Noah's Ark Quilting

Thoughtfulness

2011-01-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

I know it is already the new year, but I wanted to share something from a few months back.

This past year Thanksgiving came with a surprise for me; My beautiful children had come home from being out with dad, and while they were gone they had bought me a gift. I lit up when I saw the present all wrapped up and them so exited. As I stood in the kitchen unwrapping my gift, I could not help but be overwhelmed with joy. I'm so honored that God has chosen me to be their mother. So as I was fighting back tears (I didn't want them to think something was wrong) I opened my newly colored coffee mug that the kids had all drawn on. It was beautifully made - and just the right price point (from the dollar store). Well just as I was going to start thanking my kids,telling them how much I love them, and that I'm so grateful for them.

OUT IT CAME......
My oldest son Mason blurted out that he picked out the same one for his tummy mom (he is adopted). Wow?! all those "oohs" and "ahhs" I wanted to give out felt like they just left the building. It seemed to be almost like a physical pain I felt - and my gift didn't seem as special. At that moment it was as if my 7 years of investment as his mom (day in and day out) was not seen by my son or at least didn't deserve something more (something separate, something only mine) than the one who only birthed him. This was my "thank you" gift for being his mom, and it was the same as what he got for his tummy mom... As I felt the color and air leaving my body, I stared at my son then my husband. I felt like it had been a good hour with nothing coming out of my mouth (Hubby says in was maybe a few seconds).

I looked back down at all three of the kids (and fighting back tears for a different reason) they were all smiling; Mason was smiling the biggest of them all. I turned back to Mason and said "Yes, it is the same mug, and I bet tummy mom loves her's as much as I love mine, thank you so much sweety"

I gave each of my kids hugs and kisses, told them that I love them, and how grateful I am to have each and everyone of them.

When the kids ran off to play, I stood in the kitchen and I began to think about the day God placed Mason into our lives, and about his tummy mom, and all sorts of "What if's" fluttered into my mind.

SO MY THOUGHT'S....
what if we hadn't got are precious son,
what if parental rights weren't terminated,
what if he wasn't placed into foster care,
what if his tummy mom had changed her life for him (able to reunify),
what if, what if,
what if my husband had not let Mason pick out the same gift as tummy mom's gift?

Well as I was thinking about all the things I don't know, I realized that what I do know is that I'm thankful for each and every day God allows me to be called mom by these beautiful children - And although it can be hard at times, that makes all those other "What if's" flutter away as quickly as they come.

Praise Be To God

New Traditions

2010-12-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

This year our family started a new tradition. And apparently, it is somewhat common, but we had never heard of it. It is called the Jesse Tree.

This is how it works.

-You make an ornament every day leading up to Christmas

-Each day either before or after making the ornament you talk about what the picture symbolizes

-You read out of the bible

It is a wonderful time that really keeps the reason for the season in focus

Here is a link to where I got ours

And if your wondering where we found out about this great new tradition; it was from a great friend of mine Anna (and she has a blog too, check it out)

Traditions

2010-12-28T21:00:00.000-07:00

Every year my mother and I get together and bake sweets for family and friends. It is a great time of talking, laughing, and mother-daughter time. We did truffles one year, then cookies another, etc.

This year me made brownies. Thankfully there was not a lot of baking because most had a cream cheese filling - but, the cutting felt like it was never going to end.

There was a total of.....

560 pieces and 12 bags of toffee (a must have every year)

All the brownie recipes came from Taste of Home's cookbook-Brownies & Bars Cookbook. The toffee recipe is from my mother.

Take The Time

2010-12-28T20:47:00.004-07:00

A must read blog post on foster care.

ONE CHILD

Down It Came

2010-12-13T08:00:00.002-07:00

So I somewhat naively thought that letting the children see the tree all lit up last night would keep them from touching it out of curiosity... well, you guessed it - Miss Eliana could not resist the snowman with all its bright colors.

From holding it, to mom saying not to, to her letting go completely; down it came - braking all over the floor.

