A Call to Higher Places

How cute is that!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 20:50:00 +0000

Last night I was in a sewing mood and decided to make something for Joshua.

I ended up making a cute little tool belt for the little Fixer upper!!

True store - My son got a Handy Manny tool set for his birthday. He LOVES it... and do you know that the screw driver can REALLY take out screws? UH yah... when I came across a toy of his that had the back, screw, and batteries removed I was baffled as to how it got that way. And Joshua proceeded to show me how he did it. Uh oh! :-D So ya... He has tools and he KNOW how to use them people! :-D

The tool belt turned out SUPER cute and SUPER easy to make so I ( :-D ) knocked out of a few more out of some oh so cute fabrics I have left from their quilts.

Go check them out in my Etsy store! Great Christmas Present eh!

:-D

In a Meal Planning Rut?

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 15:13:00 +0000

You want to feed your family regular home-cooked meals, inspired meals, delicious meals. But who has the time to do all that menu designing and creative thinking?

This deal more than doubles your money towards 13 weeks of meal planning from Meals By The Week. Each menu is tied to sales and other offers at local supermarkets. The whole process couldn't be simpler: each week, when you get your weekly menu, you choose if you will be feeding two, four, six, or eight people. Then, go through your menu, deciding to "Keep It," "Double It," or "Skip It" for each option. After you've made your choices, click "I Like It" at the bottom of the menu to get your customized, printable grocery list.

You can try Meals by the week - $8 for a 13 week Meal Planning a $19 value!
And if your new to PlumDistrict.com you can get the $5 credit by signing up thru this link! Making it only $3! Not a bad deal to try it out!

Pictures, Pinterest, iPhones...

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:50:00 +0000

Is it just me or does anyone else not like to upload their pictures from their iPhone? I take so many... probably to many. But that's the convenience of having a camera with you at all times eh? So our kids will never say "I have NO pictures as a kid!" HA That's a sentence of the past for sure!

So I'm checking out this Pinterest thing.... So far it seems cool. But I've only been on for a few minutes! :-) The idea of putting all my Fav things in one spot does seem intriguing.

Ah laundry.... I really have embraced and love cloth diapering! And a cute little bum in a cloth diaper? Adorrrable!!!!

Cute little feet

Oh yah its back!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 22:43:00 +0000

I finally took my sewing machine in to the shop to get it fixed. And I've been sewing non stop since I got it back! I had a pile of things waiting for it's arrival! :D

And boy can my machine sew awesome. Nothing like a machine that is just perfect for you. Can you tell I love to sew and that I love my machine? My Pfaff is my third baby. Haha.

First I finished up Joshua and Evans quilts for the bunk bed. They turned out perfect! Love the colors and that it actually turned out pretty much like I pictured for my little boys room!

I added two matching pillow cases and a curtain to finish up the room. I'm very happy with the final results!!!

I then made up 4 baby slings. 3 for Etsys and one for my sweet sisnlaw. Loved the blackn cream material I found for hers!

Next was wet bags. Yes. Wet bags. :D For cloth diapers. I started using cloth diapers at home for my boys about a month and a half ago to cut down on the cost of diapering two kiddos. I actually ended up loving it! Crazy eh! Its not actually as bad as you would think. And after my poor little baby's bum was bleeding with a rash of sorts from disposable diapers after being out and about for 2 days I decided we are pretty much switching to cloth full time for him. So I made a large wet bag for dirty diapers for the nursery an then 2 small wet bags for the diaper bag. They were very easy to make and actually were quite inexpensive.

And lastly, what do you do when your fav little outfit for your baby has been eaten by the dryer and unwearable?! You appliqued 4 shirts of course with it!!! :D One for said baby, one for big brother, one for a tiny friend and one for Etsy! Till you have nothing but scraps! :-)

And then you clear and put away all sewing stuff so you have a dining room table for a little while again. Till next time.

Help us Win!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 19:25:00 +0000

Help us win a photo session and photo credit!

How you can help:

Go to Back Roads Photography Facebook page and like them!

Then in the Photo Contest album find our picture and LIKE IT! :-D

Its THAT EASY!

Thanks so much!

Zoobooks Deal!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Thu, 26 May 2011 15:34:00 +0000

Deal Pulp has a great deal on Zoobooks!
Would make a GREAT birthday present for a little kid! Joshua LOVES to go get the mail! :-D

$15 for a 1-Year Subscription to Zoobies, Zootles, or Zoobooks from Zoobooks.com ($29.95 Value)

Coupons ect...

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Thu, 26 May 2011 05:22:00 +0000

So I had some questions about my coupon binder so I thought I would show you a few more pictures to help ya out. :)

Take all the inserts from one date and type (RP) and put them together in one plastic insert.

