Not So Average Momma

Letters to Jack Ray: 12/11/15

2015-12-11T23:52:00.001-05:00

Dear Jack Ray,

What a difference a month makes my sweet baby boy! The first two months were rough and you had some serious colic but you are quite smiley and happy these days!

You are starting to really coo and goo and laugh when we talk to you! You are instantly happy whenever someone is looking at you and talking with you.

You are growing so quickly and have moved into size 2 diapers and 3-6 month clothes already! You are nursing like a champ and are sleeping really well. You are taking a 2 hour morning nap and usually a good afternoon nap as well. At night you fall asleep anywhere between 8pm and 10pm, wake to nurse around 12am, 4am, and then finally awake around 7:30am or so.

Here's what you've been up to this past month:

11/15/15: Moved up to size 2 diapers, found your fingers and started sucking on them

11/16/15: Two month well check 12lbs 6.5oz (75th percentile), 23.75" (75th percentile), got your first cold

11/25/15: Moved up to 3-6 month clothes, slept for a 7 hour stretch

11/28/15: Rolled from front to back

11/29/15: Rolled from back to front, first kiss from Ellie at church

12/08/15: Weighed 13lbs 5.5oz, first double ear infection

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For Letters to Everett, click here!

For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For more Letters to Jack, click here!

Thankfulness Tree

2015-11-17T15:11:00.000-05:00

Traditionally in the month of November we share things that we are thankful for, so this year I wanted to get Everett involved. My friend Tiphany and I were discussing this and she was sharing with me some ideas that she had and some she found on Pinterest. Everett and I had just finished a painting of a fall tree and I thought it would be great to use cut out tracings of his hand prints as leaves that he could write some things he is thankful for on.

He has been enjoying sticking up his leaves and I am loving the different things that he is coming up with! Here are a few that he's said so far: bread and the food we eat; trees, they grow in the ground; my friends at AWANA; candy from trick or treating; and my personal favorite, Marines for protecting me!

What are y'all doing to celebrate this November? I am already planning how we can incorporate this same idea into an advent Christmas tree! Stay tuned!

Letters to Jack Ray: 11/11/15

2015-11-11T16:26:00.000-05:00

Oh little Jack Ray!

I am so happy to have you in our family and to be able to hold you and kiss you and love on you; it seemed like you were never going to come! We are so excited that you are here!

You came into this world with such intensity and have proven to have a similar little personality! You know what you want (which is normally to eat) and you are very vocal when you are not given what you want. You enjoy nursing and being held and worn and frequently wake up if we aren't holding you. I think that you just don't want to miss one minute of what else is going on!

You seemed to be a bit fussy during the first few weeks however I think that you are coming out of that as we are learning more about what you want and how to keep you happy. You are so cute and are showing us new things every day. You love to take baths and lay in the water, you look so relaxed!

Here's what you've been up to the past two months:

09/11/15: Birthday! 9:51am, 7lbs 12oz, 21" long

09/12/15: First sleepy smile

09/13/15: First family outing to Ritchie Lake for daddy's baptism, first time being worn

09/14/15: First doctors appointment- 7lbs 9.5oz, first trip to Target

09/17/15: Had your tongue tie clipped

09/16/15: Umbilical cord fell off

09/20/15: One week appointment- 8lbs 3oz

09/26/15: Weight check: 8lbs 8oz

10/01/15: Moved up to size 1 diapers

10/07/15: Moved up to 0-3 month clothes

10/11/15: First trip to El Gran Charro, started cooing

10/12/15: One month well check 10lbs (50th percentile), 22.25" (75th percentile); first time to try a bottle (of momma's milk)
10/13/15: Had your lip tie lasered

10/17/15: First shower

10/18/15: First smile while awake

10/25/15: First time to the mall, first laugh (daddy was playing with you!), first time in the Ergo

10/29/15: First time to reach for something (Meme's hand)

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For Letters to Everett, click here!

For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For more Letters to Jack, click here!

Newborn Photos of Jack Ray by Todd Barnhill Photography

2015-11-05T12:15:00.000-05:00

Happy Thursday all! Here is a long overdue post with our newborn photos of Jack Ray. We had the wonderful Todd Barnhill and his amazing wife, Magda over to take these photos and I love how they turned out! Todd is always able to capture photos of the older two, which is quite a talent because they NEVER stop moving!

Enjoy!

Maternity Photos by Todd Barnhill Photography

2015-10-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

We had maternity photos taken by the wonderful Todd Barnhill and they turned out great! He came out to our house and our lovely neighbors let us use their backyard for some of the photos. I can't wait to get these photos printed to have in our house! Thanks Todd!

