built to last

quickie

2009-11-11T08:21:00.001-06:00

Ruby and I are off to the dr. this morning, just for a regular OB check, so I don't have any extra time to post.

I wanted to put this picture of James' haircut up as proof to my mother.

My camera was on some strange setting I was using outside so it looks all goofy. Oops.

Have a nice Wednesday. xoox

p.s. The sweatshirt James is wearing is a 4T and so close to being too short for him but he loves it. He's never noticed how the little tab on the pocket says babyGap or he'd never still be wearing it. heehhehehe. ((my boy.))

and something for the baby daddy

2009-11-10T14:16:00.003-06:00

What man wouldn't love this card? I saw it somewhere online maybe a month or so ago and instantly went over and bought it from these St. Paul artists. I am saving it for Christmas or for a day when I think he needs to hear this particular message from me. (like if he breaks down and cries like a baby because he loves me so much.) HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA.

xoxo

p.s. I updated my own etsy shop today with some of my holiday scarves. Look here! :)

my happy-baby-to-me present

2009-11-10T08:24:00.003-06:00

Today I purchased my happy-baby-to-me present. I ordered a truck load of magazine subscriptions!! Woo hoo! I haven't had any since Ruby was born (they probably ran out when she was around a year) so this is very exciting for me.

I love magazines. I love books first but magazines are a close second. I can hardly stand the thought of going to bed at night if I don't have a book or a magazine to read when I get there. Sometimes it is only for 5 minutes but it's a favorite & necessary part of my daily routine. I rarely buy either (except as an occasional splurge), preferring to get them all from the library. (some libraries in our system let you check out current issues and they can all be put on hold online) The truth is, as much as I love them, lots of times magazines are disappointing (aside from US because gossip is always fun), and not worth their purchase price. So why did I just spend $60 on them?!?

Well, when I have a new baby, all bets are off. I deserve to be pampered a little and getting a new magazine in my mailbox could be just the lift I need to get through the afternoon. My ability to remember to put stuff on hold will diminish for a while and there will probably be some days that stopping by the library will even feel like too much. So, Yay!! I ordered Oprah, Everyday with Rachel Ray, Country Living, Body & Soul, and Family Fun. (I might slip a Real Simple in there if I can find a good price someday.) I also ordered Mental Floss for Patrick for Christmas (this is a really good, newish magazine that he really liked when I brought one home (from the library)...I'm so excited to surprise him.) and Boys Life for James. I used this site to search for deals and ended up getting 4 of them from Amazon and 3 from dotcommags.com. Right now Amazon has additional dollars off on lots of their subscriptions. You can see a list of them here. Overall I spent $62 for 7 subscriptions and have 2 gifts taken care of. Right now I'm going to order the kids each a pair of Hanna Andersson pajamas (also a splurge but the one thrifted pair of bottoms I got for James are his favorite. He said they're "soooo super soft.") and have 2 more gifts done. Fun. :)

p.s. The other great thing about magazines? Your friends (& mothers) love when you pass them on. :)

Other titles I might like, for future reference (or santa): US weekly , Every Day Food (the Martha one), Real Simple, and if it was free, Martha Stewart Living. xoxoxo

okay, I'm back again

2009-11-09T10:14:00.005-06:00

It is (another) gorgeous day here in Wisconsin and we have all the windows thrown open and laundry on the line. Ruby told me this morning she just wanted to stay home (we had a fun & busy weekend) and I couldn't agree more. So, here we are. I'm getting lots of unpacking (long story) done in between laundry, hug time and helping to tuck babies in.

On my mind lately in Christmas. It is coming faster than I like. Well, not really Christmas, but Thanksgiving and the Craftacular weekend. 3 weeks?? Really?! I dropped all expectations for myself a couple of weeks ago (as far as quotas & my schedule of making) and that has worked out well. I didn't want to stress out during November to meet some goals I set for myself before I knew our household would be sick for most of October. That seemed silly.