So the crafty mother that I am, I came up with a solution. The snowman had not broke, only the bulb around it (thank goodness, it was a gift). So I super glued the snowman to the inside of a mason jar, poked a hole in the lid, pushed in the lights that make the different colors, twisted it on, and vwala...

Snowman back in business :) I did however make sure he was placed farther back in the tree this time - away from where Eliana can reach.

Lights, Camera, Christmas Tree

2010-12-12T22:30:00.000-07:00

So I had this idea last night to wake up all of my 3 children so they could see the Christmas tree all lit up.

It was a hit, and they oohed and awed; then I remembered it was still bedtime :( I feared the battle of going back to bed - but amazingly they did... quietly :)

Now there was a point to this, and that was....

It is precious and worth going out of the ordinary occasionally to get a little special time with just mom and kids. Sorry dad, but you were at work.

National Adoption Awareness Month

2010-11-16T23:36:00.005-07:00

November is National Adoption Awareness Month. The focus of this month is the adoption of children currently in foster care.

This subject is very dear to our hearts since we adopted our oldest son through foster care.

Join in this month and help a child find their forever family.

Inspiration

2010-10-06T09:00:00.000-06:00

My uncle Darrell and his wife Sara asked me to make them a quilt for their bed. Of course I said yes, and so I started thinking about what to do. I wanted it to be something that they would both love. Well, my uncle and his friend started a business for hunters called headhunter archery; so I also wanted to incorporate that into the quilt as well. As I was looking for inspiration, about a month ago I looked outside and knew what I wanted to do (I took this photo).

Both my uncle and his wife love hunter green and this will be a king size. I will be starting it in the next couple of weeks (I will keep you updated).

What do you think?

Family Photos

2010-09-24T00:03:00.001-06:00

It has been too long since we have had some family pictures taken - well, we finally got the much needed photos taken. They came out great (at least I think so) and even better, we all enjoyed doing it. I also have to admit that it was nice to take pics of the whole family and not just the kids. But, as it often happens, not all the kids would smile at the same time (even when we told them that we would go to McDonald's after-wards for a treat). We even tried telling them to say "ice cream". All the hard work paid off :)

And just for fun the ones that will make it on my blog, but never on my wall....

Summer

2010-09-22T15:00:00.000-06:00

It was a great summer! So to fill you in on what has been happening... to start, my mom and I took a trip to Kansas with the kids to visit (my) grandparents. We had a great time. They live on a farm, so the kids got to run and play with their dogs the whole time.

We shot off fire works.

Eliana had her first 4 wheeling ride
.

And then vacation was over... but not the fun.

The kids got to go on a "wonder walk" at our church to see all the things God made.

We went swimming, and to the park weekly.

Can you ever have to many floaties...

mainly we just enjoyed time with our families.

So how about you? what did you do this summer?

The Big 7

2010-08-29T20:10:00.000-06:00

That's right, our oldest son Mason turned 7 on August 7th; and he just started 2nd grade. I can still remember when he was so small, such a cute chubby face, with such a big smile.

And lucky him, he had two birthday celebrations this year.
-One with just family.We did things like make cookies for breakfast, swim at the gym, eat cupcakes with fries for dinner (his choice). We really enjoyed it and his grandma B drop bye to say "Happy Birthday". It was a great day.

-And the other one was with all his friends at the park and then to the pool. He is at the age where it is more important for his friends to have a good time than himself (and if its not an age thing, its at least a compassion thing; maybe I even have a little bit to do with that in raising him:). Mason even let his friends get cake before himself. It is such a wonderful thing to see his caring and loving side come out. And all the kids that came were just as caring and loving in the cards they gave him - all put "love you Mason". It makes my heart melt.
What about yours, are you melting yet?

And just for fun Mason "Swimming" and sorry for all the screaming in the background, it is Noah and Eliana wanting a picture taken of them.

Blue Skys

2010-08-28T19:26:00.000-06:00

Well I just finished a quilt for my mother in-law's best friend. She is leaving to start deputation with her husband and family (they will be missionaries in Germany). So my mother-in-law wanted to give her a very special gift that she could remember her as they travel to all the different churches seeking support. Is so happened that she thought one of my quilts would be perfect. I was happy and honored to help out (plus I got free range to do whatever I wanted). The only request was that it have blue in it.