Jack Ray's Birth Story

2015-10-02T21:56:00.000-04:00

Jack Ray was due on September 8, 2015 however there were several times before then that I thought he was coming! I had prodromal labor for almost three weeks prior to his actual birth and man-oh-man was that a frustrating experience. I never felt natural labor contractions with Everett's birth because I was induced and with Nolan's birth the first time I felt a contraction was when I was in labor, so this was a new experience! The first time I felt contractions I went for a few long walks and really was hoping that labor day was here, but it was to no avail. At one point, I was having contractions for days on end- however they were not ridiculously painful and I pushed them to the back of my mind because I didn't want to keep getting my hopes up.

My last belly photo, 40 weeks

September 8th came and went and Jack Ray seemed quite content in the womb however I was a little worried that he was 'sunny side up' (aka posterior position) so I asked my OB to check for me at my next appointment. On September 10th I went in for my appointment and my OB determined that Jack Ray was head down but in the posterior position however he assured me that most babies turn to face the right direction prior to birth. Since I was past my due date, my doctor mentioned that if I made it to my next appointment we would need to start talking about when and how to begin the induction process. He was very approving of my wishes to have a natural labor and was more than happy to wait until I was 42 weeks pregnant to push for an induction which I was glad to hear.

After my appointment that day, my mom, the boys, and I went to run some errands and I happened to feel a contraction- however, it was different than the ones that I had been having. I pushed it out of my mind because I figured it was nothing and went about my day. I continued to feel contractions throughout the rest of the afternoon and evening but kept assuming that they were nothing. Around 9pm I started to time them because it seemed like they were getting a little more painful, they were about ten minutes apart at that time.

As the night went on, they got more intense and closer together. Tyler went to bed around midnight but I couldn't sleep because, although I was trying to not get excited, I wanted to see if they would keep on coming. Finally around 3am when the contractions were about six minutes apart, I decided to try go to sleep. I was able to sleep in about thirty minute increments and got up around 6:30am to take a shower and get ready. When I got out of the shower, the contractions were about four minutes apart and steadily getting stronger. I called my mom, Tiphany, and the OB's office around 7:30am to let them know that I would probably head to the hospital in about an hour or so. My mom and dad planned to meet us there and Tiphany was planning to come after I got checked into Labor and Delivery (L&D).

We arrived at the hospital at 8:45am and as soon as I got out of the call I started to shake uncontrollably, which I knew meant I was in transition. As we were walking in I text Tiphany "Come now. I am shaking." Once we got up to L&D, they took me back to a triage room and checked to see how dilated I was- I was praying that I was at least 5cm! The nurse asked me a bunch of general questions and then checked me and we discovered that I was 9cm! She quickly ducked her head out of the triage room and asked one of the other nurses to call my OB because the baby would be coming soon! As we moved from the triage room to my permanent room I had Tyler call my mom to make sure that they were almost to the hospital.

Once we got in the room, my OB came in and broke my water while the nurses continued to ask me questions and get things prepared. Earlier in my pregnancy, I tested GBS Positive and had planned to have penicillin however since I came in at 9cm my OB decided that there wouldn't be time enough for both doses. I was actually relieved to not have to be hooked up to an IV while delivering the baby but it did mean that we would be required to stay an extra day at the hospital for monitoring. One of the nurses asked me "Have you ever had a natural delivery before," needless to say she was glad to find out that I had and she didn't have to inform me that it was too late for an epidural.

Breaking my water took the contractions from three minutes apart to less than a minute apart and they extremely painful. After about twenty minutes, I started to bear down a little with each contraction and asked the nurse to check to see if I had any change. She checked and said that I was 10cm but was not fully effaced. My OB came in a few minutes later and asked me to do a test push to see if Jack Ray's head could help to get things where they needed to be. After the test push , around 9:40am he asked me "Okay, are you ready to push?" I think I kind of freaked out when he asked me that because I was expecting to have to hang out for a little while longer. With the next set of contractions I started to push however, at one point I recall me falling back on the bed and saying "I don't want to do it anymore!" and "I can't do it, I'm not going to do it!" At that point my OB, Tiphany, my mom, and Tyler gave me a little pep talk and I geared up for the next contraction. Part of my birth plan was to 'catch' the baby after his head and shoulders were out, I pushed as hard as I could and finally little Jack Ray entered the world. I was able to pull him right on my chest!

The first thing I noticed about Jack Ray was that he was looking right at me with his eyes wide open! He took a few minutes to cry so the nurses were rubbing him with blankets trying to get him to make some noise. I wasn't worried because I could feel him breathing and I was just so relieved that he was finally here. Since Tyler isn't into the whole 'blood thing,' my mom was able to cut the cord! He was born at 9:51am on September 11, 2015 weighing 7lbs 12oz and was 21" long.