I am taking great strides to take care of myself and listen to what I need these days. When I am stressed out, I pray and make some lists about why and how and what is making me feel that way, and try to listen and wait for solutions. When I am crabby I step back and see if I think it will pass or if it feels like something more. When I am tired, I rest. When I am really tired, I cry and rest and pray that tomorrow will feel better and probably eat some ice cream. And tomorrow usually does feel better. See, when I found out I was pregnant I stopped taking my antidepressants. I had been weaning myself off of them for a while, having a feeling that I would be okay without them, and getting the baby news, well, I just quit one day. (NOTE: This is not recommended and I would not suggest anyone else do this. It worked for me but now that I look back there were some small strange things going on that didn't add up...now I know why. :)

I loved my sertraline. (generic Zoloft) Loved it. It came to the rescue when I needed it and took care of some stuff in my body that I couldn't do by myself. That deep sadness lifted, like magic. I was left feeling so much like myself again but also with some nice extra benefits. Those benefits were the reason it was hard to go off of the drug. The little pesky things in life, that can bother anyone to one degree or another, didn't really bother me anymore. I was not like a robot or anything, I want that to be clear, but I was so much more capable of telling myself that it, whatever it might be, didn't really matter. Constantly I said to myself, Let it go, Stephanie. And I would! Those little things people say unintentionally that can hurt your feelings? Done dwelling on that. The tiny stuff my husband does to make me crazy? No big deal. Worrying about my actions pleasing everyone else? Pffft, puh-leeze. It was so nice!! The really nice thing, though, is that after 2 years of telling myself that, I really learned to tell myself that. Like, on my own! What a gift.

There were some times during those first few exhausting months that I wondered if I had made the right decision. Everything is so much harder when you are that tired, you know? The good thing was that I always knew I could go back on them if I needed to. And I still know that. (Zoloft is thought of as safe during pregnancy and I am not trying to tell anyone to go off of it. This was obviously a personal decision that I had been moving towards for a while before the pregnancy news.) It's like a little "get out of jail free" card tucked in my pocket.

I have to say the constant self-checks and self-analyzing that I do now gets a little old sometimes but I really feel like I want to stay on top of my self, if that makes sense. I don't want to allow anything to sneak up on me again. I feel really good about the way things are going. I mostly feel like my normal self, pretty happy with some manic episodes thrown in to keep things spicy.

I didn't sit down with a plan to write about all of this. I had been wanting to share it, as I think being on the drugs helped me learn some really healthy skills that I had never before learned...an excellent side effect if you will, but not today. I sat down to write about how I am glad that once the Craftacular is over I will still have a month just to focus on all things Christmas with my family. And how I am really excited for Thanksgiving weekend and my mom's visit and the Craftacular day. And how we are setting a budget of $100 for each of our kids and how that probably seems like too much to some and too little to others. (it's just right for us.) And how the Advent Conspiracy will play a role in our holiday again this year, and some day I'd like to tell you about how powerful the Sunday at church was last year when they took that collection from us. (the air was thick, heavy, with God. You could almost physically feel it.) (I guess I just told you.)

SO. whew. Now I am done and have to get back to the other stuff this day has for me. Thanks for reading all of this, if you did. If anyone had any of the same experiences or anything at all, I'd love to hear it. xoxo

remember this about ruby

2009-11-09T08:44:00.001-06:00

I keep putting this off but know I shouldn't much longer. There are so many things Ruby is doing right now that I don't want to forget. The cute way they say stuff sometimes changes overnight and is gone from my brain almost as fast.

So, here is some stuff I (extra) love about Ruby right now:

how she says her underwear are "inside outside" instead of inside out
saying "wis one" or "wat one"
still crazy in love with my hair, says black is her favorite color (um, hello Ruby, it's CHESTNUT)
she says she can "easily" do almost anything
(ie: I can easily catch that bird)
how she will climb up behind me on the chair and pretty soon I will feel something rubbing on my back. I turn around and it is her bare bum. She thinks this is hilarious.

Okay, of course I am now forgetting the rest. I will add to this, I promise (myself.)

xoxo

dear us,

2009-11-07T20:47:00.001-06:00

love, Saturday

24+340+160+98.6=

2009-11-07T09:26:00.003-06:00

one messed up day.

It was 24 hours between when we left home on Thursday and arrived back home on Friday.

