Wise Words Wednesday: Fortune

"Sail into the land of opportunity - treasures await." - Panda Express Fortune Cookie

I love a good fortune. And I especially love this one I was blessed with over lunch today! (and the cookie actually tasted good, too!) I totally feel ready to sail into the land of opportunity and the fact that treasures will be awaiting me is the icing on the cake! This baby is going straight into my wallet right now.

On a side note, I have been eating Panda Express at least once every couple of weeks during this pregnancy (right down the road from my work). I'm hooked on the chow mein bowl with string bean chicken... and then I squeeze packets of hot mustard all over it. Let me tell you, it is heaven in my mouth for some reason. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

And right before I had Panda, I got weighed in at the doc. I'm just 1 pound shy of my ending weight with Miss Leila Jade... with over 6 weeks still to go! Did that detour me from the Panda? Nope. :-)

Pathetic Pregnant Lady

Wanna know the highlight of my day?



That would be me receiving a very lotion-y foot massage from my 2 year old. And this wasn't the first time. I took advantage of her new fetish last night, too. My girl loves to give a good foot/leg massage. And normally mommy may get irritated with the mess & waste of lotion, but these past couple of days I have been so tired after work that it is pure heaven to just lay back and relax for 10 minutes while Leila goes to town on my feet. Is that so wrong?



;-)

33 weeks

I love the little lurker in the background...



Pregnancy tid-bits for this week...

• So you know how this past weekend I busted my ass cleaning our garage and basement? Well, I'm regretting that decision right now. I am SUPER sore. My hips barely want to work and my back is killing me. And I didn't do too much heavy lifting...
• With our nice HOT weather lately I have been getting asked/told multiple times per day if/that the heat must be making me miserable. Well, it's not. I love the heat. And I don't think it affects me any differently being pregnant or not.
• The heartburn is getting worse. And I didn't think that was possible. 2 nights ago I literally had stuff (i.e. stomach acid mixed with what I ate for dinner) coming up my throat while I slept and choking me. I woke up several times coughing and barely being able to breath. It was SO nasty. It made me bust out in tears at 2am, frightening my poor hubby.
• Yesterday I had a little bit of a panic attack. Ok, not really a panic attack, but I just got really overwhelmed that I only have 7 weeks to go. That's only 6 weekends to get ready for baby and only 3 of those include my hubby not working. And I feel like we have so much to do! I finally calmed down and I'm feeling good about it all at this moment.
• Baby Boy is still nameless.

Wow, I feel like this was kind of a negative post. I swear I'm still a mostly happy pregnant lady! :-)

Get 'er done!

Sometimes you have to waste away a beautiful summer weekend to just get 'er done. With only 3 weekends with my hubby off work left until our new little bundle arrives, I need to make the most of having him around. So, what did we do over this most glorious and HOT HOT HOT weekend? We tackled the basement and garage. Fun times I tell ya!

Beautiful pile-o-crap (& shirtless hubby) in basement BEFORE...


Basement AFTER (still not a "pretty" basement, but at least it's organized now!)...


Hideous, disorganized garage BEFORE...



Hideous, now somewhat organized, garage AFTER...



Leila Jade had fun with sidewalk chalk in the garage while mommy & daddy worked...


So, basically we still have some work to do, but we made some serious progress! Highlights of our cleaning spree included finding a bag of my old maternity clothes that will get put to good use over the next few weeks and finding a box of old love letters from my hubby. Lowlights included the MANY nasty spiders we encountered along the way - creepy! In the end it was a painful task to take on (especially in nearly 100 degree weather), but worth it.

Our weekend wasn't ALL work, though. We had some fun, too! My momma and I went and saw The Help (OMG, tears galore... & I thought the book was a tear jerker!) then the hubby & I took Leila to the park to play on the splash pad and get ice cream (totally forgot my camera for the best part of the weekend, grrrr). Here are a couple of more pics I captured this weekend...

Leila crying in frustration because she can't figure out how to tie daddy's shoes...