#ThompsonNumber3 To Do List: Preparing for Jack-Attack

2015-08-12T23:09:00.000-04:00

Since I am only four one week away from #ThompsonNumber3's debut I figured I better make a list of things I still need to do in order to be ready for him to be here!

Things to get out of storage:

~~Newborn sized clothes~~
~~Infant car seat and base~~
Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper
Various swings and bouncy seats

Things to do:

~~Put clothes into the dresser~~
~~Install infant car seat into the car~~
~~Pack hospital bag~~
Complete birth plan and print out a few copies to take to the hospital
Hang up artwork in his room
~~Put crib together~~

I am actually surprised at how much of the list has already been completed but there is always more to be done! Typing up my birth plan is the BIGGEST thing that needs to be done as soon as possible- Jack could be here tonight or in six weeks... lets hope it's sooner than later!

Thompson's Big Move

2015-08-05T09:18:00.000-04:00

It has certainly been a roller coaster of a ride but we are FINALLY in our new house and are mostly settled in! I can't wait to share all of the before/after photos of each room but for now I will leave you with a few sneak peeks! :) Also, please excuse the "iPhone camera quality" of the photos... I will get my nice camera out and take some better photos for the upcoming posts!

I can just hear Ty Pennington saying "Welcome home Thompson family, welcome home!"

The fireplace redo turned out better than I imagined!

This boy LOVES being outside.

This boy LOVES being in the basement.

Tyler's bar area

Living room

#ThompsonNumber3 Belly Photos

2015-07-07T22:48:00.001-04:00

A collection of photos highlighting the growing belly!

9 and 10 weeks

11 and 12 weeks

13 and 14 weeks

15 and 16 weeks

17 and 18 weeks

19 and 20 weeks

22 and 23 weeks

24 and 25 weeks

27 and 29 weeks

30 and 31 weeks

33 and 34 weeks

35 weeks

Want to compare Jack's pregnancy to Nolans? Click here!

Birthday Questions: Everett turns 4

2015-07-02T23:10:00.001-04:00

1. What is your favorite color?

- Purple, I mean blue

2. What is your favorite toy?

- Big Iron Man

3. What is your favorite fruit?

- Cows

4. What is your favorite tv show?

- Optimus Prime, Nature shows, and all the shows that daddy likes

5. What is your favorite movie?

- Big Iron Man movie (Avengers)

6. What is your favorite thing to wear?

- Red t-shirts

7. What is your favorite animal?

- Lion, I mean a tiger

8. What is your favorite song?

- Iron Man

9. What is your favorite book?

- Just for Fun by Richard Scary

10. Who is your best friend?

- Daddy

11. What is your favorite snack?

- M&Ms and craisins

12. What is your favorite drink?

- Soda even though I not supposed to

13. What is your favorite breakfast?

- Cinnamon rolls

14. What is your favorite lunch?

- Cheese

15. What is your favorite dinner?

- Mac-n-Cheese

16. What is your favorite game?

- Mousetrap

17. What is your favorite thing to play outside?

- Go see my dog and pet my dog

18. What is your favorite holiday?

- Halloween to dress up like a robot

19. Who do you sleep with at night?

- Mommy, daddy, and Nolan

20. What do you want to be when you grow up?

- Megazord

Chatting with Everett (3 years old)

2015-07-02T22:56:00.001-04:00

Everett: I love you.

Me: I love you too.

Everett: Aw, you a weally (really) good friend.

Everett: Where we are we? We there yet?

Everett: Daddy you need to eat your food so you get big and strong like Jimbo, him getting bigger.

Everett: (Yawns) I tire-erd

Me: Why did you get up so early?

Everett: To go to work.

Me: Oh ya? What kind of work?

Everett: With my guys and Ba-wee (Bailey, the neighbors dog)

Me: Fun! What will y'all do?

Everett: We building a green house.. and paint it red!

Everett: Oh look the moon is out again. It is my home and then it went crash and boom and smooshed me.

Everett: (Playing in his kitchen) JoJo, you want lemonade or apple juice?

Jordan: Lemonade please

Everett: We don't have that

Jordan: Okay, apple juice

Everett: Ummmm we have water

Jordan: That will be fine

Everett: That is a spiderman bum-futter-why (butterfly)

Me: (Talking to Nolan) You're hilarious

Everett: No you're hair less

Tyler: You have been laying around since 2 o'clock

Everett: No, its fun o'clock

Me: (While watching TV) What is she wearing?

Everett: Um a coat.

Everett: I am Thorn! (Thor) Wait, where is my hammer?

Me: I'm not sure, where was it last?

Everett: Oh here it is! (Picks up a toy cell phone)

Me: Well, that's the phoniest hammer I've ever seen!