It was 340 miles that I drove during that time.

It was $160.00 that I spent on gas & hotel during that time.

It was 98.6 on the thermometer this morning that has me kicking myself.

bygones.

xoxo

one small thing

2009-11-05T08:38:00.003-06:00

One thing I love about life with kids: How something that is SO challenging or SO frustrating one day can be nearly forgotten within such a short time. I took pictures of all of this the other night because it seemed like SUCH a big deal and now, a few days later, it seems kind of silly. Just another normal night with kids, right? The trick for me is to try and remember what worked...and what didn't...during those frustrating times, so I might as well document it.

Monday night was really frustrating and challenging with James. He was just in a rage, talking super snotty to me and yelling...just being a beast. I ended up making him go to his room and told him he couldn't come out until he A) ate his snack (I did know he was hungry but he had kind of gone past normal hungry, I think, and was totally irrational) and B) cleaned up his room. He sat in there hollering for a good 10 minutes, demanding a different snack on a different plate, saying his room was too messy, until I brought him up this little check list. Shortly after, there was total quiet. About 20 minutes later he opened his door and called for me to come and see his room. He had made his bed...

and cleaned up all of his toys.
The checklist really made a difference for him. I think a whole floor of toys can be overwhelming to anyone (especially because MOST of his bedroom stuff gets sorted) and while I still help him a lot of times, this was a consequence for the foul attitude. He liked the checklist so much that he stuck it on his door, to help him other times, he said. (insert heart breaking) He had eaten his snack, finished his milk, cleaned his room, and was a different kid the rest of the night. (tormented his sister, played Legos, chased his father, etc.)

I use checklists all the time so I'm going to try and remember to use them more often with him. A small thing that made a huge difference.

I suppose that is worth remembering. :)

xoxoo

baby hat

2009-11-04T12:09:00.002-06:00

baby hat, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

Thankfully I did have 2 successes before that horrible hat failure I showed you the other day. This little hat turns out darling and goes together easily. It is from the Lotta Jansdotter book, Simple Sewing for Baby. The one shown here is the size the book pattern makes as is. I reduced it to make a tiny one, for a tiny newborn, and that also turned out well. I wish I knew what size/age baby this one fits. I hope it fits the intended at some point this winter.

xoxo

p.s. I need a new header!!!!!

tuesday, pm edition

2009-11-03T14:53:00.000-06:00

Here are a couple shots from, well, I bet you can figure out when they're from. James could care less about dressing up. He just wants the minimum costume required in order to get candy. It was pretty cold out and this power ranger suit was the roomiest thing in our play clothes, good for layering, so a power ranger he was! We have the belt and mask but he wasn't interested. Ruby wore James' skeleton from last year. Easy. The little witch is our buddy Megan. Her sister the turtle was interested in the photo op. They enjoyed handing out candy almost as much as collecting it...Ruby likes to give big handfuls.

Fun day today. It is my friend Susan's birthday (Happy Birthday, Susan!!) so we met up with her and some other friends for coffee & treats this morning. Then Ruby & I got groceries and then, surprise!, I got my H1N1 vaccine. I'm glad to have finally gotten one, now let's hope it works.

Time to go get the boy. Praying for a better afternoon than yesterday. Well, yesterday was really bad for a while but then turned out pretty good. I took some pictures...maybe for tomorrow? I just love when things turn around. Some time away (in his room) is usually what it takes to get James back on track. Why do I feel guilty for doing it then?? Ugh, parenthood. :) xoxo

please remind me

2009-11-02T20:54:00.002-06:00

never to get Huevos Rancheros again. blech. (Thankfully Patrick shared his omelet with me.) shudder. They were gross.

((These pictures are also really gross to me. The lighting is awful and the food looks just sick. Hope you enjoy them! :) (hee!) ))

On Saturday, after the carnival and before trick or treating, we took the kids out to lunch. We were all tired but James won for being the most tired when he laid down on the booth, reaching up occasionally for a fry or bite of his hot dog.