And then seperate it with a plastic tab divider. And repeat! :-D

And to prove to you that you CAN save money with coupons!

This total retail value was $247.93!

And I ONLY paid $26.89!!!!

Thats almost a 90% savings!

The swim diapers alone retail for $59.94!

Oh yah!

Potty Training

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 24 May 2011 15:39:00 +0000

I'm from a large family, babysat my nieces for the first 2+ years of their life, and have been around ALOT of toddlers.... so you would think potty training for me would be a breeze?

I'm hoping and praying it is but in reality I know that it could go really bad or go really good!

I decided after 4 or so months of my son telling me that he was "potty"ing in his diaper that is was time to go ahead and make the jump! He's 2 months shy of being 2 but is talking quite well and understands very well that he is going to the bathroom in his diaper and doesn't care for it.

We are currently on day 2 of training! I picked a week out that we would be home for sure from 8-8 so that he had a full day each day of learning to tell me and go on the potty!

The first few hours of day one was quite amusing. He went poo on the toilet as he has done off and on for the last 4 months just fine. A few mins later when he went potty in his underwear he was quite interested in this wetness. :-D

After 4 times of going in his underwear he figure out what was going on. And we made it to the potty the rest of the day. Until bedtime and we had a accd right before bed.... we both were getting tired! LOL
I was amazed it had gone as well as it had! :-)
On to day 2! Hoping and praying it goes as good as it did yesterday! And if it doesn't that I will have patience and not stress out! :-D

My Coupon Binder

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Sat, 21 May 2011 18:44:00 +0000

It was high time for me to do something with my coupon binder....

I still don't cut all my coupons! Way to time consuming in my opinion for the stores we have in South Texas.

They are sorted by type (SS, RP, & PG) and then in those sections I used plastic tab dividers to separate each date. I use to have them all in a few plastic inserts and they got messed up easily.

Much nicer and easier to find stuff!

And my old coupon organizer was well used so I made myself another one! Pretty eh!

I have one left for sale to! :-)

Now on to great deals! :-D

Some days

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 04 May 2011 02:55:00 +0000

Some days I never get out of my PJs or get a shower...
Some days I seem to be making just one more cup of coffee to keep me alert...
Some days I barely seem to get something for dinner ready at a decent time...
But every day I love that I am the mommy to these two littles!

Who needs reg clothes when they are just gonna get snot and spitup on them!
The coffee helps me stay on my toes when big brother decides to feed little brother his cereal or pull him out of his swing! And of COURSE snap that pic as quick as I can of that sweet little face saying MOMMY HELP ME!
And yes, more cereal can be dinner!
I love it and know I will miss this!

Life with 2 boys

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 16:29:00 +0000

Has it already been 2 weeks since our new little man has joined our family!?!

So far the adjusting to life as a family of 4 has been pretty smooth. Joshua has been doing so good as a big brother! We are still working on being gentle and baby is asleep please don't kiss him now! :-) But all in all Joshua loves his little brother and loves to show it! Lots of kisses, wants to hold him all the time, he will try to help unbuckle him from his swing if hes fussing...

Mommy's getting alittle more sleep now and not up every hour and a half to feed a little baby who thinks he is starving! :-D He's been sleeping for about 2 1/2-3 hrs for the first 2 feeding at night then alittle shorter after that.

Evan is for the most part a very content baby just like his brother was! Doesn't fuss when hes not being held and loves to just lay and look around when hes not asleep. He does have a set of good lungs though when he is hungry!

It's been a bit of an adjustment after Daddy went back to work but we are getting thru each day! Keeping up with a 20 mn old and a brand new baby! :-)

Evan William

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:39:00 +0000

So unlike his big brothers Birth story, here is Evan's story...

March 14
I had a Dr. apt that morning. I had been dilated to a 2 already for about 2 weeks. Seemed I had gone to a 3 and was progressing some where my Dr said she wouldn't be surprised if he came that week! Two weeks before my due date and 3 weeks earlier than Joshua was born from his due date! Wow I was kinda surprised! I had been having braxton hicks but nothing yet that was time able. That evening around 5 time able contractions kicked in. We waited for about 2 hrs timing them and they seemed to come pretty strong and steady so my hubby wanted to be on the safe side and go in to the hospital. I was a bit reluctant as I didn't want to go in and then go home. :-D
We got to the hospital and they hooked me up to see how things where going. And I was having good time able contractions but I was not progressing at all. And the Dr on call happened to be the ONE Dr in the practice that wouldn't do VBAC's.... so after quite some time we decided to go ahead and go home and see if things would kick in in the morning when a new Dr was on call that would do a VBAC. Or atleast let me TRY...