Everett: What church we going?

Me: To Colt's church.

Everett: Oh. I love him. Him my best friend.

Me: Who wants donuts?

Everett: Captain America do's (sounded like dooze)

Everett: Ms. Darween (Darlene) we went to the Mad Dinner!

Me: Breakfast with the Mad Hatter?

Everett: Ya, there was the Mad Hatter and Awlice and Penna the Boo (Winnie the Poo) and Tigger and Mary Poppins and the Mad Hatter

Everett: You like my new guy? My nutcracker guy.

Me: I love him. What's his name?

Everett: Let's name him Sanna Claus... and the nother guys (the other nutcrackers we have) named Rudolph, Tonio, and Be-ba-bee. The blue guy is just a nutcracker.

Me: No name?

Everett: No wets cawl him Steve Rogers, the first avenger! The nother blue guy, him Tony Stork (Stark) and he's Iron Man!

Me: What about the rest?

Everett: Just nutcrackers. They all nutcrackers.

Everett: Can you enlock (unlock) the gate?

Everett: I want to watch Starwerrs (Star Wars)

Everett: (Out of breath) Gaga, guess what I just ate?

Gaga: What?

Everett: Two!

Everett: What's a prianna (piranha)?

Everett's list of acceptable baby names:

- Steve

- Steve Moto-Jack

- Superman

- Steve PigPaw

- Batman

- Goobywandy

While going through a list of movies to pick from to each Everett stops me...

Everett: Wait. Ma-ass-car? What's that?

Me: Its got King Julian and a bunch of animals in it.

Everett: Do they talk?

Me: Yes

Everett: Oh ya! Let's watch Ma-ass-car!

Me: What did you do during church class?

Everett: We played doctorseuss.

Me: What's that?

Everett: You know you sit and the pat your head and then you run and then you sit.

Me: Oh! Duck, duck, goose!

Me: Let's go to the store.

Everett: Are we going to Lion King?

Me: No, not to Food Lion.

Everett: Aw man.

Me: Do you know why we celebrate Easter?

Everett: Where?

Me: Do you want me to roll your sleeves up?

Everett: No because I'm hungry.

Everett: (Telling Nolan a story to console him) One night there was a beautiful girl who was mommy and a beautiful boy who was you. Then Batman and Joker was... Umm now a dog story- him name was Red and him family was Everett and Nolan and mommy and daddy and everybody in the city has dogs and my name is Everett and I live with my mommy. My mommys mommy is Rae Rae.

Balance bike = balentines bike

Everett: Daddy, you wanna play basketball?!

Tyler: Uhhhhh

Everett: Yeah, you be the blue team and I'll be the crocodile.

Letters to Everett: 5/22/15

2015-05-22T22:45:00.000-04:00

Dear Everett,

How are you already four years old!? These past four years have gone by in a flash and I am so thankful for every single moment. We have certainly had our share of ups and downs but every second that you are in our lives is a blessing! You are such an inquisitive young boy and you want to know every detail of how things work and why things happen. Daddy and I might get a wee bit frustrated with all of the questions but we know that it is helping to develop your growing mind so we try to not mind too much!

You are still as sweet as you can be and love to share hugs and kisses with us. Overall you have a great disposition and are pleasant most of the time- but you are four, so from time to time we do have some tantrums here are there. Sometimes we don't understand exactly what it is you want or why you are upset about things and we aren't exactly sure how to move forward but we are doing the best that we can. We are praying that God will guide us in the right direction.

You were excited to learn that you will be a big brother again and you are looking forward to the baby coming! You can't wait to hold him and show him all the cool things that you do. You enjoy all things superhero, to include the Avengers, Transformers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and the Power Rangers. I think that if you had your way, we would watch nothing but superhero shows all day! You like to play outside, especially when we go to the farm with friends or go to the pool.

I am so excited to be your mom and I cherish every day that we have together. I pray every day that God will continue to watch over and protect our family so that we can be together for many many years to come. I love you so much and am so happy to watch you learn and grow more each day. You are such a joy my sweet boy.

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!

Letters to Nolan: 5/18/15

2015-05-17T23:24:00.001-04:00

Dear sweet Nolan,

I am so amazed at how much you have grown and how much you are continuing to grow each and every single day. You are taking more and more and putting words together to form cute caveman-like sentences now. Most of the time we are able to figure out what you are saying and as the days go by you add more and more words to your growing vocabulary.

When you want something, you do anything that you can to get it! I love your spunk and your personality and how much you live in the moment. You are very feisty when things don't quite go your way but are easily distracted away by things that are of interest to you. Nolan, you are quite the little character and you love to put on a show. Frequently we will find you dancing, singing, and jumping around providing all sorts of fun entertainment for anyone who might be around.