I had a month to work on it, but with it being summer, I didn't start it until a week before she needed it. With getting all the school stuff out, planing a birthday party for our son, and daily life - it took the whole week.

So here it is - it came out beautiful don't you think?

The Front

The Back

Up Close

Keep in prayer the people of Germany, that they would come to know Jesus, that they would live for him, and that God would use faithful servants to proclaim His truth.

She's Here

2010-07-25T14:06:00.004-06:00

Lillian
6lb. 2oz.

19 1/2 in.

My good friend Elisha finally had her baby... How beautiful!

We Found Her

2010-07-25T13:46:00.007-06:00

Well I lost Eliana today.
(and yes you can looses a child in your own house)

I was getting the boys ready for church today, and turned around to - no Eliana. So (with the help from the boys) we started looking around the house. Any parent knows that kids usually hide in obvious places - and when there not in those obvious places, you can just follower the giggles:) But, today there was no giggles to follow.

We checked the whole house - and still no Eliana. At this point I was becoming very nervous - and late for church.

On checking her room for the 3rd time I saw a white diaper!

And out popped little miss Eliana.

And how did she get up there you ask?... From this big elephant.

It's A Girl

2010-07-18T00:26:00.002-06:00

Let the gift opening began

The oh's and ash's

Cute and adorable dress made for little Lillian

And a per cut quilt i did just for mommy.

A happy mommy makes for a happy baby.

Jungle Safari pt 3

2010-07-10T06:14:00.001-06:00

Today we meet the wild "quilt". I happen to know there are 2 of these animals in this jungle (in a few weeks there will be a 3rd) - but today we will spot only one.

This creature begins it's life the same as the "curtain" - all white with subtle green tie dye

But as we go deeper into the jungle we can see glimpses of a much more detailed camouflage...

Can you hear the monkey (ooh ooh ah ah)? I think we have found her

Yes we have, here she is with bright pink bow, lipstick, and edges.

Jungle Safari pt2

2010-07-09T08:38:00.003-06:00

Today as we move deeper into the jungle we find the creature know as "curtains". The "curtain" is camouflage and will hide itself well where there is shrubbery and other plant life.

The birthing process for this animal is as follows:

As a new born this animal will be an all white sheet, but after the process of tie dye, it assumes a green coloring throughout (if you would like it to be really bright, you must use all cotton - I used cotton/polyester blend so it is really light). As the curtain matures even more, the shapes of plants and vines and leaves are applied by using iron on adhesive. The fully mature curtain is identified by two patches of little monkey faces.

Jungle Safari pt1

2010-07-08T20:02:00.003-06:00

Awhile ago I posted that I was making 2 quilts, 2 curtains for my sister in-law. I had planned on posting pictures right away... but it took a little longer to finish than I had planned on, and just about the time I did finish - my camera fell in the river :(

So here I am, I did get a new camera, and I am going to post about these items I made (one at a time) and hopefully you guys enjoy them.

When my sister in-law asked me to do this for her she wanted a jungle theme for her kids - so these next few blog posts are an invitation to come on a jungle safari.
The first animal we will see today is the pillow.

The male of this species is referred to as "Brandon". And even from behind you can spot the male because of his bright orange marking.

The female is referred to as "Kinsey". She can be spotted from behind as well by her pink marking.

BIG Mess

2010-06-23T10:22:00.000-06:00

What a day!

A friend had given me some fabric as a gift (she also blogs check it out) and I was figuring out what to do with it. I thought a tote bag would be a great idea, both because they come in so handy and because I hadn't made one before. So I was online looking at tote-bags (for inspiration and instruction) while the kids where playing happily in their room :) ...Well i thought they where playing... but when I went to check on them (as we mothers do periodically - because silence isn't always a good thing) what I found was one incredibly BIG mess. Pictures can show you what I mean better than I can describe, but looking on the ground I could already see the evidence of something I knew I wouldn't like:

They had gotten into the baby powder and dumped it out all over the whole room (and the air, and themselves).