Oh, and the Pancake Cafe has really, really good coffee.

xoxo

state street

2009-11-02T13:47:00.001-06:00

Ruby and I went all over this morning but State St. was our favorite stop. I had to stop at Anthology to pick up some postcards for the Craftacular. What a neat store...if you haven't been, you should go. It was a windy morning but really nice in the sunshine. She is sleeping now so I'm going to go sew a little bit. Enjoy your afternoon. xoxo

and to my brother, too!!

2009-11-02T09:05:00.001-06:00

uncle thomas, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

I just love you to pieces, brother. You are funny & smart & fun to be around. The kidlets are crazy about you, too. xoxoxo

the birthday girl

2009-11-02T08:24:00.001-06:00

0827 084, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

Happy Birthday to my dear mother! Mom, you know how much we all adore you...please don't die for a long, long, long time.

xoxoxooxox, Stephanie & crew

thank God it's Monday

2009-11-02T08:19:00.000-06:00

The best news I have? We all felt good this weekend and LEFT THE HOUSE numerous times. (Oh, alright, Patrick was a little weezy Saturday morning but that passed, thankfully.)

Here is a shot from the little carnival at the school Saturday morning. This fishing game was always a favorite of mine when I was little.

I have lots of other pictures but am not going to post them right now. Am going to get out of the house and run Ruby ragged today, OUT OF THE HOUSE.

xoxo

you will never guess what happened!

2009-10-29T16:46:00.003-05:00

James spiked a fever this morning, after 2 days of being fever free, and puked all over himself and the van. Luckily we hadn't left town yet (we were headed to Madison to do a couple errands) so I could whisk him right back home, strip him naked in the garage, and wrap him up in my jacket to carry him inside. He thanked me very sincerely, which made me tear up a little. What a sweetheart.

He seems better right now but we all know what that means....haha. A big fat lot of NOTHING. :) I'm mildly curious to see where the next few days takes us but at the same time, nothing will surprise me.

I probably shouldn't say that, should I?

xoxo

what doesn't kill me...

2009-10-28T10:28:00.003-05:00

I wanted to modify this baby hat pattern to fit a larger child, like Ruby. Okay, not a big deal. I already modified it once (smaller) and it worked brilliantly so I was all cheery starting out. I did my little calculations and carefully measured 1.5" out from the original pattern all around. I was feeling pretty clever when I took this first photo.

Hmmmmm. However, when I actually cut the fleece out it puzzled me a little. It looked rather large and helmet-like and not so cute & acorn-like like the original. BUT! I measured and calculated and should trust myself a little, I said to myself.

So, I sewed it together. And this is what I got:
Maybe it's my instincts I should trust and not my math?? After some hysterical laughter I realized that while the hat did need to be wider, it didn't necessarily need to be taller. Aha. A little shaping and back to the sewing machine:
Okay, still a bit big and pointy but getting better. Right??
After another round with the scissors and machine, this is what I got. Not exactly the cute & cuddly profile I was looking for.
At this point Ruby was requiring a fistful of mini marshmallows, instead of the original 3, to try the hat on and I was just plain tired of it all. (and almost out of marshmallows)

I may revisit this hat someday but probably not. There are many other hat patterns out there and there is ALWAYS Target. xoxoxo

the fun, it doesn't stop

2009-10-27T13:42:00.003-05:00

This was just one of the many, many fun projects we did yesterday.
See? James looks like he's having so much of "the fun."
He can hardly take anymore.
The next fun project was making a cozy bed, which he then curled up in and slept for nearly 4 hours: (fun!)
while his sister rinsed the dirty dishes: (I wish I was kidding. She loved it and the grossest thing she touched was a wet noodle)
She looks how I felt. (the black stuff is frosting, not a black eye) (yes, that's a bag of ruffles in the background and yes, every light in the house was on. Haven't you all heard of SAD?)
Ruby and I had a lot more fun while James was asleep but I'll have to show you that tomorrow. Right now I have to peel 2 kids off of each other. I had to separate them earlier and predicted that they'd be okay until 1:30. We actually made it until 2:00! I just had to say to Ruby, "Ruby, you WILL NOT touch your brother's penis with those tongs."

for kristy

2009-10-26T11:24:00.004-05:00

My aunt called me yesterday and wanted to know what the heck I'm thinking not blogging for so long. :) Just kidding, she just said she missed hearing from me and that was very nice. Thank you, Miss Kristy. xoxo

Never one to ignore a ~~threat~~ request, I decided to stop by and give you a little update. There's not much, trust me.

