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 It's time for another {PHFR} yay! I am really grateful for the Lawler ladies hosting this because if it wasn't for this and the Yarn Along, I might never be motivated to post.  And post I must because blogging is one of those things I appreciate most after the fact.

We have been battling strep and various viruses since Thanksgiving. It has been challenging to say the least. Last week was Sara's 3rd birthday and poor thing was sick! We were all horrified for her. I made these pretty pink pancakes and she didn't even eat any. *sad* We ended up having her special cake this week and she was feeling much better and ready to celebrate being 'free' (that's 3 for those of you who may not be versed in toddler speak)

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 Sara's birthday is on St. Nicholas Day, December 6.  This year he brought personalized mugs and some m&m's. St. Nick loves m&m's I hear.

I also printed out some coloring sheets for the kids and they worked very, very hard on them.

MaryClare fell asleep mid-color she was working so hard. This kid is one amazing sleeper. I must do a post with all of the pictures I have of her sleeping in odd places at odd times.

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My littlest one has cut her first two bottom teeth. There has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth (by those of us who already have them) over this event, not to mention drool. I'm glad they've finally erupted, poor thing.

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We went to a Santa brunch this year at my parents clubhouse and I was able to get a great shot of all the kids together-cue the Halleluia chorus! This will be in the Christmas card and I bet folks will get a kick out of counting heads and realizing that we added another one this year-hee hee!

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Yarn Along: 4

I'm so excited to share my secret Christmas present! I am making three of these for my 3 sons. Aren't they hilarious? I am following a general pattern I found at this blog: Gumbo Soul.

Aren't I handsome with a beard?! I think the boys are going to love them and they're not too hard. I am using beanies we have that my Nana made for us a couple of years ago and I'm attaching the beard with buttons sewn inside the hat.

I am also finishing up Christy for my book club. I have enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would. It is a Christian book, but it is not all treacly or sappy like some Christian novels can be. I loved the Appalachian setting and the vivid descriptions of mountain life. At times, the character Christy is a bit annoying and unbelievable, but all in all most of the characters are well drawn and multi-dimensional.


Thanks for visiting my blog and a big thanks to Ginny for hosting

Fresh Beginnings

Last Sunday was the first Sunday of Advent. I have so been looking forward to this season! We have had just a really tough year here and I really feel this is a fresh start.

Interestingly, in the liturgical calendar, the Sunday just before Advent is Christ the King day where the readings and focus is on the kingship of our Lord and it is the last Sunday of the church year.

So Advent is the beginning of the new year, a fresh start! Also, CTK always falls near Thanksgiving and it just seems so appropriate to sort of end the year with reflection and thanksgiving, recognizing the gifts from my King, the one who has blessed me beyond measure. I feel so refreshed and full-hearted, ready for the preparation of Advent. I also love how the readings in Advent focus not only on the Incarnation, but on the Second Coming. So much to ponder.

We made a "Thankful Tree" again this year. I think we did it first year before last. Anyway we all write things we are thankful for and hang them up. They don't have to be just from the past year, just thankfulness in general.

It was nothing fancy, but I do really like the tradition. I have heard that some people then use these trees as Jesse trees, but I like to use a mini pre-lit Christmas tree. More Christmas lights make me happy!

                          

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Very busy week (aren't they all though?) Funeral, birthday, football, campout...It seems that no matter how much I try to just BE, I keep getting busified. I need to learn how to BE in the midst of the busy-ness. We're working on it around here, albeit s.l.o.w.l.y.

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We do have a schedule, it may get bumped during the week, but at least we have some sort of backbone. We have regularly planned prayer times that are getting less hectic. If we just stick with it and not give up I know it will be so, so good.

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Nina is a grabby grabberman. Pulling everything she can get her slobby hands on right to her mouth. We rigged up this baby gym by hanging the toys on a crossbar under a plastic chair. She really likes it and when she gets bored, she just starts rolling. She's getting fast! I remember one time I went to the kitchen leaving Jake on the floor playing nicely just like this and I came back and was horrified. He had dissapeared! Moments later I saw a foot sticking out from under the couch. He had rolled at least four feet and under the furniture. I am keeping an eye on this girl....

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All the kids have loved this busy box crib toy. See how she caught me watching her?

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We don't do lavish birthdays around here. But we try to make the birthday person feel loved and special. One thing the kids have begun doing is writing personal cards. I was so warmed when I caught these three helping each other writing and decorating cards for their big brother. I didn't even fuss that they were supossed to be in bed...!

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Thank you for visiting my {PHFR} contribution: Motley Edition

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Fall is here! (sort of). September is always a mixed bag temperature wise, but we have had some lovely fall-ish weather and I pulled out my fall wreath. Well, It's really two wreaths I stuck together and added our initial. You know, in case anyone driving by is wondering what our favorite letter is or something.