It looked liked a big white cloud.

But they where very pleased with them self.

Eliana

Noah

So my sewing and research had to be put on hold (note to self: have kids in eye view at all times). And I had to begin the clean up to this Big mess and give baths.

All Clean!!!

At least the whole house smells very clean and powdery.

Hidden Butterflies

2010-06-21T23:45:00.008-06:00

Beautiful Quilt for Beautiful Baby

Home Sweet Home

2010-06-09T22:38:00.006-06:00

It was a long night last night. The whole family was at the hospital all night with our son Noah.

It all started about 9:00pm. Noah had shoved one of his hearing aid batteries in his ear canal (I have no idea why children do so many ridiculous things). So we loaded up the sleeping kids and drove to the ER here in our town. And to our surprise, they made it worse and even caused his ear to bleed. At one point Noah's reaction prompted us to ask the doctor if he may have broken the eardrum; his response was that he couldn't see behind the battery (wasn't comforting at all). The doctor's suggestion was then that we could wait until the next day to take him to his ear doctor or he could give Noah ketamine (horse tranquilizer) and try again- we said no thanks.

By the time we were leaving this ER it was about 1:00am. But because not only was the battery still in his ear, we were now concerned this Dr. may have caused damage to our son's eardrum. So we drove to the closest Children's hospital (about an hour away). We had a long wait (as all ER's do), but the Dr. there had no problems and removed the battery in 10 sec or so. We had told them of the experience at the previous ER - so the first thing they did when the battery was removed was to check the eardrum. Praise God as far as they could see there was no permanent damage; there was a big scratch down the ear canal from the other doctor, but he didn't break the eardrum.

Anyway; by the time we were finally home, it was 7:30am. We were all very tired and extremely happy to get some sleep after it was all said and done.

The first Chapter

2010-06-01T23:17:00.001-06:00

Today was the first day for the Holy Habits Bible study.

Mimi's lifetime goals are to know God and to become a women of worship, prayer, wisdom, peace, and contentment.

Each of the lady's from the group had to pick one as a goal for our self. Than find a Bible verses about that goal. I choose wisdom and here is the Bible verse that i pick to go with it.

James 3:17
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, [and] easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.

Summer Reading

2010-06-01T08:07:00.001-06:00

This summer I am a part of two different ladies Bible studies. It is exciting because my children will be able to see their friends during the summer (their mothers also homeschool). And obviously it is exciting to learn more and grow closer to the Lord.

So just to let you know the 2 books we will be reading as a guide through the Bible studies are:
"Holy Habits" by Mimi Wilson & Shelly Cook Volkhardt
"The Ten(der) Commandments" by Ron Mehl

Time Flies...When You're Busy

2010-05-31T22:51:00.003-06:00

Wow, time flies when your having fun; but it really flies when your busy. It has been many days since I posted, but I found some time tonight for a quick post - so here I go.

This week I have spent a lot of time working on 2 quilts and 2 curtains for my husband's sister (I guess I could have said sister-in-law). They are jungle theme (at her request) so there is a lot of applique. Which for me is fun, but also tedious and time consuming. I am not finished yet (although I wish I was) but will be soon. I will be posting pictures in the next week so check back to see them.

Frito's Hot Bean Dip

2010-05-17T19:26:00.000-06:00

How many of you love Frito's Hot Bean Dip? I certainly do; but I am not as fond of the price as I am the flavor. Well my husband found a recipe online for a bean dip that taste just like the stuff in the metal can (except much cheaper). I thought I would share with anyone who loves bean dip as much as me.

In a food processor put one 15oz can of pinto beans (drained); 4 slices of canned jalapeno's (nacho style); 1 tablespoon of jalapeno juice (from the canned jalapeno's); 1/2 teaspoon of salt; 1/2 teaspoon of sugar; 1/4 teaspoon onion powder; 1/4 teaspoon paprika; 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Puree until smooth, then cover and chill. Delicious!