Hot Weather + Cold Popsicle = 1 Happy Girl


As for my Pre-Baby To-Do List, I get to cross another item off - YAY! Here's where I'm at...

• Clean out the garage and GET RID OF CRAP!
• Organize the office (without spending ANY $). I would love to turn it into my little craft room.
• Put my jewelry making supplies to use! I need to complete a trial run before baby gets here! But I need the office organized first!
• Sew blankie #2 for little man along with burp rags with leftover fabric.
• Sit down and have a serious budget talk with the hubby. We need to discuss ways to control our spending better ASAP.
• At the same time, convince hubby to let me spend lots of $ on stuff I need for baby... cloth diapers/wipes, wet bags, diaper sprayer, new breast pump kit, ergo baby carrier, & I really want a Kindle/Nook (ok, so maybe this one has nothing to do with baby... he he).
• Figure out plan for when/if I return to work... I need to talk to hubby and the boss man... part time? full time? not at all? I have some serious thinking & figuring out to do.

The weekend is over, but I'm feeling good... I'm feeling a productive week ahead! :-)

Friday Funnies

I hate to admit it, but I really have no blogging motivation/inspiration this week... especially with a weekend with my hubby and daughter ahead of me! Soooooooooooooooo, I will leave you with these fantastic pics...

Everyone should have the Brostache app on their phone...





No explanation. I guess I'm just weird...





And she's weird, too...



Here's to a HOT & FUN & FUNNY weekend ahead! Hope yours is FAB, too!

Wise Words Wednesday: Slow Down

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast - you also miss the sense of where you are going and why." - Eddie Cantor

I am taking 2 minutes out of my CRAZY week to take a deep breath and reflect on the above quote.

I am by no means complaining, but I feel like I have been go-go-going this week. Work has been crazy. Leila has been crazy. Our house has been crazy. Our car has been crazy. Sheer craziness I say!

It's weeks like this that sadden me when I take a moment to sit back and think about it. All of the little insanities in life that cause so much stress when added together make the time FLY BY and can easily distract you from what is truly important and what life is all about. So, I am choosing to stop, and breath, and re-focus. Ahhhhhhhhh. I feel better already.

I highly encourage everyone to take 5-10 minutes at least once or twice a week to just sit in silence and reflect on your life. Reflect on what REALLY matters to you. Enjoy the current moment and be grateful for all that you have. It's so easy to lose track of where you are going if you aren't careful.

Happy Hump Day! Here's to an easy downward slide towards the weekend!

32 weeks

Billy asked to be in the pic with me this week...



My belly looks more "defined" this week than it did with Leila last time.  Rounder and just plain bigger. If you look closely you can kinda see my belly button sticking out a little, too. And there is no sign of this in the Leila pic. Hmmmmmm....

Pregnancy tid-bits for this week...

• 8 weeks to go and 3 lbs away from my ending weight with Leila. So I'll probably end up finishing off just a few pounds heavier than I was with her. Not too bad!
• The past few nights have been torturous for me. I've just been tossing and turning. I can't get comfortable and my mind is just racing. Not to mention having to pee a bazillion times. Getting ready for sleepless nights with baby I guess.
• Speaking of sleep, what sleep I have been getting has been accompanied by the craziest dreams! So crazy and vivid that it really feels like I didn't sleep at all. Last night I was in the house I grew up in and it was getting attacked by robot aliens. And I am in no way a sci-fi person so I don't know where this came from.
• I'm starting to get more organized for baby! I have about 20 cloth diapers so far (6 newborn size and 18 one size to last through potty training), friends/family have started passing on boy clothing to us, the crib is ready to go, and I finished the blankies I wanted to make him. It feels good.
• I have a short fuse these days. It doesn't take much to either make me cry or make me lash out in anger. Poor hubby and daughter. It's strange because I was just so happy and easy going when I was preggo with Leila. This little boy is taking me on an emotional rollercoster!
• Pretty sure I'm gonna have like 50 cavities at my next dentist appt. I can't stop eating sugar. No, I really CAN'T.

