little yellow dress

susan peterson, of freshly picked fame, is like my sewing idol. i love all her stuff! i found this tutorial a while ago, but just had the time to try it out tonight. i love it. she is so amazing at making sure everything is clearly explained and well understood by her readers.

needless to say, my printer was broken so i thought i could just trace the pattern from the computer. not so much. it turned out that the dress could probably fit a 6 month old and its meant for sass. oh well. ill try again. i have big plans for our family for my cousins wedding this weekend...

Cast Away

so, we went to the dr today. we played around in the waiting room/screamed and had to change a diaper and pretty much destroyed the place. but the kids loved it.

then, they had this cool machine that cut off avery's cast for her. she thought it was pretty crazy...

and then she got it off,

and was obviously depressed...

yea for no cast!! her arm was green underneath and pretty pale, but it is healed, so we are thrilled! we need to watch cast away tonight in honor of the casting away.

no more broken bones in the near future...i hope.

muffin man

so, to get ready to make the amazing cupcakes from here, i warmed up with a little recipe from baking bites. i really like this website (probably because its devoted to baking) and she has a lot of different things. anyway, i made these.

they were ok. i mean, they were good, but not my favorite. i love a donut and i love a muffin and i love anything rolled in sugar and butter...so youd think this would be my all time fav muffin...not really. but i think i may tweek it a little to see if i can perfect it...and maybe a little cinnamon would be good...

in other news, aves might get her cast off today!! so we will be back with more of that...

weekend wars

so, we had the best weekend.

we had a fantastic surprise visit with our old roomate, again and this time she stayed the night. it was so much fun. we ate tons, went to see despicable me (had to leave early because they were so loud due to the large amounts of popcorn and candy), went to the park, went to lunch and orange leaf...it was amazing.

then we went home to make some shirts with linds (to be revealed at a later date) and played with kinley. it was so much fun. the kids loved each other and cracked us up the whole time.

then we hung out with my fab fam.

the kids had so much fun with uncle patty and mig and aunt shannon. they were chasing their fantastic doxin around and never wanted to leave.

huge. party.

and i got a little time with my friends and my mom watched the babes while i went to lunch with blair and mel. it was just like old times.

love these ladies.

i got to feel like a normal person not chasing kids around for a few hours. ( i actually cried on the way there because of that...need to get out much???!)

and i have some more stuff to post but no pics (as you can see these are all old...no camera has been near me lately which is such a bummer).

the summer has been crazy with jeff working all the time and making new friends. i admit that i get kinda down about it and i get so stressed that i have to have best friends in tyler, like today. after weekends like this, though, i realize that i have great friends around that continue to keep me happy (and sane) and that friendships just take time.

everyone in tyler has been so incredibly sweet and the neighbors are amazing and everyone's friends of friends have been so kind to us. we have jumped into playgroups and parties, and all that jazz, its just sometimes hard when you feel like you just said the weirdest thing in the room and you never know what everyone is thinking...needless to say, ill keep you posted on the friend-making process.

and when we arent busy trying to go to every event that is offered to us (and make sure we have clothes on), i have been online shopping and eating chips and salsa watching friday night lights! i made brycie watch half the first season while she was here! its sooo good. i highly recommend it if you have a lot of nights that your husband is on call that you can't sleep.

oh, and avery's new song is defying gravity. we have listened to it like 100 times. i think we are gonna have to see wicked...

and did you guys see the fantastic bake and blog! i found it over on mere's blog and i love it! its like right up my alley...we may have to get some key ingredients at the grocery store.

hope everyone had a ball this weekend!! be back with more crafts asap...

its been a while...

Hey guys! I have missed blogging so much! Bob had a major board exam last week and was taking an online study course for the last month so the computer has been with him all day everyday. Another laptop is top on my wish list:)

I have loved all of Kristen's posts and getting to see all the fun stuff they are up to in Tyler. I mean, I almost cried a little when I saw Ben's new haircut! How cute is he! We miss them like crazy!

So we just go back from a family vaca with my fam and it was so fun.

We went to northern california for about a week and it was so relaxing. It was more of a golf centered trip so Bob and my dad were in heaven. We spent a few nights in Pebble Beach and a few in Carmel. The weather was a little on the chilly side but such a nice change from the texas heat. Ella did so great and LOVED the beach!

