, caramel corn, a pumpkin shaped veggie tray, Spider Cider, and Vampire Punch.

What's your favorite Halloween fare?

What are we going to be for Halloween? Day3

2011-10-25T13:35:00.000-07:00

Julia gets to wear her costume to dance class tonight. How fun! It will be interesting to see if anyone knows who she is dressed as. Even with her props in hand and after she says her character's name, many people don't know who she's talking about.

Can YOU tell who she is?

What are we going to be for Halloween? Day2

2011-10-24T17:30:00.000-07:00

Here's hint #2 for our costumes:

Today was spent running around looking for the supplies to complete all the fun decorations I found on Pinterest for our Halloween Party on Saturday. It was exhausting, but fun to be creative on a budget. The Dollar Store, Goodwill, Joann Fabrics, Michael's....I visited them all and even completed a couple projects already this evening. The kids loved helping out and I'm excited to see how it all comes together for the weekend!

We've never decorated for Halloween before and I've surprised myself by what I'm using for decorations this year - I'm very conservative when it comes to Halloween - hence no decorations before. I feel like since we're hosting the party though we need to do something and so I'll spend the week preparing that something and of course share photos when it's all said and done!

Do YOU decorate for Halloween?

What are we going to be for Halloween?

2011-10-23T18:28:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of years I've neglected to get a decent picture of my kids in their costumes on Halloween. It's either too dark, the kids are too distracted, or I plain forget to get the camera out. I don't even have a picture of Sam in his very first Halloween costume! (He was the cutest little mouse you ever did see at 2 weeks old!) This year I wasn't going to let the fact that we are hosting the Halloween Party for our friends to get in the way of snapping a good picture of my trio so today we put costumes on with plenty of daylight to spare and got some really sweet ones of the kids all dressed up.

Rather than showing you them a week before Halloween I've come up with a little game...I will post a picture every day of some element of their costumes and have you guess what they are going to be. (NO fair guessing those of you who already know the answer!) The only hint I will give today is that there is a theme to their costumes...all our costumes to be exact but a family picture wasn't in the cards today.

My sister was too clever and figured it out right away...hopefully I was able to update this before the rest of you saw the original photo...

Do you do theme costumes for your kids?

Elsa Louise at 16 Weeks

2011-10-22T19:54:00.000-07:00

One of these days the weather is going to change and we'll no longer be able to be outside for her weekly photos but until she gets cold we'll continue to take advantage of our Indian summer. SIXTEEN weeks of no rain on Fridays - that's got to be some sort of record!

This week marked my first week back to work part time. I'm not taking new book clients right now and photography is on hold indefinitely, so I'm taking my time getting back into the swing of things. I can't believe how quickly the summer went and I'm so grateful for the time I had to focus on being mom and a homemaker. It is HARD to work and keep up the house. Really hard. There just isn't enough of me to go around some days! By Thursday when I'd reached my goal of 440 pages I was ready for some down time so Elsa and I wandered Target & did our weekly grocery shopping at a leisurely pace.

Friday we spent the morning playing games while Elsa took a great nap. Little stinker has been taking cat naps all week! Other than being ready for a nap two hours after waking in the morning and going to bed at 7pm the girl has no schedule. None. For the most part I'm OK with that.....for now. She got a cold this week that isn't causing too much trouble for her except for waking up extremely stuffy by 7am.

We went to the pumpkin patch Friday afternoon to get Elsa's first pumpkin. (We had three pumpkins in our garden, but one got smashed so we needed to replace it.) It was a beautiful day to be out as a family and for the first time in six months we didn't have to be home to check campers at 4pm. To celebrate I took the kids to a new friends house where they played and played and played. Elsa hung out with me and did her best to join in the conversation. What a talker she is all of a sudden!!!

I completely forgot that I needed to take Elsa's weekly basket photo until 15 minutes before the sun set. As you can see, that turned out to be a really great thing! What lovely light for my lovely girl to bask in don't you think?

I just ordered a big one of these to hang in our library. love. And this next one? Yep, I ordered one of these as well, but only a 4x6 to go in a frame that sits next to our fireplace.

Via twitter tonight I had a conversation with some friends about changing out photos in frames. I don't do it often enough and I'm guessing others are in that same boat. One suggestion I made is to change out frames seasonally and then put the old photos in an album specifically for photos that were framed. I know that it was very fun when I was looking for photos to frame to compare the photos of the kids jumping in leaves every year. So for example...if every year I framed a jumping in leaves photo and then it made it's way to the designated album I could look back at my kids doing the same activity year after year. Another image I like to frame is picking out our Christmas tree. Or the photos I take at the arboretum every year tend to make it into a frame eventually.

What do you do with photos you are done displaying in your home?