The thing that I think you like to do the most is to eat! You love meat and fruit, of course sweets, but you will pretty much eat anything and everything and enjoy eating. While your love of eating is strong, you are still mastering the art of feeding yourself. Most of the food makes it into your mouth however there is always a bit of overflow. :)

You love to be outside and run in the great outdoors! You always want to be doing what Everett is doing and you don't let much get in the way of your plans. You do not have very many fears (except of bounce houses and electronic fish that swim in the bathtub) so you usually do not hesitate to climb stairs, jump off of things, anything that looks fun and exciting.

A major development we have had in the past month is that you are potty training! We started elimination communication with you around your first birthday and now you are almost fully potty trained! I am so proud of you and how eager you are to sit on the potty when you need to go. We have had some accidents, but you are getting the hang of it and even got to "pee in the grass" (as Everett calls it) the other day!

Oh sweet Nolan, I love you so much. You have brought so much joy into my life and I cannot imagine life without you in it. You are such a sweet sweet boy and your laugh is so infectious! I do have to admit that I love when you want me to hold you when you are angry or upset and you need your momma (or mommy as you now call me). Thank you for being such a joy in our lives, I love you so so much.

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!

Look What Laura Made: A Quilt for #KinderSchmidt

2014-12-06T00:03:00.001-05:00

One of the first friends I made when I moved to good old Virginia was Sarah. We were in gymnastics, cheer leading, and student council together and were best friends throughout high school. We are lucky enough to have the wonderful internet (thanks Al Gore) and so I was able to secure a sweet photo of us from high school graduation!

Gosh we were young but really, we are like fine wine Sarah, we only get better with age!

So when Sarah announced that she and her hubby Brennan were expecting a baby I knew immediately that I wanted to make their baby a Stars and Stripes inspired quilt. You see, Sarah was all about America before #murica was even a thing... she and Brennan's wedding colors were red, white, and blue! So the boys and I headed off to the craft store in search of the perfectly patriot fabric for #kinderschmidt (yes, the baby has a hashtag)!

After I picked out the fabric I started brainstorming ideas for how I wanted to lay out the quilt. I had come across "coin quilts" in my searches and thought that a modified version of that might be cute, especially because I had so many different fabric patterns. Here's the layout that I came up with...

After I had it laid out the way I wanted it, I got to work. This was a fun yet challenging quilt because of the layout I had selected but I am quite pleased with how it turned out!

Here's an in-progress picture of the quilt making process!

The finished product!

Ready to keep #kinderschmidt nice and warm!

Letters to Everett: 11/22/14

2014-11-25T00:08:00.001-05:00

Everett,

You are growing and growing and growing! I am so proud of the little dude that you are and how awesome you are with your brother. You are a loving and kind spirited big brother and love to play with Nolan more than almost anything. The two of you are getting along more and more these days and it is so fun to see the two of you playing together and having fun!

Now that you are getting older, you really are getting into doing things for yourself which is bittersweet because you really aren't a baby anymore! Every day you are learning how things work and learning more about the world around you and it is such a blessing to watch you grow.

Your imagination is at work within you! The drawings that you come up with are so cute and the stories that you tell are so fun to listen to- you are quite creative. This year for Halloween mommy made you a Peter Pan costume, just like mommy was when she was your age! You had a whole entourage: RaeRae went as Tinkerbell, PigPaw was a Pirate, Mommy was Tiger Lilly, and Nolan and Daddy were Lost Boys! We had a lot of fun and you really (really) really liked the candy part the best!

Time is going by so fast and I know that I say that almost every day, but its true. Every single day with you is a blessing and I am so proud and happy to be your mother. You give me a joy that is unexplained and I cannot imagine life without you, your brother, and daddy! You are the best! :)

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!

Letters to Nolan: 11/18/14

2014-11-18T02:27:00.001-05:00

Mr. Nolan,

You are 18 months old today and boy what a big guy you are growing up to be! You continue to amaze me every day with new things that you've learned how to do and new words that you are learning! Everett is your best friend and you want to be doing exactly what he is doing... sometimes before he's even doing it! You like to climb on anything and everything and especially like to go down the slide... I think you might be a thrill seeker! :)

This past month your jibber jabber has been transforming and you are starting to form words. You are learning Spanish from Suyapa and really like to say "agua"... I think it is probably your favorite word! You have such an animated way of speaking; when you say Please, you rub your hands together and say "Peeeeease" with your teeth together, lips pulled all the way to each side, and your eyes squeezed shut! It is so CUTE! Some words you know are:

Momma, Daddy, Everett, PaPa, Rae,GaGa
Agua, Drink, Nack (Snack), NUH! (Nurse)
Ny-Ny (Night night), Bye, Hiiiii
Peeeease (Please), Tanks (Thanks)
Mine, Me, No

Nursing is still one of your favorite things to do but eating is right up there with it! You are a great eater and are generally happy to try new foods. Your favorite thing to eat right now is scrambled eggs, just like Everett! Whenever you want something to drink you always ask for agua... unless you want to nurse. Haha. (Don't hate me when you're older for writing this!)

