The squares are completed!

So here it is....so far, so good. I ended up with two crinkly flaps...you can't really see them in this picture because they blend in with the squares. I think if I did this exact blanket again, I would get an orange fabric and do the flaps in that.

I like the contrast of the ribbon in it and there are three of those ribbon loops. I added one because I liked the orange in it so much:)

Now, onto the puff border...and then sewing the back together before quilting. I really hope the quilting turns out well. Anyone have any ideas for what pattern I should quilt into the squares?

I'm drawing a blank at the moment.

Another Quilt Update

We had some drama yesterday with the sewing machine, but because my husband ROCKS, he stayed up until two in the morning fixing it so I could do some sewing today.

I got all of my horizontal strips sewn together complete with one of the crinkly items and one of the ribbon additions. I think there will be at least two more ribbons because I love the orange accent so much and one, maybe two more crinklies, because it turned out better than I imagined.

Don't the interspersed puffs look cool?!

Maybe you can't see them that well in this picture, lets try another angle....

It's 11pm now and I'm just dying to start getting this thing all sewn together. Eh, Sam's not ready for bed yet.....off I go!

Just Because.....

...I'm goofy, and can't help being ridiculously excited about this project.

Here's my stack of squares....

And here's a sneak peak of what it will, sort of, look like when I get it all sewn together.

Cool, right!?

Okay, I'm done......for now:)

New Quilt

My favorite quilt is one that my Madre(step-mom) made me for my high school graduation. It's technically called a Biscuit Quilt. But more commonly referred to as a Puff Quilt. It's made of tiny little pillows sewn together in a quilt form.....like this.

A friend of mine showed me this tutorial and I just fell in love with the colors she chose but had no reason to make one at the time. So about 10 months later, I'm having another baby boy and picked out a baby announcement to make. What do you know?! Without even planning it, it matches all of those colors. Really! I swear! I didn't even think about it at the time. I just liked it.

This is what it will look like. With my little guys name in it, of course.

Anyway, now I had a reason to make this awesome quilt but I decided to make some changes to it. Firstly, it's not going to be ALL puffs. Just about 25% or so will be puffs. Then, I wanted to add some cool textury(is that a word?) parts to it, to make it a little more of an activity mat, more than an actual blanket. If you are drawing a blank....I'm thinking crinkly paper, ribbons and velcro. Things babies like to play with and chew on during tummy time.

So with all these ideas flying around(literally, I was up for 2 hours one night thinking of the possibilities) I headed to the fabric store and came out with these fantastic options.

Heidi with honeybearlane.com went with a more orange tone and the store I went to didn't have quite the color orange I was looking for so I decided the yellow/gold color would work just as well. Plus, I discovered a bonus when I got home....the yellow I came home with is the exact color of the wall the crib will be on in the boys room.

I started cutting my fabric tonight after an hour of really getting my plans nailed down. So stay tuned as I figure out if my idea is going to work or not. It could be a total bomb. But it might be absolutely adorable. Yay for crafty creativity!

Geisha Beauty

Here she is! Completed! It only took me a year.

Connor update

I feel like it's been awhile since I posted just about my big boy, Connor. And my brother took some AMAZING pictures of him while he was here last weekend so I have a great excuse.

Connor is growing up so much. He's becoming more and more reliable if I ask him to do something. He's got an incredible grasp on humor and makes us laugh daily. He's also creating stories and games on his own. He can say his prayers by himself and will even guide Bear through saying one as well.

He loves playing with Legos and builds new things with them all the time.

He's learning how to share and take turns with Bear(this can still be a challenge but it's getting so much easier). He has discovered a new love of having Mom scratch his back.

He loves playing CandyLand with anyone who will submit.

This just happened to be Uncle Josh's turn to get creamed:)

He has peanut butter and jelly sandwiches everyday for lunch. We add variety to the side dish, like crackers, carrots, oranges etc. It doesn't matter what kind of bread its on either. White or wheat is fine by him. The jelly, however, can't be Apricot or Peach(which, of course, is what I canned this past year).

His newest best friend is his "girl dog", Fertti. They love snuggling together. Connor will frequently bring his blanket out of his room to where Fertti is sleeping, wrap her up in it and then get under it himself.

Connor has gotten very modest when changing his clothes. I have to turn around or leave the room. However, during bathtime....he's having too much fun to worry about privacy:) He also gets dressed all by himself every morning without me asking him. He's normally dressed before I am and always before Bear is.

He also loves curling his tongue and loves that Mom can do it too.

He loves to giggle and will go out of his way to make you laugh too. He's always pointing out things that are silly.

He can't wait for preschool to start this summer. And is starting to recognize the letters in his name.

He is a ray of sunshine in my life everyday and I'm so grateful for him. He is turning into such a fun and pleasant little boy.

Kitchen Ceiling Remodel

So here is a before and after shot of what we got accomplished this weekend. Obviously we're not completely finished but all of the big, labor intensive, messy stuff, is done!

Thanks Josh for helping Sam and Thanks Pam for helping me with the kids! I'm so glad you were here to help!