This week...

Since I am feeling a bit better I got to watch Mr. Evan for the week. We have been smiling lots and taking naps together!

This is who showed up this morning-in the cutest hoodie...

These photos are all ones Amy took, but I have been posting some of my own on Instagram and Facebook.

However, the ones I take are blurry-can't seem to get the boy to stop moving...

 He is now about 9.8 pounds and 23 " is what I think Amy said.

Lots of this face happening lately...

 He will be available for hugs here all summer on Tuesdays...come for a snuggle and visit!

Today=happy

Today was the best day!
It has been awhile since I noticed how all the details came together to make a great day.
We got to church this morning and there was a spot to park right outside the main doors. Meeting and greeting friends, hearing a great message and awesome music. The kids came over today for lunch and a game. Oh and lots of looking, cuddling and kissing an awesome little boy who has stolen our hearts...a lovely nap, $1 coffees from Dutch Brothers and a beautiful drive. We went down to the riverfront and followed roads until we ended up in Ridgefield. Dinner at El Rancho Viejo. Driving home as the sun finished it's day we listened to 70's music and reminisced. A lovely day...

Creativity

First I want to suggest that if you decide in your quest to eat healthier and to make smoothies- smoothies that contain greens as well as fruit and protein powder and some yogurt...DON"T use Romain Lettuce!! Your smoothie will have an overwhelming salad taste. You can alleviate that taste with an amount of frozen fruit and mango juice plus more protein powder BUT you will end up with enough smoothies for the whole week!!
NOW in our quest to get Amy's nursery ready for her and the peanut to spend many hours in -we are spending our Sundays doing projects. She has even gotten her brother and his wife and her dad involved. Here are Nick and Gabriele sewing strips of fabric together. (hope he doesn't mind that I posted that!)
She didn't take a photo of her dad starching and ironing and putting in hoops a bunch of fabric squares. Oh and there isn't one of me stitching either but that is a good thing since I didn't have any make up on and hadn't done much with my hair either. I am not that secure in myself to put those photos out in cyberspace...

This image shows most of the projects I embroidered. The one on the top right is a little tic-tack-toe. She has an eclectic theme that rotates around blue, green and a couple tones of wood.
This image shows her featured fabrics in hoops-this will be a big wall arrangement. These same fabrics were made into a bunting to go on the window. All the kids worked on that one together.
and these are all waiting for felt and paint next Sunday.
And then we can start on the rest of the projects...curtains, globe re-do, table runner, pillows, chalkboard, a banner and installation of all these things too.

It will be a room that she won't mind being in A LOT.

This and that

This is a very image heavy post, but fascinating...

Yesterday Gary asked me to drive him out to see the swollen Lewis river. We love to take drives together and since I get motion sick so easily I'm usually driving.

As we neared Battle Ground we saw huge clouds of smoke and I realized the controlled burn of the old elementary school must be scheduled. So we headed that way, there were a lot of people out and the school was most definitely burning. I dropped Gary off as I headed to find a good vantage point from the car. It was nippy and windy outside. I found the perfect spot and headed to let Gary know where the car was parked. As I neared the street, the heat from across the road instantly warmed me. Wow, what power fire has! As I said in my facebook post- Gary had his camera so here are the best of the images he took...











Wasn't that amazing?! We did go to the river too but Gary forgot to get those images ready for me...

Now onto prettier things-

Amy convinced me that we needed to rethink the layout of the craft cottage. So last week Gary helped us move things around. We had to make a trip to IKEA for supplies and then this week
she came and helped with the finishing touches. She is so good at that! We always forget the BEFORE photo though. Here are the AFTER-thanks Gary for the cut rate photography!

What you see when you enter,

most of which I already had, we just reconfigured it....

what I see from my crafting chair,
the boxes in the rack are new-I had a whole bunch of mix matched
plastic bins that you could see all the supplies(crap) through.

Lots of cute vignettes to look at...

the view from Amy's crafting seat...

You know Amy can only come on the weekends...that crafting seat can be filled by anyone who doesn't like to craft alone...hint-hint.

Post Christmas...

I guess I should say "since I last wrote," because the first photos are actually Christmas...

I laughed when I first saw this photo of me talking to Gabriele because of the look on Amy's face.
She almost looks mad that she isn't part of the conversation. When in reality she is looking beyond us and probably reacting to what is going on there.
Stocking time~looks like Gabriele likes how we altered the dollar store stockings.
My dad looks pleased with his anti-stress doll. Not that he has stress in his life but we thought he would enjoy the eyes, nose and ear things popping out when you squeezed it.
This gift is in route from China so I got a photo of it. The cutest necklace with an owl charm.
Nick and Gabriele wrapped up all the special clothes I had saved from when Nick was little and added a few new items for Amy and Karl to use with "peanut".
Laughing at how short the legs are in proportion to the big butt area~
Nick gave Gary tickets to go see Sherlock Holmes in the living room theaters.
Karl got a baby barbell rattle...can't start them too early I guess.
Nick and Gabriele have there own "you are special" plate...the tradition continues...
Two Francine Rivers books for Gabriele to read during her break.
Daisy liked her new catnip toy...for about 5 minutes and then she ignored it!

*****

After Christmas we got together with a group of friends for dinner here at the house and then went to the Eisinger's house for dessert and games. I loved the Barbie trees she had done. The big tree was white, pink and black with her vintage type Barbie ornaments...
The second tree was pink and full of the accessories she has collected.
We played a rousing game of Catch Phrase too. And took the name literally as we didn't want to get caught with a buzzing game piece!

I have done a bit of thrifting too~as always...found this little piece for Amy's nursery.
Got together with my Brave Girls to share December Daily albums...
and this weekend baked 8 dozen cupcakes for the Magenta Theater's annual awards program.
Oh my did I enjoy tasting these for quality control. Yes, I only tasted them but I wanted to eat at least one of each...
which brings us to the latest...which is an update of "the bump"...
only 14 weeks to go~isn't she cute?!

I bought this book and hope to read it soon-
and this class begins in a few days...I have grand hopes to finally come to terms and peace with the body I have and myself in the process.
Until next time...ttfn-K