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MaryClare in our fabulous cul-de-sac, riding around, and around and around-you get the idea. I am so thankful we have this flat, low-traffic area for our kids to ride and play. It really is awesome. We are outside so much, the cul-de-sac is like an extension of our home.

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Saw this book at the library earlier this week. Isn't it hilarious? It's actually very well done. It's easy to read as in the regular D and J, but there that element of dark humor. There's some tension, but it's not scary really and it has a happy ending.

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We painted some wooden peg people this week. Sara and MaryClare painted some newspaper too!

I used to do lots of crafts with the kids, but it's been months since we pulled out the the stuff. With the pregnancy and newborn, I'd say it's been at least a year since we did something like this. The kids were thrilled. Even the big boys who in general aren't fans of 'arts and crafts' participated and enjoyed it.

I really, really struggle with perfectionism in arts and crafts and it is always an internal battle I wage to just let them do their thing without stepping in and taking over their projects and trying to perfect them. I did well this week I feel. They love all of the family they created, the more detailed people mingled just fine with the blurry folks. Hmm-maybe there's some deep meaning in that....We ended up with about 15 people and the kids have asked me to pick up some more blanks to add to their collection. We haven't made any of the saint dolls that I have seen about the internet, but maybe we'll work on that one day. For now, they are intent on population a large wooden block city and castle and the dollhouse.

Thanks to the Lawler ladies hosting PHFR!

Sunday Night Wrap Up

I know Sunday is supposed to be the first day of the week for some reason. It just has never seemed that way to me. I love Sundays because they are a blessed day of rest after a full and busy week and a needed reminder from my Father not only to honor and worship Him, but to rest in His peace with my family and friends. All of that seems to happen as a finale to my weekly life, not a prologue really. I'm not sure if that's theological sound or not but oh well. :)

As Sunday evening rolls around I find myself thinking the upcoming week. What is it going to be like for us? Travel for Lee, practices, dinners with family, doctors appointments etc...? I also find myself remembering the past week, what worked and what didn't. Too often focusing on the 'didn't' and not enough on the 'did', truth be told.

Maybe if I write down a sort of weekly wrap up I can spot trends and also learn to savor and focus more on the small, precious moments that add up to the big panorama of our family life...

Here goes!

Last week.......

We: visited with my Dad and step-mom Carrie who were in town to babysit my nephew, W. They came over Sunday morning and again on Tuesday. W is reminding me so much of Jake. He has gorgeous blond hair and blue eyes. He is 18 mo. and boy is he pushing the limits! Carrie was a bit frazzled and said, "I don't know how you do it-and make it look so easy!" I did let her in on my secret that having more kids is actually easier sometimes! Helpers and playmates abound and not to mention just plain old experience.

I: spent a disgusting amount of time on the phone working on insurance stuff for Jake's dental care. The folks on the phone were generally nice, but it was so time consuming and the lack of communication between various departments leads to so much wastefulness!

Nina: has moved from just sucking on her fingers and hands, she can now grasp a rattle and she brings it to her mouth to chew and lick! She also is getting very vocal, cooing and laughing

deep belly chortle.

Sara: more coloring on unapproved items. Carpet on the stairs, our bedspread. *sigh* I have to remember to take some snaps of all of the things she has 'decorated' around the house and have a special post dedicated to that. She is so full of life and so engaging to everyone. Such an active girly girl. She loves to ride her tricycle and chase down her brothers with their nerf swords!

We: went to the park playground twice this week. Unprecedented! The weather was just so nice...the boys tried out the skate park and it was very cool. Ryan is just a natural at the ripstik of course, but Jake is getting it too. He'd like his own board though...

The kids: did well with school despite lots of interruptions. Luke is a dream student, but everyone made at at least some progress. I've got to tweak some curriculum stuff though-not looking forward to that after a year of sticking to one thing, but I've come to believe it is necessary. We aren't dropping anything, I just might need to supplement.

Yarn Along 3: Baby Bonnet!

I am thrilled at how this bonnet turned out! It was a free pattern from Annelise at Aesthetic Nest.

I've been crocheting off and on for a bit over a year now. I'm self-taught with lots of help from You Tube! This is one of the first more complicated patterns I've been able to read and complete and I just think it's so sweet on my Nina's fuzzy baby head.

Oh and that bright blanket in the background? That is the 'happy blanket' I made while pregnant and on bedrest with Nina. It's based on the granny stripe design from Attic 24. I love the bright colors on Lucy's blog and in her designs. It was wonderful to work with this design last winter and bleary spring while I waited through a very scary third trimester. It really kept my crazy pregnancy self on this side of depression. With looming uncertainty about the baby, I just couldn't bear to work on any baby items at all and the blanket was a great family project. The other kids named it the 'happy blanket' because of the great colors.

Now, months later, Nina and I are here and healthy and I am thrilled to be making some baby goodies for her!