Oh Mr. Nolan! You are such a sweet and amazing ~~baby~~ toddler and are growing up too quickly! These past 18 months have been joy-filled and I have loved every single minute. You love to play and be with Everett, snuggle with mommy, and rough-house with daddy! Thank you for being part of our family, I love you more than you will ever know!

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!

Pumpkin Patch Fun

2014-11-02T17:19:00.000-05:00

For the past few years we have been going up to Graves Mountain for the Apple Festival with our cousins/best friends to kick off the fall but this year we decided to change things up and go to the Pumpkin Patch instead! Some people think change is a bad thing but in this case, it definitely was not! The kids had a blast because there was so much more to do at the Pumpkin Patch and I am pretty sure that the adults had just as much fun as the kids did! I brought my camera along with me and couldn't decide what photos to share, so here's a photo overload from our adventure!

So serious!

He was not interested in smiling for the camera...

Pumpkins!

The farm that the Pumpkin Patch was at had a CORN BOX! It. Was. Amazing! ~~The kids~~ Everyone loved it and had a blast playing, swimming, and being covered up in the corn. Colt and Everett really liked to jump from the side into the corn!

Since the farm had some great scenery and props we had to try to get some family photos and shots of the boys... we may or may not have been too successful...

As you can see... they didn't want to sit still for photos!

Happy fall y'all! :)

Look What Laura Made: A Quilt for Brooks

2014-10-13T22:34:00.000-04:00

With one quilt already under my belt I couldn't wait to get started on the next one and I knew just who the recipient would be! My cousin (in law)/best friend Krystal is currently expecting her second baby boy and I was eager to get a head start on the quilt for him. I found the cutest fabric set and got to work!

I learned the hard way that you shouldn't just start sewing because you are really excited and can't wait to see how it turns out and sure it'll all come together... you know that saying "measure twice, cut once?" Ya, I think the same can be said for quilts. I mapped out blocking for the portion of the quilt below and went ahead and sewed it all together before I figured out what I would do for the rest of the quilt. Yes, it looks cool, and yes in the end it all did work out but if I had mapped it out ahead of time it would have been a little easier! Oh well, you live, learn, and then blog about it so you won't make the same mistakes next time!!

After I sewed the middle portion together and mapped out the remaining squares I sewed team all together. This part was a little tricky because of all of the various corners and intersections (punny.. get it, bc its a car quilt...) but I was able to make it work and logged this down as a lessons learned for the next go round!

Instead of stitching the ditch this time, I used the "swirly" stitch (number 63 on my Singer Stylist) to quilt the three pieces together. I really liked this better because I didn't have to worry about ~~coloring~~ sewing outside the line and it looked super cute! Double points.

Photo found here

I found a tutorial on Cluck Cluck Sew on how to machine bind your quilt and I LOVE it! It is very easy to follow and I think that this binding actually looks much nicer than the first quilt I did. (And so you know, I did ask Tiphany if she'd let me take back the quilt and "fix" the binding, but being the wonderful woman she is, she said she loved it the way it is!)

Here's the final product! Can't wait until Brooks is here to snuggle up in it!

Happiness Is...

2014-10-11T21:41:00.004-04:00

Happiness is...

The leaves changing color and reminding me that nothing is permanent and to live each day to the fullest
Checking off items that I have completed on my to do list ... even better ignoring the things that can wait until later on my to do list
Spending quality time with my family
The sound of my children laughing

Look What Laura Made: A Quilt for Penelope

2014-10-08T23:04:00.000-04:00

When my best friend told me she was expecting her second baby I immediately knew I wanted to make her a quilt and I knew just the fabric that I would be using for it. A few years ago I found a set of these fabric samples and fell in love with them but had never come across a reason to use them... nothing felt right, nothing that is until now! The fabric has somewhat of a "hippy farm" feel (that's how I describe it anyway) and it was perfect for this baby. As the due date got closer I began realize that I hadn't ever actually made a quilt before so I enlisted the help of my Grandmother, Pat and my friend, Vivid to help guide me on my quilting journey and since neither of them are local to me I probably bothered them too frequently with questions! So this is my shout out to those two lovely ladies, thank you a thousand times over for being patient with me and my late night questions... and thanks to y'all I now have a new hobby! So without further ado, here are some photos of the quilt progression... enjoy!