32 weeks down, only 8 (or 9 or 10) weeks to go!

I totally forgot!

OMG! I totally forgot to share the most important thing that happened over the weekend in my last post!

LEILA WENT POO POO ON THE POTTY!!!

Big deal people! As far as the potty training goes, she probably pees on the potty at home 2-3 times/week. We aren't really pushing it. We'll ask her if she wants to sit on the potty and if she does, GREAT, if not we don't force her. On Saturday before her nap I asked her if she wanted to go potty. She took off her pants/diaper and proceeded to drag her potty chair down the hall while I was putting sheets on her bed. I was too busy/tired to stop her and just continued to do my thing. Two minutes later Leila runs up to me and yells, "Poo Poo!" I panicked at first thinking she had probably went on the floor. Nope - there it was, a big 'ole turd right in her potty. I totally freaked and did a happy dance and showered her with hugs and kisses. Then I texted her daddy a pic of it at work. He he! I will spare you all and leave this post pictureless. ;-)

I'm just so proud of her that she did it all by herself. I realize that we still have a LONG ways to go on the potty training journey, but we're off to a good start.

Weekend in Bullets

Another amazing weekend packed full of goodness, but I failed to bring my camera along for the ride. So, while this post could be full of awesome photos, it will instead be a brief bullet point synopsis...

• I started my weekend off early by ditching out of work at 3pm on Friday and heading to my tiny hometown for a benefit dinner for our good friend, Mike.  Good food, good friends, GREAT cause.
• Lunch & shopping with my gal & my momma on Saturday. All I bought was 2 shirts for the Hubby. Lame, I know.
• Laundry, Laundry, & more Laundry.
• Got the crib all set up! I raised it up, put a clean sheet on it, and ironed Leila's old crib skirt. (I hope turquoise and zebra stripes area appropriate for a little boy.)   :-)
• Ventured off to Wally World for an early morning shopping trip with Leila in tow (Hubby worked all weekend). We were in and out in 40 minutes (I think that's good!) and left with a cart full or groceries, some baby clothes, shoes for Leila, and lotion & nail polish for me. It only took 2 lollipops to keep Leila happy.
• This afternoon we enjoyed some sunshine with my good friend Holly and her 1 year old, Lucas. The kiddos were so darling together and I am so mad at myself for forgetting the camera (and being too stupid to remember I can take pics with my phone).
• And finally, my biggest accomplishment this weekend involved crossing an item off my 2 Month To-Do List...

I finally sewed the 2nd softie blankie for my little man! And this time I used a crap load of pins and it turned out much better than the first one.

I took this photo in crap lighting and the colors turned out all whack. It's actually a lot prettier in person.

So, here's my updated to-do list to get done before the baby arrives...

• Clean out the garage and GET RID OF CRAP!
• Organize the office (without spending ANY $). I would love to turn it into my little craft room.
• Put my jewelry making supplies to use! I need to complete a trial run before baby gets here! But I need the office organized first!
• Sew blankie #2 for little man along with burp rags with leftover fabric.
• Sit down and have a serious budget talk with the hubby. We need to discuss ways to control our spending better ASAP.
• At the same time, convince hubby to let me spend lots of $ on stuff I need for baby... cloth diapers/wipes, wet bags, diaper sprayer, new breast pump kit, ergo baby carrier, & I really want a Kindle/Nook (ok, so maybe this one has nothing to do with baby... he he).
• Figure out plan for when/if I return to work... I need to talk to hubby and the boss man... part time? full time? not at all? I have some serious thinking & figuring out to do.

My Dream Board

Last night I finished the chapter in "The Secret" that talks about creating Vision Boards (basically, cutting out images of things you want and putting them together in a place where you can always focus on them... as a way to help you really visualize those items coming into reality). So, I decided to make a Dream Board on Pinterest! (you can see it live here)



Obviously, I could add an endless number of "things" to this board. This is just what I'm choosing to focus my energy on right now... love, fitness, photography, jewelry making, working from home, a bigger dream home, money, & travel. These are all things that I want in my lifetime. It doesn't mean I want to sell our house and get something bigger right now. It just means that someday I would like to have a bigger home. It doesn't mean that I want to become a professional photographer in the next week. It just means that someday I would like to be able to take professional quality photos and know what I'm doing with my camera.