Bonfire on the beach with s'mores was Ella's favorite part:)

Of course I made matching family vacation shirts. I used navy blue Rit Dye and dyed white shirts and then used photo emulsion to screen print them. They turned out pretty cute and everyone loved them.

play dough

aves and i played with play dough the other day and it was so much fun. i made the edible kind and it really was so good. we tried to color it with food coloring and it was kinda tie dyed.

and did yall see these shirts on ohjoy?

i mean, they look a lot like these...

we are so fashion forward...

locks o' love

so, since i didnt really do ben any favors with the haircut i gave him (while he was on the run, mind you) jeff decided it was his turn to give it a try.

and i just cried!! i never cried with aves, and was just so excited, but with every perfect blonde lock that jeff sheered away, i just melted. my little baby is now a boy. not even a toddler. like a grown up. practically out the door to college and not wanting his mom around. i miss him already.

sass is pointing to her hair and made jeff "cut" hers. she kept saying "sassy's turn".

and he did not like to have his picture taken at all and is mad at me for trying.

i couldnt help it.

he went from a little 60 year old man with a receding hairline, to a little 80 year old bald man. love him.

love both my bald men.

Haiti bound

my really awesome (and cute and single, i might add) brother is going to haiti today with my mom's foundation. he is such an incredible example of what it means to love people and i can't wait to hear about his trip. i know that he is going to be such light there, and i know that they are going to be such a light to him. there are so many amazing people who live, support others and are still busy cleaning up there. the amazing couple that live there and work with my mom's foundation are incredible people, as well, and i know he will love working and seeing them.

michael, we will miss you and we are praying for you. we are so thankful for your sweet heart and longing to serve others. come back soon!!

going green

we painted the front door (and the rest of the house!)

i tried a few colors out and we decided to go with "happy camper".

it kinda looks a little tommy hilfigger...

i didnt really mean to be preppy, but i like the bold color.

and remember forever ago, when i told you that my inlaws did two amazing things for us?? (psh, they've done WAY more than two things, two just happened to stand out right when i wrote that). well, before i moved in, i was really stressed about moving, having people take care of our kids for us while we moved, and painting the whole house. i was almost in tears quite a few times.

my in laws had heard my fears and decided, completely on their own, to go down and just paint the house themselves!! jeff told them a few colors that i was throwing around and they just did it. they found help from a few people around town and painted a lot of the trim (it was really yellowing, maybe used to be white, like in 1932) and the main room, the breakfast area and our room.

they are amazing.

truly was the greatest blessing. i just cried and cried!

it made our work so much easier. i really dont think we could be as far as we are without them.

so the living room and dining area are comfort gray,

and i got all the curtains from ikea. i looovvve these in the living room so much. i want to get the duvet to match for my bedroom..too much??? maybe.

the breakfast area,

(im totally hanging that mirror someday...and i know most people dont have couches in their breakfast area...we dont have a lot of space anywhere else...)

the kitchen is the original color. its not my fave, but im willing to keep it so i dont have to paint...and the fish is leaving. as soon as i can get jeff to take it somewhere...

they painted our room silver sage (best color evER) but im not quite ready to reveal that yet...

so there you go, guys. thats what is clean today. (and our house looks like we are trying to fit huge pieces of furniture into a small space. we gotta get a smaller coffee table...) who knows what i will conquer tomorrow. i havent been able to find a place where i can keep my sewing machine where my kids wont get to it. i am on a quest to find a table that will fit in my room so i can put all my craft bizness somewhere.

keep you posted.

it was bound to happen

my son's obsession with gum has finally gotten him into some trouble.

and a new hair cut.

i'd love to show you what the new haircut looks like, but trying to get a two year old boy to stand still is not one of my strengths...

adam

so, today, i watched my new favorite movie.