Here is the quilt laid out and ready to be sewn.

The quilt top has been all sewn together and "quilted" to the inside layer and flannel backing.

Here is a look at the back of the quilt. Since this was a smaller sized quilt I was able to do the quilting myself by "stitching in the ditch" with my sewing machine.

Here is the completed quilt! Ready to be wrapped up around a sweet little baby! :) I am so happy with how cute it turned out and that my first quilt didn't end up a total mess!

I was so excited to give this quilt to Tiphany at her baby shower and even more excited for the baby to have it once he or she made his/her appearance!

And here SHE is! Little Miss Penelope laying on her quilt!

Chatting with Everett (2 years old)

2014-10-06T21:13:00.003-04:00

Since kids really do say the cutest things I have been keeping a note on my phone all of the cute things Everett has been saying. Here's a list of the most memorable and things (that I remembered to write down at the time) he said when he was 2! Hope you enjoy this little compilation as much as I do!

Me: Everett, who is your best friend?
Everett: Ummmm Toke-Oh (Tyler's friend)

Me: What are you gonna do tomorrow?
Everett: Me play with my friends. Micah, Tee Tee, Pig Paw, Rae Rae, Colt.
Me: What are yall going to do?
Everett: We play trains.

Everett: Me go to PigPaw's house.
Tyler: How are you gonna get there?
Everett: Me ride my bike.
Tyler: Oh, well we are about to go there- you wanna hitch a ride?
Everett: Uhhhh ok.

Everett: PigPaw has a little lamb.

Everett: Daddy, we go in dere.
Tyler: Sorry buddy, we can't go in there.
Everett: Yes me do!

Everett: Me call mommy.
Me: What are you gonna call me?
Everett: Ummm Woah-wa (Laura)
Me: How about mommy?
Everett: No. Woah-wa

Rebecca: Will you be in Patty and I's wedding?
Everett: Ummm sure.
Rebecca: oh great! Will you wear a cute little tuxedo?
Everett: No CaCa, me a Viking. Me Hiccup. (From How to Train Your Dragon)

Everett: There a monster in the closet.
Me: Oh no! What are we gonna do?

Everett: I get my gun, it on the porch.
Me: Your gun?
Everett: Ya! It go "pow pow!"

Everett: (After over hearing Ty and I talking) Mommy what's the issue?
Me: What's the issue?
Everett: Ya, what the issue?
Me: Oh, well daddy I were saying we weren't going to order you your own meal because you won't eat it.
Everett: Oh, that be fine.

Everett: Where's Reo? (A car he named Reo)
Me: Your car? Why do you call him Reo?
Everett: Weeee ohhhhh weeee ohhhhh!

Everett: Guess what?!
Me: What buddy?
Everett: IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! (It was not his birthday!)

Grandpa: How old are you?
Everett: I be 17, its not my birthday!

Everett: That man and me, he my best friend.
Me: Who is that man?
Everett: Jimbo! He my friend.

Everett: I love you and mommy and Nolan and you and mommy and Nolan. You my family.

Me: What do you want to name our new puppy?
Everett: Pink
Me: Pink?
Everett: Oh, I fuh-got. Jon.
Me: You want to name the puppy Jon?

Everett: YA!

Everett: I want to watch bwee-dos (videos) on your pweeder (computer).

While watching Spiderman Everett saw Martin Sheen and who plays Uncle Ben and repeatedly asked who it was. Tyler and I kept telling him it was POTUS or the President (because he also plays President Bartlet in the West Wing). Then about ten minutes later Everett says "Oh! That West Wing guy!"

Fhing-en = Anything that he doesn't know the name of

Everett: That girl, she text me.
Me: A girl sent you a text?
Everett: Ya, she say "yaaaaa baby!"
Me: What?! Who is that girl?
Everett: Oh, it Lilly Bean.

Everett: That man, he told me the car go fast!

Me: Where are you driving to?
Everett: Oh, I here. I in Jean-na.
Me: What?
Everett: I live here. You know, Jean-na.
Me: Oh! Virginia!

Me: Hey Everett, wanna help me unload the dishwasher?
Everett: Um actually, no.

Everett: (While wearing sunglasses and walking outside at 8pm) It sure is dark out here.

Me: Do you want fries or rice?
Everett: BEANS! No beans!

Everett: Hey daddy
Tyler: Hey Everett
Everett: What?!

Midnight Thoughts

2014-10-06T00:44:00.001-04:00

With all the tragedy, loss, violence, hatred, and tears that we experience here on earth we must have faith and cling to the knowledge that God is who he says he is, that Christ died and rose again to cover our sins, and that the Holy Spirit will intercede on our behalf. There is hope through Christ, that our life here on earth will not even begin to compare to the glory that we will experience in heaven.

