Sew Much Fun!

Aaron gave me a sewing machine for Christmas this year, and I have been having so much fun with it! I'm VERY new to the art of seeing, and with the exception of a few brief 'lessons' from my mom, I'm pretty much figuring this out as I go. So far...so good, I'd say. :)

I started out with a project I found on Pinterest - a fishing game for Micah. I made the fish out of felt, and sewed Velcro on for the eyes. The hardest part of this project (and by extension, any sewing project) was turning the fish right side out after sewing them. But, with a little patience and the help of the eraser side of a pencil, I accomplished that feat. I haven't finished the pole for the game yet, but that's on my 'to do' list, and Micah's pretty creative... he's found lots of ways to play with the fish by themselves. In fact, I couldn't find them for about 2 weeks because he had packed them in his suitcase! :) Project #1 - SUCCESS! :)


My next project might have been a bit ambitious for a beginner, but I made diaper covers for the boys. Joann's has an entire aisle with everything you need to make cloth diapers, so I got the material (PUL, or Poly Urethane Laminate - a waterproof fabric), some fold over elastic, some Velcro, and a book with step-by-step instructions and pictures, and set to work. They aren't perfect by any means, but they're functional, and Micah really likes the dinosaur print! Project #2 - SUCCESS!! :)

I went with an easier project for my third try - cloth wipes. I found a tutorial online for DIY cloth wipes using receiving blankets. Heaven knows we had plenty of those lying around, and since they weren't being used I cut them into squares and sewed them together to make double thick wipes. Project #3 - SUCCESS!! (and sew easy!) ;)


Project #4 has been the most rewarding project so far, and only because they came out looking the best. :) I made fleece soakers for the boys. (for those of you who have no idea what a fleece soaker is, it's an additional protective cover used over diapers...and goes on like underpants) I had a few yards of fleece at home from a Christmas project I did, so another bonus to this is that it didn't cost anything more. :) I have to say that it's amazing how easy it is to find instructions for things on the internet. I found a free pattern and instructions, and if you're interested in making one yourself, check out this site. Again, this was very easy and took very little time to complete. (I made 2 in a few hours, and I have 2 kids demanding a lot of my attention.) :) Project #4 - SUCCESS! :)

Since I had no idea what I was doing when I purchased the material for the diaper covers, I bought WAY more of the PUL fabric than I needed. Good thing there are a LOT of things that can be made with it! :) Project #5 was reusable snack bags. I had received a few of these from a friend after Micah was born, and we love them, so I thought I'd try making some of my own. Once again, I found a DIY tutorial for the bags and set to work. They were pretty easy to make, and I'd say project #5 was another SUCCESS! :)

My most recent project was a gift for a friend who is expecting her first baby. I made a nursing cover for her. Another great find through internet searching , and fairly inexpensive to make...especially if you consider the fact that these things are sold in stores for $30 or more! Free step-by-step instructions can be found here. I don't have a picture of this project, but I have plans to make a few more before long, so I'll snap a few pics of those. :) Project #6 - SUCCESS! :)

None of these projects came out perfect when they were completed, but the moral of the story is I'm enjoying my Christmas present immensely, and look forward to learning more and getting better with practice! :)

In Other Big News...

...Caleb doesn't have much longer to be the baby in the family!! That's right... we're expecting not one but TWO new additions, due before the middle of July!

:) :) :) :) :) :)

My brother and his bride are expecting their first in early May, and Aaron's sister and her husband are due in early July. :) We are SO excited for our siblings and cannot wait to meet the new cousins!! It is such a joy to watch our family grow, and such a blessing that the cousins will be so close in age! (which is sure to make family gatherings lots of fun...and a little chaotic!) :) Congratulations, Jim and Julie, and Tracy and Eric!! We've been praying for these blessings since before they were announced and can't wait to meet them when they arrive! You all are going to be amazing parents! We love you!!

"Baby T", due around May 3, 2012

Baby Migrin (aka "Bono"), due around July 6, 2012

Ok...be honest. How many thought we were making another announcement when you first started reading? Tee hee! :)

Milestones!

The boys have reached several milestones in the months that are missing from our blog....Caleb especially. He is now 8 months old, has 4 teeth (2 on top and 2 on the bottom), and he's working on cutting a few more. He's crawling everywhere, and pulling himself up to standing already. This makes me one nervous momma, because when he's standing, he'll let go with one hand to reach for something, and has even let go completely for a few seconds! I am NOT ready for him to be walking already!! :) I really thought we had more time before he was completely vertical, but only because Micah didn't walk until a week before his 1st birthday. I suppose it's possible that Caleb won't start walking for a while yet, but I can see the motivation in his eyes, and with the way he studies Micah's every move, I'd be surprised if it takes him much longer to start walking.

**my apologies for the dark-ness of the video...it was taken at about 8:00 at night**

Happy to be on the go!


SO proud of himself!

Another fun thing to see is our boys playing together. Micah is a great big brother and is always asking if "baby do it too?" when he's playing with anything. :)





Caleb is also eating solid foods now, and now that he can really move, he makes a beeline for any food that's left within his reach!