I'm going to print out a couple of copies of My Dream Board and put them in places I will see them daily. I want to be reminded of what it is I want in life. It's easy to caught up in the day-to-day and forget what really matters to you.

Okay, so maybe all of this is a little bit cheesy. But hey! It's worth a try, right?

Wise Words Wednesday: Sneak Peak

"Before you were conceived, I wanted you. Before you were born, I loved you. Before you were here an hour, I would die for you. This is the miracle of life." - Author Unknown

I got yet another sneak peak at my little man today! And boy did we get some great shots! Modern technology is sheer craziness I say! Look at the little pic of him yawning... I about died watching his little movements. I can't wait to meet him in 2 months! I am so in love already.

As for my stubborn little placenta, it has moved 0.1cm in the last month putting it at 1.9cm from my cervix. But guess what? Doc says we're going for a vag delivery! YAY! It will probably be considered a high risk delivery, just because of the higher chance that there will be a lot of blood, but he says he isn't concerned. They will just monitor me closely and if I do start bleeding too much, we'll do the cesarean. I'm feeling very good about it though. I think everything will go smoothly (Law of Attraction Baby!!!).

That's all for now! I am just so happy today!

Don't let the bed bugs bite...

No, this is not a post about real bed bugs. I just wanted to share a little Leila story...

Last night as I was tucking her in I gave her a kiss and said, "Nighty night, don't let the bed bugs bite." I have never said this to her before, it just came out.

Leila's eyes got HUGE. She looked up at me and said in a very worried/concerned voice, "No No. Bugs outside momma. Bugs seeping."

I quickly backtracked and said, "Oh, you're right. There aren't any bugs in here. The bugs live outside."

You see, my girl is such a girly-girl. She has never seen anyone freak out over seeing a bug (at least not that I am aware of) and yet she cries and screams if a bug is crawling towards her. Usually I try not to mention bugs at all. I wish I could have got a pic of the look on her face!

Funny stuff.

Anyway, since I'm on the topic of Leila's bedtime I thought I'd jot down our current bedtime routine - to share with you and so that I will always remember her cuteness at this age...

"Brushing" her teeth...

• 7:40ish:  Head upstairs and brush teeth.  Brushing teeth basically consists of Leila sucking off the fluoride-free toothpaste and then proceeding to chew on her tooth brush.  If I'm lucky, once or twice a week she will let me get at her teeth a little.  But usually she clenches her mouth shut and shakes her head from side to side if I try to take over. And this is why she hasn't been to a dentist yet. I don't think that one will go over very well with her.
• 7:45pm:  Get her to sit on the potty and/or change her diaper one last time. If she pee-pees on the potty she gets an M&M and then I get the joy of trying to brush her teeth again. :-)
• 7:50pm:  Leila picks out 2 books to read.  Usually it is the same 2 books over and over again for approximately 3 weeks and then she'll mix it up a little. We get in her bed, snuggle up, and I read the books to her.
• 7:55pm:  I turn off Leila's bedside lamp and start to sing our little lullaby to her.  She immediately sits up and says, "Wa Wa... Wa Wa" asking for a drink of water.  I give in and get her a drink and then lay her back down. I sing and say a prayer while she is usually babbling away about something or grabbing my nose and squealing with delight (her attempts at distracting me). Sometimes she'll ask for more "Wa Wa" just to distract me again.
• 8pm:  Final kisses and "Night Nights" are said.  After I get up from her bed Leila begs, "Momma lay down. Momma lay down pee."  Sometimes I cave in to her cuteness and lay down for a minute more. Usually I stay strong and proceed to walk out of the room.
• After that all I can do is pray to God that she falls asleep.  Most nights she is out like a light within 10 minutes of me leaving the room (usually she sings to herself for a while or talks to her babies). But, about once a week I have to chase her back to bed a couple of times.