As far as my reading is going, I am as usual, reading several things. I've got War and Peace on the Kindle, the third book in the Outlander series by my bed, and the second Game of Thrones on audio on my phone.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you check out some more great projects over at the weekly Yarn Along!

Yarn Along: 2

I began this project with a different yarn and hook size and a different tail pattern. I made up the project as I went along, and now it is complete, but not really 'done'. I have yet to get good photo of Nina wearing this little mermaid papoose because she kicks and squirms right out! I need to figure out a way to cinch the waist a bit, maybe run a ribbon through? This is really more of a photo prop item right now, it just doesn't seem very useful. Maybe if I made the stitches tighter so her toes wouldn't poke out and I could fix the waist so it would stay on, then maybe it would be good for a cozy, cute sleeping bag.



I'm just now on the next book of the Outlander series, Drums of Autumn. I also read the Order of the Phoenix with my oldest boys. I have to confess, not one of my favorites. It was kind of boring in places and I skipped a bit. We watched the movie on Friday and it was pretty bad. We're moving on to the next book and I'm hoping it's better.

Thanks for checking in on me. Leave me a comment and I'd love to hear any suggestions about the mermaid cocoon/papoose. I'm a fairly new crochet-er. Check out more projects with Ginny at the Yarn Along.

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This was on MaryClare's birthday. I was trying to get a picture of just her but she really wanted to be holding her newest sister. MC is a girl who is pretty inside and out.

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This was right after she was baptized. We were all happy and smiley!

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The kind of pictures that show up on my camera phone after it's been missing awhile....

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I am not at all surprised to find an onion under my dining room table in the middle of an afternoon. After all, I have a two yr. old.

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The girls and I tried to make sock bun curls. To figure out the sock part I must direct you to google, it is kind of difficult to explain. The basic premise is this: roll your hair into a high bun and sleep on it. In the morning unroll and wake with gorgeous curls. (a la Sara who already has been blessed with pretty curls) Our experiment had lackluster results, but I would not rule out user error. We decided we'll try again sometime. We had mucho fun trying it out. So novel to have socks! in our hair!

*so I know it's pretty, happy, fun, real-not funNY, but I am just a rebel and like to do it this way. (((((I just re-read and it IS funny, not fun! Well not much of a rebel I guess,lol!)))))

**yes, i know about back 2 sleep etc...she is in a cradle for a daytime nap right near me...

Nina's Baptism

We had a very busy weekend and I'm still recovering! Some good friends and family came and celebrated Nina's baptism. I thought this was the first baby that Lee held during the actual baptism, but then I remembered the twins. I bet he held one of them, I'll have to look back through the photos...

From nina's baptism

She slept and woke up a bit after the water and began smiling at all of us!

From nina's baptism

From nina's baptism

From nina's baptism

Our wonderful priest asked Ryan if he'd like to serve in attendance and he was thrilled. He was totally focused and solemn during the service, handing Father items and holding the book for readings.

From nina's baptism

The two grandmas were all cooing over Nina. Back at our house we had a small cook-out and party to celebrate. My good friend helped us decorate these sweet cupcakes.

From nina's baptism

{PHFR}

This weeks edition will not be in order. I am having the heck of a time with photos in blogger. I know you're supposed to be able to click and drag them around, but I guess I'm doing it wrong or something-urgh! Thanks for stopping by!

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bills, bills and more bills...we are in an insurance mess trying to add Nina to coverage. I'm sure all will be well in the end, but the mess in the meantime is exhausting.

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my pretty girl with her pretty girl! Lainey's holding Tiffany, our sweet black cochin.

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The kids are really loving the chickens. They love to play with them and show them to friends. Until we can follow our dreams to a small homestead, we are trying to be content with our suburban options.

Thank God our city allows backyard chickens! My hope is that we will all learn with these first 3 and be able to care for an even bigger flock someday. In the meantime we have happy kids and some funny cuteness. I mean. chickens in a baby buggy? Tell me that's not stinking cute!

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Of course it's been so hot here the kids have been playing with chickens in the morning and retreating inside in the blazing afternoons. Hot wheels have been the attraction lately and along with some friends they've built several cool car cities.

Yarn Along: 1

I'm excited to share in my first yarn along! I'm not much of a knitter, but I do like like to crochet. This project is one I made up after being inspired by something I saw on Pinterest. It's going to be like a papoose or cocoon that Josephine will snuggle in like a sleeping bag. I love the whimsy of the mermaid fins!

I forgot the picture of what I'm reading. Right now I'm in the middle of book 3 in the Outlander series, Voyager. Some friends of mine are super die hard fans and it's been fun to get into the series so I can talk and squeal along with them! The main male character, Jaimie, is just so wonderful, but I have a hard time relating to the female main character though. She's growing on me a bit now. I think there are at least 4 books in the series.

Thank you Ginny, for hosting the weekly Yarn Alongs