March 15
I cont' to have great time able contractions so I called my Dr up and she said to come into the office so she could see how I was progressing and go from there.
We made it up to the office and found out I had progressed to a 4.... after over 12 hrs.. lol slow and steady. 2 Dr's that would do VBAC's where on call for the next 48 hours so I was good to have the baby anytime in the next 2 days! :-D So she said go walk and see if things would kick high gear! We dropped Joshua off at a friends for the afternoon and went to the mall and a few other stores walking walking walking... I'm sure I looked quite the site. Because I was having nice contractions while walking but nothing that was causing major pain. Just enough to make me pause for a min and then keep on going. By 4 maybe 5 I was pooped. No more walking. I just wanted to go to bed. The contractions seemed to get stronger as we walked but didn't feel like I was still doing anything. So we picked up Joshua and headed home.

March 16
My mom had come over the night before and stayed the night so Steven went on to work in the morning hoping that in a few hours he would get a call to go to the hospital. It took a bit longer than that but around 2pm I started to have much harder contractions that were coming faster than before. After about 45 mins of them I decided yah it was time to go in. I would hate to have a baby at home just knowing how my previous birth went!!!!
We headed on in and got to the hospital and got hooked up only to find out that somehow the Dr who would do a VBAC had already gotten off and the Dr that wouldn't do a vbac was back on call! And I had progressed to a 5-6... so I wasn't going anywhere. We prayed that the Dr would either see if someone else would come in to cover her or that she would reconsider and let me try to do a VBAC. The Dr finally agreed to do it and she came in to break my water and check me.. only to find out that I was actually a 4... uhhh... what.... not sure how that happened! Will never know if the nurse or Dr was "incorrect" but ya...
So after breaking my water at 8:30pm and contractions started to hurt much more! :-D Lasting for longer. But you guessed it, not doing ANYTHING. We waited and waited till around 11 we decided that considering my previous birth the best option for us was now a CS. So at around 11:30 I was wheeled in and at 11:53 our sweet little baby boy was born. Just 7 mins shy of Saint Patricks day but I didn't care! :-P And when they pulled him out I heard one nurse say Congrats on your baby GIRL.. and before I could go WHAT she said On never mind hes a BOY and his plumbing works JUST fine! :-P Meaning he peed all over already! LOLS

Recovery lasted a bit long because the spinal was working WELL and I could not move my legs beyond the time it should start to wear off. And they brought me my sweet little man to me in recovery so I could nurse him. He was doing awesome and had no problems at all.

Evan's birth was so different than Joshua's that recovery has been MUCH easier. I still am tired, sore, and all that but I am recovering much better than I did with Joshua. Which I am very thankful for considering I have 2 Little's now. :-)

Our new little man

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 01:06:00 +0000

Evan William

March 16, 2011

Born 11:53 pm
8 lbs, 5 oz and 20"

A healthy boy!

Melting Mommys heart from the start.

Sigh...

Big brother kisses.

And one more to melt your heart! :-)

bumGenius Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 17:31:00 +0000

Heres how you can win a bumGenius One-Size Cloth Diaper Kit valued at $370!!!

KellyWels.com is giving away a GREAT clothe diapering kit!

Go here to enter on her Facebook page!

The bumGenius 4.0 One-Size Cloth Diaper Kit includes:

* 18- bumGenius 4.0 One Size with inserts

* 1 –bumGenius Sprayer
* 1 – bumGenius Pail Liner

37 weeks and feeling so ready!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 16:11:00 +0000

Still very preg! :-)
2 1/2 weeks till C-day!
I do find myself wondering and hoping I will go into labor before that date... at every BH I think.. is this it???? :-D
But resting in the comfort that He does all things well!!!!

At the moment I'm snuggling with my sweet lil boy whos been under the weather with fevers for the last few days. Hoping he starts to feel better SOON!

Free Canvas or $50 off!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 15:18:00 +0000

IT’S BACK!!!!!

That’s right! For March ONLY

Free 8x10 OR $50 off Any size canvas just pay shipping offer.

I LOVE mine! And I can't wait to get one for the new little guy!

Go here to get your Free 8x10 canvas or credit for $50 towards any other size!

Ramblings

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 19:11:00 +0000

Whille Joshua played outside today I raked out part of my garden and got it ready to put some herbs in it! Still need to get some tomato plants to get in the ground. Thinking thats all the gardening I'm gonna be able to do this season. But give me some fresh basil and I'm a happy girl!

Just made these yummy little things...

From this recipe Blueberry Muffins
Love the Blog I am Gluten Free! Her recipes always turn out just right and I don't have to tweak them much if at all!