Just Write - Naptime

2011-10-18T12:02:00.000-07:00

Her eyes pop open and I don’t even try to suppress the groan. Nap time.. A time to rest. A time to recharge. A time for me to do something, anything, with two hands. Nap time is over. She squirms in the spot on the bed where I gingerly placed her a mere ten minutes earlier after I let her nurse herself to sleep. I watch her from four feet away. I hold my breath. Her head turns to the side as her thumb moves towards her mouth. Inwardly I cheer for her “Find your thumb! You can do it! That-a-girl!”

The smack smack smack sound is fast, but her breathing slows. She’s asleep again. Peaceful rest. She got there on her own.

She doesn't need my help yet I can’t pull myself away from the sight of those squishy dimpled fingers . I can hear the gurgle of her snores above the sound of the Sleep Sheep and for now she sleeps.

My arms miss her already.

Linking up with Heather thanks to this bonus naptime for Just Write.

BabyBear at 15 weeks

2011-10-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

Every week I think she can't get any cuter and ever week she proves me wrong.

At fifteen weeks I've noticed the drool increasing and she's started blowing raspberries. We call her Juicy Lucy.
I've been blessed with a good night sleeper but this week she's given me a run for my money. Sure she's sleeping, but I'm not because she's decided she prefers the human pacifer all.night.long. Add to that her shift away from sucking her thumb....and her insistence at bailing out of her swaddle. *Sigh* I think we might be entering new territory as we figure out how to get her second stretch of night sleep to be as long as her 5+ hour first stretch.

I'm starting to get very curious as to what her 4 months stats are going to be. One things for sure - her feet are tiny! She wore size 0 shoes to church a couple of weeks ago and this past weekend she wore size 0 sandals for Julia's birthday party. Sam and Julia's first pair of shoes they could fit in were size 3. They never fit in the little little shoes. I thought for sure Elsa would be in Robeez by now but she looks so silly in them because they are too big.

Speaking of big...check out this smile!

The rest of the family is smiling pretty big too as we wrap up our fourth camping season! Sunday is the LAST DAY!!!!! We're planning to celebrate by roasting apples in our fire bowl as we wave to the very last camper that pulls out.

A year ago today

2011-10-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

Last year on Sam's birthday my friend Kristina took some family photos for us. I LOVED them, but kept them to myself so I could share them in our Christmas card. Over the next month I played with them and eventually designed myself a Christmas card that I was head over heals about. Exactly one month after the photos were taken I left the house for what would be the very last time for a month and a half. Needless to say, being bedridden because of morning sickness pushed getting Christmas cards ordered and addressed to the back burner.

Nobody ever saw our card, until today.

Last night as I looked at photos I've taken during Sam's sixth year I came across the beautiful photographs. Rather than being sad about them being hidden this whole time I chose to have a thankful heart.

Thankful because I see in them the love of a family,,,. a family of 4 that was about to become a family of 5.

Alphabitty Moments - X is for...

2011-10-12T17:59:00.000-07:00

Six

After so many rounds of Alphabitty Moments it's getting more and more difficult to come up with a word for 'x' but that's not going to stop me from recording the little things of childhood! I would love to have you join me in this memory keeping meme! Jump in on any letter and leave your link in the comments. There's also a button on the right hand side of my blog if you are interested.

Today is the very last day that Sam is six years old. How fitting to reflect on this past year of life with our Sammy Sam! There is no end to the ways he makes my heart swell with love.

My firstborn, my only son....
You couldn't wait to turn six - the age Mommy and Daddy said you needed to be before you could watch Star Wars. At first I was scared by all the interest you showed in violence, but you've proved time and time again that you are still the sweet boy I know and love. Silly is your middle name Sam! That excitement and energy drives you to want to learn everything you can about whatever your interested at that time, whether it be the military, snakes, scorpions, big cats, or dinosaurs. I can't begin to count the number of times I've asked you to settle down or sit still when I'm talking to you. Forgive me forgetting that you are only six and that every day is an adventure that you are anxious to face head on! When the day is done and we tuck you in at night I cherish our bedtime snuggles and our discussions about what we have planned for the days ahead. So much to look forward to!!!! I love you Sam - Happy birthday!

Love,
Mama

photo file location: Julia 4 years Sam 6yrs

Wordless Wednesday - {She is} my shadow

2011-10-12T06:01:00.000-07:00

Did you hear? It's International Babywearing Week? Don't be surprised if you see more of my babywearing photos this week because it's something I wholeheartedly believe in! I wore Elsa in the Kozy Carrier for the first time today. I can't believe I'd forgotten that it was tucked away in my toy box! She's only just gained enough head/neck control this past week so I am now able to use it and didn't really miss out on any babywearing time.