Ha Ha! Leila WAS "brushing" her teeth, but decided washing her feet was more fun...


NOTE: the times I highlighted above are a VERY general approximation. Usually we'll add an extra 5 minutes to most of those steps... bed time at our house can take anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes, depending on how much Leila is trying to distract us (i.e. washing her feet in the sink). I just feel so blessed to have such a funny, easy-going daughter (with the exception of getting her teeth properly brushed).  She really is the best.

Sometimes Daddy takes care of the bedtime routine, too...

31 weeks

The countdown begins - only 9 weeks to go baby! Whoa!



Pregnancy tid-bits for this week...

• Andy measured my belly the other night and I am only measuring 1/2 an inch bigger than I was with Leila at 31 weeks.
• Latest craving? Pie! And I am not usually much of a pie person. Specifically, I want cream pies. Coconut Cream. French Silk. Banana Cream. YUMMO! We partially satisfied my pie craving last night with dinner and dessert at a local restaurant that serves some of the best pie out there. Definitely the highlight of my week.
• I am due exactly 2 months from tomorrow - October 16th - Yikes!
• I have another ultrasound on Wednesday. Please keep your fingers crossed that my silly placenta has moved so I can have another vag delivery!
• Besides my little pre-baby to-do list, I'm sure there is a bunch of other things I need to be doing before little man arrives. I should probably wash his clothes/diapers, move the crib up from the lowest setting, prep/sterilize bottles, get the carseat back from my bro, etc, etc... it's a little overwhelming.
• Oh, and we still need to come up with a name!!!

Any name suggestions?

Fantabulocity

For some reason this word just popped into my head as I sat down to reflect on my weekend:

Fantabulocity = The quality of being both Fantastic & Fabulous

And that is exactly how I would describe my weekend for the following two reasons alone:

1. I got to celebrate at the bachelorette party of one of my BFFs. Yes I am 7 months preggo, but I still had a blast (see above).
2. Today the hubby & I busted our asses off doing chores all morning and then we put Leila AND ourselves down for a good two hour nap. It was pure amazingness. And there is nothing like waking up to a clean house after a snugly napping session.

And that about sums up the fantabulocity of my weekend. I wish I could relive it all over again. Ahhhhhhhh...

Just pin it!

I have a new friend. Her name is Pinterest. Yeah, I know I'm behind in the world of social media. Pinterest and I just met. But, we're becoming pretty good friends now. I have a feeling I could lose hours of my life in this little corner of the web. Here are some of my recent pins...



Hmmmm...I guess it looks like I have a thing for rainbow colors? Oh yeah! I've been Rainbow Brite for Halloween several times now. :-)

I also have been pinning some cute baby pics to get ideas for when my little man comes...



There's some serious cuteness out there! I mean, it's almost sickening!

Any of you on Pinterest? If so, let me me know! I need some new boards to stalk. ;-) Feel free to check out what I have going on here: http://pinterest.com/dreamstodo/. I've only just begun! Now I just need to share this whole Pinterest thing with my hubby so that he can keep tabs on "My Wish List" board. He he he... ;-)

Have a fabulous weekend!

Wise Words Wednesday: The Secret

"Be happy now. Feel good now. That's the only thing you have to do." - Rhonda Byrne, The Secret

One of the items on my Dreams To Do List is Master "The Secret" (i.e. The Law of Attraction). The Secret is a book (and movie, I believe) all about the law of attraction and how you can use positive thinking in your life to get what you want. The idea intrigues me. I believe in it to a certain extent and I really want to try to focus on some of its principles in my life to see if it really works.

I've had the book The Secret for a few years, but haven't even made it past the first couple of chapters - and it's a short book! So, last night I decided to start it up again. I'm going to read all the way through it this time and I'm going to start practicing my positive thinking! Think happy thoughts! Feel good! I really do believe that sometimes you have to make a very conscious effort to do these things. And I know I struggle with this. It only takes one little thing to drag me down into the dumps.