(well today and yesterday during my tae-bo sessions/"free time")

it was so so sweet.

check it out.

allison has a few things up her sleeve this week, so i cant wait to see what she is doing back in the lbk....

guess who's coming for lunch???

our old roomie!!

we are so excited!! she is on her way to nacanowhere and is stopping through!

we are so excited. have i said that enough???

and i promise, guys, the sewing machine is coming out of hiding this weekend! there will be more crafts coming.

i have some shorts like these, to make for a sweet friend who gives me much more credit than i am due so i have to practice on a few to make sure i remember how to thread my needle...

what else???

i guess there was a big trade that went on yesterday (and a whole television network that dedicated its day to it)...i dont get too involved in things outside of sports in my own state, so im just trying to keep my head on baseball (aves and jeff and i stayed up for the whole rangers game last night and she loved it!! esp when i told her we need to call linds and go to a game and get popcorn, cotton candy, pretzels, nachos, lemon chills, ice cream in a cap...) but gotta say i am sad for cleveland...(but excited that dirk is staying with the mavs! i mean, at least there is loyalty in the lone star state. and really, can you put a price on loyalty?? (maybe $60 million??))

if you know me personally, you know that i have been trying to perfect this recipe for years (has it been years, bob? it sure feels like it...) and my mom made it when we went to the lake for the first time of her life and perfected it!! she is amazing. it melted in our mouths. it was just fantastic. i came home and got a lot closer but i dont feel ready to post pics of it yet. and then i probably need gran to come try it and make sure its perfect.

yesterday, we went to the park by our house. it was a lot of fun and there is an amphitheatre, a play area and a fountain. of course my kids got into the fountain completely clothed and were wet most of the trip. they loved it, of course.

while we were walking up and down the steps at the amphitheatre an old man, who appeared to be homeless, came up to me and kept saying something about dollars. i didnt have any money and felt bad so i was about to tell him that and he reached out and handed me three dollars. one for each kid. he told me he didnt have any kids and wanted to give them to mine. how sweet is that?? it just made my day. i still kinda cant believe he did that.

i saved the money and want to give it to them when they understand what a sacrifice that was for the old man (but we know i will probably spend it on a sonic drink...at least i have a plan in the right direction).

hope yall have a great weekend! we will let you know how our roommate reunion goes!

fun for the fourth

we had so much fun for 4th of July!! we went to my parents lake house and got to see ella, bob and al (and jojo and pop-pa and al's sister anna) and it was fantastic! our friends (and allison and bob's brother and sister in law) aly and matt, and their kids, came out to hang out with us and they were just a blast. their kids are gorgeous, kind and so much fun. they always bring the fun wherever they go, esp on a holiday (hello halloween!).

my mom got matching shirts, a band, and her sister, brother in law and two of their kids and their girlfriends came out too. they were so fun and we are so glad we got to spend time with them! we missed lindsay like crazy (but check out her amazing shirts!! she designed the logo, created them and dyed the shirts herself! unreal!) and my brother patrick and sister in law shannon. they also bring the fun wherever they go (also especially on a holiday. hello michael's birthday!) and were sooo missed!! we had tons of fun with uncle michael, though, and the kids just looooveee him.

the kids did not stop swimming and dancing the whole time! they had so much fun together!

brycie stopped by for a sec, but we didnt get any pics. she looked beautiful and we were so so glad to see her! her mom and dad were there the whole time, thank goodness. we love us some gavlaks!! they helped get the dance party started! the babies kept it going, though...

thanks mom and dad for a great 4th!! we had such a blast. and we cant wait til next year...

freezer paper shirts

Last week Carrie put together a craft night and it was so fun. We all made shirts using freezer paper stencils. We made a lot of 4th of July themed shirts for the kids to wear over the weekend.

Using freezer paper to make shirts is super easy. All you do is cut your design out of freezer paper using an exacto knife. (make sure shiny side of freezer paper is down) Then you iron your freezer paper onto the shirt, paint, then peel off freezer paper and your done!

Carrie has some big news to share with her fam this weekend so she made a big sister shirt!

I hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July. We get to be with Kristen and the kids for the 4th and I am beyond excited about it!!! I miss them like crazy! Ella is going to love seeing all her besties again. I'm sure there will be lots of pics to share:)

big news!

Look who is going to be a BIG SISTER!

YAY!

We are so excited! I am 12 weeks pregnant with a January 12th due date. I had my first sonogram last week and everything looks great with baby #2. Ella came a month early by c-section because of some issues from my accident. So this baby will come sometime in December before Christmas. I feel great so far and have had no problems or morning sickness. I have already had some crazy cravings with Cheeto puffs being number one. I have got to stop buying them at the store. Zumba here I come! We can't wait to find out if it's going to be a boy or girl! I will keep you updated...