Birthday Questions: Everett turns 3

2014-05-25T23:04:00.000-04:00

1. What is your favorite color?

- Blue no purple

2. What is your favorite toy?

- All my cars

3. What is your favorite fruit?

- Apple

4. What is your favorite tv show?

- Daniel Tigers Neighborhood

5. What is your favorite movie?

- Monsters Inc, Cars/Nyween (Lightening McQueen), Frozen

6. What is your favorite thing to wear?

- No pants

7. What is your favorite animal?

- Lion, elephante (said in Spanish)

8. What is your favorite song?

- Let It Go (Frozen)

9. What is your favorite book?

- Pirates book

10. Who is your best friend?

- Caca, PigPaw, RaeRae

11. What is your favorite snack?

- Fruit snacks

12. What is your favorite drink?

- Soda (we don't really give him soda)

13. What is your favorite breakfast?

- Marshmallow cereal (just the marshmallows in Lucky Charms)

14. What is your favorite lunch?

- Raviolis and noo-nooles (noodles)

15. What is your favorite dinner?

- ChickFilA, sausage, pasta, Wesmans (Wegmans)

16. What is your favorite game?

- Monsters (the Monsters Inc game on his LeapPad)

17. What is your favorite thing to play outside?

- Jeep and tramperween (trampoline)

18. What is your favorite holiday?

- Horses... no Christmas, I like Santa

19. Who do you sleep with at night?

- Mom, daddy, Nolan, blankets

20. What do you want to be when you grow up?

- A monster

Letters to Nolan: 4/18/14

2014-04-19T22:19:00.000-04:00

Dear Sweet Nolan,

You are just one month shy of being one year old! Spring has sprung and you are really loving spending time outdoors and since you have your daddy's skin tone you are rocking a great tan. One of your favorite pastimes these days is playing in the water table! You really enjoy splashing your hands in the water and getting yourself soaking wet and I'm sure once it gets warm enough you are going to really dig the sprinkler! Speaking of water, you love taking baths and have now graduated out of the laundry basket and now sit just fine with your brother in the tub!

This month you got your first hair cut- you were staring to have a little baby mullet so it was definitely time! You also have four teeth now and your smile is so so cute! You still love to laugh and giggle, especially if your brother is around. Now that you're more mobile you are starting to play more with Everett and you love that!

You are still quite content to nurse just as frequently as you always have, which is fine with me. You are eating more from the table and prefer to feed yourself. Some of your favorite foods are... anything that we give you! So far you aren't very picky which is great!

I am so happy you're in our life little dude!

Here's what you've been up to:

03/23/14: First haircut, started playing peekaboo

03/25/14: You started to laugh when other people laugh

03/28/14: You will dance when we ask you to!

04/04/14: Said "dog"

04/10/14: Fourth tooth broke through (top left)

04/14/14: Can climb in and out of the bathtub

04/15/14: Got your first freckle

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!

Letters to Nolan: 3/18/14

2014-04-02T08:32:00.000-04:00

Dear Nolan,

You are such a sweet boy! Your little personality is just blossoming and you are becoming a little boy (not a baby anymore) right before our eyes. You are very inquisitive and want to know what is going on in every room, want to check out everything, and you especially want to just dump all the toys out of the baskets! You really like to mess with Jedi, something that he does not like at all.

Crawling is still your main mode of transportation and boy are you fast! You can get from one side of the room to the other in no time. You do like to pull up on any and everything and are getting more and more daring in your attempts to let go. This month you started to push the walker around the house, although you have not quite got the steering thing down yet.

You and brother are still sleeping in our room at night and you usually "request" to nurse two to three times throughout the night. Since it has been cold outside we have been spending the evenings inside (usually watching The West Wing) and our routine has been for you and I to cuddle up on the couch and you fall asleep while nursing. It is nice to have that time at the end of the busy day just to relax and be with our little family!

Last but certainly not least, your baby dedication was this past month! This allowed daddy and I to think about the type of person that we hope you will grow up to be and how we can strive to be great parents. We invited family and friends to join us and it was a very special time to share with them. We pray that you will find Jesus and will trust him to guide your life and we pray that we will be with you every step of the way!

Here's what you've been up to this past month:

02/18/15: Nine month well check- 21lbs 14oz (70th percentile), 28" long (60th percentile); Started waving

02/20/14: First time you played at the play area in the mall

02/26/14: Said momma

02/28/14: First ice cream cone

03/08/14: Stood by yourself for the first time

03/09/14: Third tooth broke through ( top right)

03/10/14: Started walking with the walker

Momma and daddy love you to the moon and all the way back!

xoxoxox,

Momma

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For more Letters to Nolan, click here!

For Letters to Everett, click here!