He started clapping a little bit ago, and gets this huge grin on his face when we clap along. :)

Micah's milestones are probably not what most would consider typical milestones, but we are amazed by him, and very proud parents, so that qualifies them as milestones in my book. :)
First, he has figured out how to whistle! He's been doing this for a while now, but I was only able to get a decent video of it recently. It started when he would get excited about something and start breathing fast with his lips pursed. After a while, he started connecting his breathing with the noise he was making, and will now whistle pretty much any time he is asked. (unless he's preoccupied by something else) The funny thing is, now his whistle comes accompanied by a dance! :)

We've been taking Micah to gymnastics for over a year now, and he absolutely loves it! He is in the 24-30 month class at the gym I used to work at, and his class is just him and another boy named Shai. His teacher Miss Bonni, includes Caleb in the class too, which he loves! :) Micah is learning how to wait for his turn, follow directions, and many basic gymnastics skills... summersaults, donkey kicks, pike, straddle, butterfly, etc. The 24-30 month class does one rotation in the big gym, and Micah thinks that is just the coolest thing ever. This past week, he got to swing on a ring over the big foam pit, and jump on the big trampoline.

His vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds daily, and Aaron and I find ourselves really watching what we say more than ever now that we have a little monkey who repeats almost everything we say! :) It is so fun to see him growing and learning, and we are constantly amazed at how quickly things change! Both of our boys are growing up so fast! Now I get what Kenny Chesney was saying with his song, "Don't Blink" ~

"Naw, don't blink

Life goes faster than you think"

It's amazing how fast these little ones are growing and changing, and how fast they learn new things. Even as I write this, Caleb is working on another milestone ... mastering the stairs!

Uh oh! :)

Back on the blogging bandwagon...

...for now! :) I'd like to be able to say I'll be better at keeping our blog up-to-date from now on, but with 2 VERY active kids I think we all know how empty that promise would be! But I do promise to try. :) Since I have gotten SO far behind on our blog, I'm going to post some pictures from the major events I failed to blog about, cut my losses, and start over! So, here goes...

The end of 2011 was filled with lots of family fun. We spent Thanksgiving in California with my sister and her family, and then only had to wait about 3 weeks to see them again for Christmas.

Weary travelers at LAX ~

Luke and Micah wasted NO time getting down to the business of playing :)

Caleb and Elin got acquainted quickly too :)

Micah was in desperate need of a haircut when we arrived in California, so with the help of YouTube, we accomplished that feat!

Bath time fun!

Worn out after a long day of playing ~

Story time with Auntie Lisa ~

Hugs ~

Thanksgiving ~

Cousins ~

Our best attempt at a picture of the 4 kiddos... Caleb was quite squirmy, but Luke was a good sport! :)

Oak Glen ~

The USS Midway (aka - a dream come true for 2-year-olds, and a somewhat stressful outing for their parents) :)

Lisa even tried to hide in the ship's jail! ;)

We spent the afternoon on the beach in San Diego, and the boys had a ball digging in the sand and splashing in the waves

Even Caleb got to dip his toes in the Pacific Ocean

Elin and Caleb playing on a blanket in the shade ~

Feeding the ducks at the park ~

"helping" with dinner ~

We took the kids to see Santa at Bass Pro Shops on our last day together, and had fun looking at the fish and outdoor stuff around the store ~

On our way home ~

December started out with putting new floors down in our house. Aaron has wanted to rip up the carpet and put hardwood floors down since we got married, but we just never got around to doing it. Now, 2 kids later, we didn't really have a choice. The carpet was beyond disgusting after the many spit up incidents we've endured. (and continue to endure...it's just easier to wipe up now that the carpet is gone!) HUGE thanks to Aaron's parents for coming down to help install the floor (Bill), and give me a hand with the kids (Debbie). :) HUGE thanks to my brother, Jim, for his help on this project too! :) And HUGE thanks to my parents for putting us up for a week while our downstairs was torn apart! :) We are SO blessed!

Work in progress ~

How to arrange the furniture...THAT is the question!

We celebrated Christmas with my family this year, and had a LOT of fun with the whole family being around!

The kids even got a visit from Santa on Christmas night (and you should have seen the paparazzi that was our family!) :)

The boys and Nee Nee decorated a gingerbread train together ~

We even managed to get a decent family picture! :)

We celebrated Micah's 2nd birthday with an Elmo-themed party, and rang in the new year early (because we were all too tired to stay up to watch the ball drop) :)

Micah received a lot of great presents for his birthday, but the John Deere tractor and trailer from Grandpa and Grandma K was the favorite :)

Sleepy Caleb ~

Micah was pretty excited to blow out his candles... I think I had to re-light them 4 or 5 times! :)

Micah enjoyed his cake more than the candle he took a bite out of first! :)

New Year's Day became our Christmas with Aaron's family, so we spent the day up in Kenosha for more fun with his family. And I think that sums up the major holidays I missed.

Up next: MAJOR MILESTONES! :)