I love how simple Rhonda Byrne makes it sound... all you have to do is be happy and feel good now. But I know it isn't always that easy. Soooooo, we'll see how it goes and I'll keep ya posted! On to chapter 2 tonight...

2 Month To-Do's

The pressure is on. In a little over 2 months I will have a brand new human being to take care of. I will have even less time in the day than I do now - and I already struggle with lack of time to get stuff done! Sooooooooooooo, I've decided to create a to-do list to focus on before our little man arrives. I am going to push myself to accomplish these things. Sure, most of it is boring... just crap that I've been meaning to do. But it needs to get done.

Here it is...

• Clean out the garage and GET RID OF CRAP!
• Organize the office (without spending ANY $). I would love to turn it into my little craft room.
• Put my jewelry making supplies to use! I need to complete a trial run before baby gets here! But I need the office organized first!
• Sew blankie #2 for little man along with burp rags with leftover fabric.
• Sit down and have a serious budget talk with the hubby. We need to discuss ways to control our spending better ASAP.
• At the same time, convince hubby to let me spend lots of $ on stuff I need for baby... cloth diapers/wipes, wet bags, diaper sprayer, new breast pump kit, ergo baby carrier, & I really want a Kindle/Nook (ok, so maybe this one has nothing to do with baby... he he).
• Figure out plan for when/if I return to work... I need to talk to hubby and the boss man... part time? full time? not at all? I have some serious thinking & figuring out to do.

Okay, I think that'll do for now. By putting this list out there for all to see I am putting pressure on myself to GET. IT. DONE.

A glimpse at what is currently distracting me from tackling my to-do list...


On another, happy note... guess what? Just found out the my hubby gets 3 WEEKS of paid paternity leave!!! How cool is that? I am SOOOOO excited to get to spend 3 whole, uninterupted weeks together as a family of 5 (counting our doggy, Billy Dee, of course!). It is going to be fantabulous!

So, what's on your current to-do list?

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30 weeks

Getting so close to the single-digit weekly countdown! 10 weeks to go!



Pregnancy tid-bits for this week...

• Hip pains are back. And lower back pain. I'm needing another massage pronto!
• Had another weigh in last Wednesday - didn't gain any weight since my previous appointment 2 weeks prior. Nobody seemed concerned, though. And I was surprised considering I have an endless pit of a stomach these days.
• I'm a little bit in shock at the fact that I'm due in 2 months. And I'm scared! Not for L&D, just scared for having TWO kiddos & for wrapping things up at work & for all the things I still need to buy for little man (mainly cloth diapers) & for getting stuff done from my to-do list before I have even less time.
• I think I'm getting hit with a new wave of hormones - I've been extra emotional! Like crying when I crave something and it isn't readily available. And losing it watching the Bachelorette finale. :-)
• Sleep is getting trickier, too. I really struggled with finding a comfortable position last night. And a growing toddler who likes to sprawl out and steal your pillow doesn't help either. :-)

That's all for now folks!

MIA to Summertime

With one of the latest starts to Summer ever seen in the Pacific Northwest, we are taking full advantage of the hot temps now. The other weekend I had a serious case of "summer brain" and I pretty much haven't lost it. All that's on my mind is sunshine and cool water and BBQs and family time relaxation. And I've gotten plenty of that over the last couple of days!



My bro and his fam from Colorado arrived for a short visit on Thursday. So, I ditched out of work early, took Friday off, and Leila, Andy, and I headed north to my parent's lake house. The last few days have been spent visiting, eating lots of food, lounging on floaties on the lake, watching movies, and just plain getting back to what really matters most in life: Family.

My niece, Cleo...


Leila & Mommy taking off on a little "boat" ride...


Sheer joy...


Hi Daddy!


Isn't this suit adorable? Gap clearance, $6.99 :-)


My mom, niece, & bro taking in the beauty of the lake...


