Monday, August 27, 2012

11 months....





Well, we are officially at that point where I am telling people that my BABY is almost a year old!!!!!! Man, she is really growing up so fast. She has tested my patience so much this month. She is a "go baby"!! She cannot be trusted haha! She is into everything, so I am more worn out than ever ( especially since Gabe has been gone A LOT in the last month), but life is rich!

  She is starting to mimic us more and more, which is so cute and scary at the same time! Whenever I pick up the phone to call someone or answer it, she puts her hand up to her ear as well and says "aah" aka "hello". She thinks it is HILARIOUS when I have to spank Sadie or tell her to go to her bed, as Sadie dog has been a bit of a pain lately! Sharing attention is just not her thing.

Some things Amara is loving right now:

Blueberries and Peaches
Rice with soy sauce
Drinking whole milk
Picking up Sadie's toy to give to her, then clapping
Dancing, which is her on all fours rocking back and forth
Drinking out of a sippy cup
Giving hugs
Crawling everywhere...It is so hard for me to let her crawl around in public places, but it is sooo much easier. She just reaches for the floor the entire time. I always give in! Thanks goodness for wipes!
Putting things "in" and pulling them "out" of containers
Trying to pull up
Standing up with her head on the ground!
Waving
doing BIG smiles....it actually makes my face hurt to watch ;)
Swinging at the park....it is as if she has rediscovered it. She absolutely loves it!!

A few things that mommy is loving right now......

Introducing whole milk :)
Getting to cuddle with her every night before I lay her down ( sweetest time of my day)
Feeling her tug at my leg to be picked up
Just being out an about and feeling her throw her head on my chest and cuddle me.....tears
Watching her eat....she is a gluten, but it is cute! Big appetite like mommy and daddy!
Seeing her discover and retain what she is learning
Her short, chubby legs
Her little teeth poking through
How much she loves Sadie
Watching her smile when daddy walks through the door

I feel crazy busy right now, but it is alllll good! We are looking forward to a Disney trip in Sept. ( taking baby A), daddy being home in a couple of days and a 1st Birthday bash to celebrate Amara and our life-changing year! That is about all I can focus on right now. Words cannot explain how much I freaking love my husband and the sweet baby we made together! We celebrated 5 years of marriage together this month, and it has only gotten better each year. I truly mean that! Amara is just surprising us everyday with new things that she is doing. We want to give her the world. She is a lover of people, and I will drive that prayer into the ground for as long as I live. She is a special baby, and once again......I can't believe I get to be her mommy! 

Thanks for a great month baby and boots.....and Sadie too! I love you three more!

This was by far the hardest photo shoot we have done to date! She is a mooooover!






















Thanks for reading....as always! 



Thursday, August 9, 2012

DIY Ribbon Garland


I have been wanting to make a ribbon garland for quite some time now. I think they are so stunning! I am in desperate need of a craft ( since the hubs is gone for a week), and I have a teething baby! I thought this would be a nice little escape for me since I love to just get lost in a project. Yesterday, to relieve stress, I cleaned my bathroom. Making a ribbon garland is much more fun I believe!!

I got cheap fabric from Wal-mart. It was 2 bucks a yard. This technically isn't ribbon hanging, but it is fabric made to look like ribbon strips. See where I am going here? Ribbon is much more expensive for a project like this. I opted for peach, cream and a little bit of mint green for mine, but go crazy with fun prints/patterns and different colors. The less you think about it, the better they look in my opinion. I chose solid fabric.

What you will need:

Roughly 2 yards of fabric ( in each color) depending on how long you want your garland

Self healing mat

Rotary cutter ( a major time saver when it comes to cutting fabric)

Jute twine

Fabric Scissors

A baby in over- sized pjs to crawl in your piles of ribbon .......ok, not really, but that is what I got!

About an hour of your time


I used my mat to roughly measure how thin/thick I wanted each strip to be. 


As you can see, they are not even nor are they all the same size. Imperfection = perfection with this project. It gives the garland some dimension.


Baby....

Take each of your strips and tie them in a knot onto the jute twine.

Then, simply scrunch it right up next to the previous knot you made so there is no space between the ribbons.

Then, cute the remaining fabric down to about a 1/2 of an inch. This just gives the top of the garland a nice clean line. I debated leaving the extra fabric at the top, but it made it look to "messy". To each their own!
VOILA!!!!!




These are great stored away for a special occasion, hanging in a nursery, or even anywhere in your house for that matter. Have fun with it!

Hope you all enjoy your Thursday!


Monday, August 6, 2012

Randomness...

Hope everyone had a great weekend! I sure did! Gabe was gone on Saturday, so Amara and I got to spend some time with family. We ventured out for some cinnamon doughnuts and home made orangeade (YUM) at the Farmer's Market. On Sunday, we got to do our usual cleaning of the studio and then headed to church, which was so amazing as always. I am still having a hard time walking away from the door at the nursery knowing that Amara is crying. Why do I like to look? Just drop off and walk away....it is so hard for me though. 

Not only is eating out my absolute FAVORITE thing to do, but it is especially so on Sundays. However, we opted out of Sunday lunch since we knew we would be going to dinner that night ($$), and I am actually glad we did. It was pouring rain when we left church so it was so nice to just come home and all of us rest. I stripped Amara down to her diaper and let her play in the bed with Gabe and I ......those are some of the fondest memories I will keep! I actually didn't do any cleaning......we just relaxed and it was perfection!!

Then, later that evening, we celebrated my mother-in-laws birthday at an amazing sushi spot called Wild Ginger. Amara did sooooooo well! I was a proud mama. Gabe had to work today, which is a bummer, but it is a big opportunity and that man will do whatever it takes to provide for his family. I am thankful for that daily....sometimes more than once daily :). He leaves again tomorrow for a WHOLE WEEK!! Bummer.....

I am digging down deep to find strength for him to be away for these longer tour runs. I truly respect single moms on a whole different level now. I am so lucky to at least have family around, but sometimes you just want your spouse. Amara is doing so many new fun things daily, and I know he hates to miss it all, but thank goodness for amazing technology these days.

This is all kind of a random post with pics from the weekend.....I don't usually do weekend recaps, but I am feeling crazy today ;)

Happy Monday everyone!!!

My little sister, Jordan and my mom ( yes, I know we look alike, and it doesn't help matters
when we wear the same exact shirt, but in different colors. Totally unplanned! )








Amara sits in high chairs and stroller side ways.......so strange, that kid!