I started finally feeling better on Friday. Feeling better means I had more energy, didn't need a nap or go to bed at 7pm. Yay! I have felt good (still stuffed up but WHATEVER, can totally handle that!) ever since and am so thankful. Especially because James is sick now! His started with a fever Friday afternoon, fever on and off all day Saturday, no fever Sunday, slight cough throughout the weekend, and woke up this morning wheezing, coughing and gasping for breath with a 102 degree fever. Needless to say I threw him in the van and headed to the ER. (It was 5:30am) OF COURSE, within 15 minutes his fit stopped and he was breathing fine. Still went to ER and he checked out fine (just a virus, not H1N1 they don't think) and they were so nice to me even though I felt dumb. (should say that a girl in his class was out with H1N1 last week and I am considered high risk so I am taking it pretty seriously) He is on the couch and crabby and I hope he falls asleep soon. (I think Ruby does, too.) It's a bummer because this was supposed to be the week I could finally take Ruby to see some friends (after 2 weeks of all me all the time, pretty much) but that's life. I am so thankful that James was not sick while I was. So thankful.

Okay, so that's where we are, health wise. If I don't show up here again for the rest of the week it is because we are consumed with sickness or something. And really, I can't bear to speak of it anymore. :)

Moving on. Making bias tape (binding tape, really, as it's not cut on the bias) is time consuming but rewarding. And cheaper, for sure. Here's what I've got ahead of me:
Here is some that I finished. (a fave)
Here's James at the ER this morning. He's into the tic tac toe right now.
Here's me last night after Patrick sprayed me with the sink sprayer. Just because I put one tiny ice cube down his shirt. What a baby. Don't I look happy?

Here is when I tried to get a shot of the happy couple. (us) He practically broke my wrist but he did not get the camera like he tried to after this. HA!Oh, and yesterday was gorgeous. James' fever was gone but I didn't want him around his buddies (their last soccer game was yesterday) just in case (and I'm glad I kept him away, obviously) but he did feel up to getting out. We went for a short hike in New Glarus. Gorgeous.

And before I forget, a few things that made me feel really good recently:

gorgeous weather one day last week...it was almost 70. Ruby and I were outside all morning and then napped in the afternoon. so nice.
the amazing golden maple leaves everywhere
some time by myself
making something really cute that I can't show you right now (but it's soooooo cute!)
baking day with Ruby (we made cookies, pie and bread one morning)
the white mocha I got on the way home this morning
our walk yesterday
some time at the park another day last week
nice words from others about James
being able to stay up until 10:30 (!!) to watch a movie and stamp on some cards
good library books (this one in particular)
tasting stuff when you haven't been able to for a while
speaking of that...how the first drink of Coke, after a long time away from it, reminds me of Christmas
lunch with Patrick and Ruby on a rainy day last week (that chopped chicken bbq salad that panera is advertising really is goooooood.)
um, I have another tiny baby growing inside of me. happy sigh.

xooxoxo

until then,

2009-10-20T16:01:00.001-05:00

annie halloween, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

I'm signing off for a while. Everything is fine, I'm feeling better, but not 100% and am sick of talking about it. (but can't think of anything else to say, either, too much work.) I'll probably be back before Halloween, but just in case....I wish you all a scary one! (and good days until then.)

xoxo

finally

2009-10-19T09:24:00.001-05:00

I am happy to say that I am finally feeling better. I am still stuffed up but overall feeling 90% better. I plan on taking it easy this week because my hope is to try for a trip to Duluth again on Thursday. That was 8 days sick because of a cold. I hadn't made the connection (typical of me) that maybe it was so bad because I am pregnant until a couple of friends mentioned that possibility to me. I guess my immune system is busy protecting that little one inside and I am left to fend for myself in the cold & germy world. Ugh. I wonder what I'll get next?? I do remember being sick during my other pregnancies, and sad that I couldn't take Dayquil, but I don't remember it ever being like this one. I feel like I understand a little bit better why pregnant women are encouraged to get their flu shots.