Whispers in the Wind

2011-10-11T18:04:00.000-07:00

The days rush by faster than I can keep up. I try to freeze frame the moments with photos, yet time marches on. My quest for that elusive perfect family photo eludes me. It’s raining. Each drop taunts me from the other side of the window pane. Then there’s a break. The breeze that has been pumping warm air into our state much later than usual sends some blue sky our way. The Photo Shoot is back on! We rush to the car giving specific instructions to the kids.

Don’t run.
Don’t get dirty.
Hurry up!
Be quiet!
Don’t tackle your brother!

QUIET!!!!!!!!!!

I stop.
Someone is missing. Do we go back? Do I test the limits of my family’s patience? My heart breaks a little to think this could be the last chance to include him. His last walk in the woods. His last run through the tall grass. I remember fondly his love of tall grass. He used to be so agile in his younger years. Spunk. Life. Energy.

It’s at least worth asking him if he wants to come with so I use the voice that is undeniably directed at him. He barely lifts his head from rug that holds just as much of his hair as his fury and increasingly bony backside does. I wave the leash that used to send him into a frenzy but is now just a hunk of nylon cord wound tightly in a case of blue before his face. "wthumph" His answer echoes throughout the house when his head drops back to the floor.

Inside a battle rages on. He’s part of the family. Then why don’t I pay more attention to him? He should be there. Then why do I brush him aside when he gets underfoot? It’s important to include him. Then why do I hardly acknowledge him some days?

Rainclouds are threatening again so I tell him that we’ll be back and rush out the door. Pleading and bribing ensues as I attempt to nail down the two older ones who I swear where hooked up to a sugar IV while they waited for me in the van. Somehow we manage to eek out a few frames from my broken camera.

I decide to press my luck. We trek deeper into the woods, using the exact same spots I’ve used for other families seeking that perfectly posed family photo. This time I’m not the one behind the camera. Elsa starts to cry, then calms down when she hears the rattle my mom thought to bring along. We eek out a few more frames before the camera freezes up again. Did we get it? Is there at least one that we can call a keeper?

The more people in the shot the harder it is.
The more I want it, the harder it is to achieve.
The more I want time to stand still, the faster it goes.

Like the leaves on the trees this year that hurried through their transition from Summer to Fall. Life is like that I guess, we tell ourselves to slow down and enjoy the moment. How does that saying go? “It’s the journey, not the destination…..”? The leaves will fall. One by one. Moment by moment.
Most of the leaves in our pup's life are mere whispers in the wind, but our sweet babe here has a lifetime of leaves left. So far they are as beautiful as she is.

Linking up with Heather for Just Write.

If you were expecting to see evidence of our photoshoot I’m sorry to disappoint. Christmas is coming and there’s this little thing I like to design called a Christmas Card.

Mommy & Me - Celebrating Babywearing

2011-10-10T20:29:00.000-07:00

I wore Sam in the Bjorn as a baby. I wore Julia in a Kangaroo Korner sling as a baby and a Kozy as a toddler. Elsa has split her time between the sleepy wrap and the Sakura Bloom ring sling that she's snoozing in during our photo shoot this afternoon. Babywearing is more than just practical for me, it a valuable time to bond with my kids... to feel their warm breath as they tuck in close against my chest and to appreciate the connection that comes with feeling like our hearts beat as one.

I was able to get out from behind the camera today thanks to my mom coming over to do some photos for our family. THANK YOU MOM! I will cherish them forever!

Linking up with Kyrstyn for Mommy and Me Monday and in honor of International Babywearing Week!

a castle fit for a queen

2011-10-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

Donning a fancy drss and a crown is new territory for our family. We are usually very anti-princess, but when the kids decided they wanted castle themed birthday parties who was I to say no? I have to admit, it was very, very sweet to see my tomboy all gussied up.

She and her royal court dined on mac and cheese, sugar snap peas, honey crisp apples, and juice pouches before moving on to cake, games, & gifts.

After searching for tiaras it was time for dragon egg races (egg and spoon races with dinosaurs in the plastic eggs). Their prizes were candy necklaces and rings.

Cake was served in the castle before gifts and then.....

they decided to 'clean up'. Good thing it was 80 degrees!

Tiarra or not, she's a tomboy at heart!

But I hope she never forgets what it felt like to be a queen of her own castle!

A knight like no other

2011-10-09T19:26:00.000-07:00

Sam celebrated his 7th birthday today with all the boys in his class. The four boys get along so well together - nobody gets left out and they truly enjoy being together. It's a good thing since they are outnumbered by the ten girls in the class! Sammy settled on a castle theme a few weeks ago so I did what I do every year, I Google until I find all the elements I need to pull off the party of their dreams.