Speaking of tweaking... or twitching... my EYE won't stop! :-P Figure I need more sleep but thats not happening at 36 1/2 weeks preg with a 1 1/2 year old little boy.

So I brew more coffee instead. Yummy freshly roasted beans from my dad. Oh yah it makes a good cuppa java! With a little brown sugar and frothed cream. :-)

While these hot little muffins cool I need to go pick up that 1/4 bucket of oxi clean that somehow slipped out of my hand on the way out of the cabinet and went all over the back side of the freezer.... yah thats gonna be a sight to behold. :-D My prego body trying to do that... uh huh wish you could see eh!

Maybe just MAYBE it will put me in labor!

Hm...
Off to go see!
:-D

Fearfully and wonderfully made

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 23:14:00 +0000

My heart has been heavy for some friends of ours who recently found out their little baby possibly has Turner syndrome. And then hearing today of a friends friend who just lost their baby at 33 weeks.... tears at my heart.

Last night as I was laying on the couch poking back at my sons little foot as he kicked me in utero I prayed for Joey and Jamie and the little life our Creator has knit inside her.

Praying praying praying ...

Praying for the little life in me and the worries of how birth will go will be replaced with peace thru all.

Comforting in knowing that HE knows all!

Love this pic of our baby at just over 10 weeks! Seems like so long ago!
Cannot wait to meet our new son!!!!

We love E-I-E-I-O

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 20:53:00 +0000

Joshua loves to read! But his fav I would say right now is the book Old McDonald had a Farm....
And we sing E-I-E-I-O! :-D

Facebook Giveaway! $25!!! 250 Likes!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:51:00 +0000

If you haven't been by to check it out already HandMade by Cole has a Facebook page so you can keep up with whats new on our Etsy page!

And to make it fun we are going to be giving away a $25 GC to HandMade by Cole to one of Facebook Fans after we hit 250 likes!

AWESOME!!!

So pass the word along and Like our Facebook Page!!!!!

Oh sweet little, please listen to mommy....

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 03:37:00 +0000

I knew it was coming.... and it was what we plan... but I still am hoping it doesn't have to be this way!

Whats that you say?

The date set for our little boy's arrival if he doesn't come on his own. Via C-Section. We've talked about it alot and we know that if he decides to be like his big brother and wants to stay comfy inside mommy that's what will happen.

It seems kind of weird to me, knowing that my son will be here before the set date or on that date... but not after. With Joshua going a week late it was such a waiting game that its hard for me to wrap my brain around it with this little boy!

I do pray that my body will decide to be different this time around and actually go into labour before my due date and we perhaps will have an uneventful delivery. But knowing that it could not be a possibility is ok. Joshua's birth was not something I ever want to repeat again for sure!

Looking forward to meeting this new little life that is currently residing in me. The kicks and moves across my belly. For Joshua to meet his little beebee as he calls my belly now!

Only a few more weeks!

Book Review - A Time to Dance by Karen Kingsbury

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:30:00 +0000

A Book review.

A Time to Dance by Karen Kingsbury

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Thomas Nielsons BookSneeze program.

A beautiful but heartbreaking love story. This book helps remind you that with God all things are possible. John and Abby married for almost 22 years have drifted apart to the point of divorce.

The love they had was dying behind fading faith, work and every day busy life that they let get between them. The battle that rages between Satan, personal thoughts, and God’s unwillingness to give up is so powerful.

I loved this book because it truly held marriage up in high esteem.

This book did have a typical story line of love, fail, fairytale ending. But despite that I thought it was well done in getting the story of true forgiveness and God's faithfulness to his children across.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

New Line on Etsy

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 22:10:00 +0000

Have a moment? Check out my new line in my Etsy store!

Upcycled Jean Skirts for your little girl!

I take a pair of jeans and make them in to adorable little girls boutique skirts!

So far I have 4 listed but have many more in the making so keep an eye out for all little girls sizes!

Great for the coming spring for your little girl!!!!

1 1/2 years

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 16:11:00 +0000

Love you little man!

He's 30 3/4" tall and weights 25.8 lbs

Share gift ideas for Valentine's day and WIN!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Nichole J.) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:58:00 +0000

Check out the Valentine's day gift contest on its Thoughtful.com!
Share gift ideas for Valentine's day

-Share your favorite gift ideas for Valentine's day - from your past experience or something new.

-Submit as many gift ideas as you like. Community will vote and comment
itsThoughtful.com community will vote and comment on your gift idea until Feb 14th 2011.

-Vote and view all gift ideas here. You earn rewards

-The winner will receive a $500 Amazon gift card. The "Fan Favorite" will receive a $100 Amazon gift card.

That's It!
Yes, its that easy.

Get started. You can submit as many ideas as you like.