With my brain and weekends MIA to Summertime, my Dreams To Do have been pushed to the back burner, I've probably slacked at work a little more than usual, and our house pretty much looks like a tornado hit. And I don't really care!

Are you wondering about how our binky-free daughter is doing? GREAT! Day 1 (Thursday) was fabulous, but that night we weren't at home and she did wake up around 2am screaming from a bad dream and couldn't get settled back down without her bink. Did I give in? Heck no (but only because I threw ALL of them away, knowing I WOULD have given in)! She cried off and on for over an hour, just not knowing how to soothe herself. It was very sad and hard for mommy & daddy. Ever since then? She hasn't even seemed to miss it! Falls asleep like a champ, taking 2+ hour long naps, sleeping well at night, and only asking where her binky is first thing in the morning. And she's talking so much more! Now that she doesn't have a binky in the car, the 1.5 hour car ride to/from my parent's house was full of chitter chatter - no more listening to music for mommy & daddy! It really is great, though. I'm so happy we finally got it over with. Next up? A deeper focus on potty training.

How was your weekend?

The Binky Fairy

Today was the day. Leila officially kissed her binkies good bye (literally). Here's what went down...

Around 6:45am, with her fave binky in full suction mode, I presented her with a cup full of her other binkies. I told her that it was time for her to say good bye to all of her binks because the Binky Fairy was coming and was going to drop off a gift in exchange for all the binkies. We proceeded to walk to the front door - Leila clutched the cup full of binkies with one still in her mouth.  We opened the front door and I had her put the cup of binkies on our door mat.  Then I told her she needed to take the one out of her mouth, kiss it "bye bye" and place it in the cup with the others.

Leila hesitated as she took the last few sucks of her favorite bink...


Eventually she kissed it goodbye and placed it in the cup with the others for the Binky Fairy to come pick up...


After saying goodbye one last time to all of her binks (oh I am sure there are a few hidden around the house that we will have to deal with as they turn up) and shutting the door behind us, I got her settled on the couch with an episode of Dora. While Leila was thoroughly engrossed in one of her fave shows, the Binky Fairy made the switch. She replaced Leila's binkies with a pretty wrapped gift right outside our front door. After Dora was over, Leila opened the door...



We brought the gift upstairs to a sleeping Daddy so that he could join in on her excitement.

Meeting her new friend "Mr. Binky" the monkey...


Hi Mr. Binky!


As for Day 1 so far, the report from Daddy was that it went really well (I had to run off to work right after she got her gift). He said that she asked for her binky a couple of times in the morning, but didn't even bother at nap time! She went right on down! We shall see how she does tonight. I will keep you all posted!

Wise Words Wednesday: Got my craft on!

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” - Scott Adams

So, at the end of yesterday's post I mentioned that I was feeling zero motivation and had zero creative juices flowing, but guess what? I went home after work and got my craft on! I busted out a soft and cute blankie for my baby boy...





Looks decent in the photos right? Well, I thought it would be super simple to make but I had a helluva time with it. The minky dot fabric has some stretch to it and I hate pinning before I sew, so that led to a few issues. Sooooooo, it is FAR from perfect. However, I just found this great tutorial so for the next one I am going to make it right! (Based on the tutorial it looks like the key to making a successful minky blanket is LOTS of pins... I failed.)

Now I'm going to make one with the cute airplane fabric in the first pic. And then I'm going to make some burp cloths out of the leftover pieces. I really do love to sew (even though I don't know what I'm doing half the time)... I just hate the cutting and pinning part.

Since I am talking arts & crafts, take a look at the paper flowers I made last weekend at a fun little class...

A rose & a dahlia


The class was super fun! I took it with some girlfriends, one of which is getting married next Spring and wants to use paper flowers instead of traditional, live flowers. So, we took a class to learn how to make them! We got some great ideas and now I am ready to help her construct. :-)

On another note... the Binky Fairy will be paying our house a visit tomorrow morning. Keeping our fingers crossed that Leila doesn't have too hard of a time. More to come on this.