I'm lucky that they are easy to please because there isn't often much to be found in the theme they choose! In hopes of helping out anyone out there who decides on a castle theme for their child's next birthday, I've put together some collages of today's festivities. Be sure to click on the collages to make them bigger. (You can click on the BIRTHDAY label on the sidebar for more information on party themes from other years.) Julia also chose a castle themed birthday party so a recap of her special day is up next.

Invites: (text found on an unknown website) In honor of his birthday, Prince BrotherBear decrees the 9th of October an official holiday. To celebrate, all knights are invited to join him for an afternoon of merriment at his castle, at the stroke of one. Please RSVP to the king or queen by the 3rd of October.

We typed the invites on parchment looking paper, tied it with a red ribbon and hand delivered them at school.

The tunics the boys wore were made for $2 a piece by using 2 yards of felt & one spool of ribbon for the ties. One yard of fabric can be cut in half and provides the perfect size tunic for 6-7 year olds. I have a large supply of felt pieces from other projects so I had Sam pick out colors and a design for the good guys and the bad guys. Once they each had their tunics on it was time to...

Decorate A Shield.

PapaBear free-handed the design they chose from printouts I got from this website and then the kids decorated them with marker and glitter stars. The kids took this task very seriously and if I could do it again I would have had Sam take the papers to school and have the kids pick their design ahead of time so they could start decorating right away instead of waiting for their drawing.

The shields are made from heavy duty cardboard I picked up from a business that had a huge bundle sitting out in their recycling dumpster. We spray painted them grey and then used duct tape to create handles on the back.

Then it was time for a scavenger hunt!
Clues on red paper for the red team and clues on blue paper for the blue team. The clues took them around our yard until the final clue brought them to the hammocks where we had hid a swords for each of them. October birthday parties have the advantage of a huge supply of props because of Halloween costumes readily available. I bought plastic swords at Walmart for $2.97 a piece. They were a hit! (Believe it or not, nobody actually got hit with them!!)

After the scavenger hunt we served snacks on the porch. The party was from 1-3 so we didn't have to worry about a meal. I kept it simple - pretzel rods (swords) graham crackers (shields) cheese cubes (fireballs) grapes (more ammo) and juice pouches.

We did dragon egg races next. I put 1 dino fruit snack in an egg for each relay team. If the egg fell off the spoon they had to make sure the baby dragon didn't fall out of the egg and continue on their way. Queen Julia handed out a pack of 'baby dragons' after everyone had a turn raising to the hammock and back.

What knight birthday party would be complete without a catapult? I searched and searched for an easy design for building a catapult and finally landed on this one because it was easy for me to get the supplies to make it. Only it didn't work. Good thing we started a week ahead of time gluing them together! After many failed attempts and building a catapult that wouldn't break after one minute PapaBear came up with this design.

The kids personalized them and then went to battle. Soon a bag full of stale marshmallows littered our front lawn.

Before we ran out of time we sang happy birthday to Sam, ate some castle cake, and opened gifts. Sam LOVED the glow in the dark football, car with a missile launcher, and the dinosaurs/dragon he received from his friends.

The cake really deserves a post of its own, but I'll try to summarize as best as I can all that I learned about cake decorating this week. Inspiration for the cake came from here. I know I'll be looking back at this post next year when I'm trying to remember what exactly to do to NOT want to pull my hair out during the assembly/decorating part.

First let me be very clear. We use boxed cake mixes. I'm not ashamed to admit that. Not one bit! French Vanilla flavored is YUMMY and SO moist!

Timeline for preparing a cake for a birthday party:
Days in advance - bake the cake layers, cool, cover with plastic wrap and place in freezer

12-24 hours before the party - remove cake layers from freezer. Keep plastic wrap on until cakes have thawed.

Trim and level cake once cakes have come to room temp.

Add crumb coat (a slightly thinned version of buttercream*) and let/set dry UNCOVERED

Buttercream can be left on the counter, covered well, for 12-24 hours ahead of time. A few hours before the party add final layer of buttercream and decorate with embellishments.

*Easy Buttercream recipe

4cups sifted powered sugar
1/2 cup room temp unsalted butter
1/2 cup Crisco (not buttered flavered)
3T milk
1t vanilla

beat until creamy. This makes about 3 cups of frosting. I use a big bowl so I can make one batch and then add the ingredients for a second batch right on top and then mix them both together. This is important if you plan to tint the frosting so all your frosting is the same color.

Ok, back to the party....

I was so proud of the boys for including Julia during their playtime! Everyone left after 2 hours of fun with their shields, catapults, and their tunics. I had so much fun planning and putting together this party! I wonder what theme the kids will choose next year?

Keywords: Castle Themed Birthday Party, Knight Birthday Party, Castle Party, Castle Cake, How to make a castle birthday cake, Medieval Birthday Party Theme,