Anyways, let's forget about that, okay? (Only not the parts about Ruby being such a trouper, James praying for me, and Patrick coming home early almost every night. I'll keep those parts.)

I didn't get any crafting done after finishing those towels last week, until this past weekend. I finally got 3 dozen cookies cut out (need 1 dozen more) (note: do not try and sharpen your fabric scissors with a knife sharpener) and a bunch of cards done. The cards still need to be stamped and I will probably do that later today. This week was supposed to be my hot pad week but since I have make up work I switched it to banners. I love making those banners and they are pretty easy once everything is cut out. I am excited to make up some more binding tape, too. (am geek.)

Below is a picture of Ruby at the "family friendly" Haunted Trail put on by the Humane Society. I guess it's family friendly if you like your kids to see men in Jason masks walking around with large bloody knives. Oh, and lots of girls in cages with blood on them. ???? Yeah, I'm going to forget about that wasted $20 bucks, too. At least it's for a good cause but we will definitely not bring the kids there again. I thought they might be scarred for life but both have already forgotten it (or blocked it out). (another note: call & confirm what "family friendly" specifically means in the future)

Just a side note: Ruby has been riding in this mei tai for over 2 years now and we're both still comfortable with it. I know I won't want her body pushed against my belly for much longer though, and while she could ride on my back for a while, the end of wearing her is drawing near. (sniff) I have to say that wearing a new tiny one is one of the things I look most forward to. I love my ring sling but have these ideas in my head for a modified mei tai that I really want to try...I want to make more of a newborn sized one with a little pocket inside for those tiny curled up legs. xoxo

3 years ago

2009-10-16T10:47:00.001-05:00

DSC01048, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

I am still sick so I have no new photos or anything much to tell you about. If I did have new photos they would be of Ruby sitting in her doll highchair in front of the TV for the 5th hour straight or of James eating his 3rd piece of plain cinnamon bread as an after school snack (store bought, naturally). Or maybe one of Patrick making me a grilled cheese that he knew I couldn't taste one bite of but really liked the idea of.

So, instead of having no picture, here is one from 3 years ago. I thought they were so flipping cute.

Still hoping tomorrow is the day I'll feel better. It's got to be one of those tomorrows, right? xoxo

the boring saga continues...

2009-10-14T08:41:00.000-05:00

Possibly Ruby's first drawing of a person. Love. Also? She sweetly tucked in a dime and a penny yesterday, on a slice of bread. Love.

As for the star of this show, me, (ha!) all that optimism yesterday was for naught. Still sick. Not going to Duluth this weekend but will aim for next. The trip is just too long to do by myself when I'm not feeling well. (and not much fun, either!) That's my update. Oh, and if you've called me in the last few days, I'm sorry I haven't gotten back to you. I will soon. xoxo

finally finished these bad boys

2009-10-13T13:46:00.001-05:00

I finally finished these flipping towels last night. I do like this new style, though. The white one is my favorite. $5 and one can be yours come Thanksgiving weekend. :)

Surprise! We are home today. My cold is up/down throughout the day so I hesitate to say I am feeling better today. I guess I'll say it, though, what the heck. Live a little, right? The pressure in my head seems somewhat less than yesterday and even though I can't taste a thing, I do feel slightly better. Maybe I'll be well enough to travel on Thursday. Hope so.

Other than that, not much new here. I have done a buttload of laundry (that's a lot, in case you weren't sure how much a buttload was) and finished the seasonal switch of all of our shoes, jackets & hats. I even got out the snow stuff because it doesn't seem so far fetched that we might need them in October this year. (as our friends in MN will tell us)

Off to pretend I can taste some lunch! xoxo

sharp as a tack, I tell ya

2009-10-13T08:14:00.002-05:00

Last night:

J: Mom, can I have more of those chicken strips that aren't strips but are smaller and don't have any chicken in them?

S: You mean tater tots?

J: Yeah, tater tots.

(too bad this is blurry.)