Snow Storm and Valentine's Day

At the beginning of February we had a huge snow storm. It was probably the biggest storm here in Illinois in the last 20 years. We were snowed in for two days! We ended up with so much snow. Sadly Addy has never really "played" in the snow. After church the following Sunday it started snowing again. Christian wanted to shovel before our driveway turned to ice. Addy stayed outside with him and was playing in the snow her church clothes. I brought her down some gloves but when the driveway was done she was devastated when she had to come in the house. We decided to let her play out on our deck. I put on her snow pants, boots, hat, and another pair of gloves and she was on her way back out. Christian shoveled her a path way and gave her somethings to dig with and she had a blast! She was outside for almost two hours. The snow was up so high I could see her making a snow angel out the window and she was above the top of my couch.

Valentine Decorations

It was so cold at the end of January that we stayed home a lot. I was getting a little stir crazy so I decided to make some Valentine decor for my house. I had seen a lot of fun ideas all over craft blogs and the internet and tried a few.

The first thing I made was the felt heart wreath. I had to cut 200 felt circles, which killed my hand, but it is probably my favorite! Next I tried a table runner with ruffles. This was my first time sewing ruffles. It turned out ok. Can't wait to try again! I also made my first fabric banner with the same scraps. The wood picture frame was a lot of fun. I have never spray painted any of my stuff. (I always used acrylic paint) Christian cut the wood for me and the rest is just glued together and painted. I love how it turned out though! The pictures were just some free printables I found on the internet.




My kids recieved two more Valentines packages. One from my sister Allyson and the other from pappa Dave and nanny Jamie. Addy loves getting surprises in the mail! My kids are so lucky to have so many people that love them.



On Valentines Day Addy had dance class. We put together some treat bags for her to take to her friends in class. She chose Mickey Mouse Clubhouse valentines and colored a picture on each one. Addy was so excited to pass them out. We went straight from class to pick Christian up from the train and then to dinner. We ate at Raku and had some delicious sushi and yakisoba. It was a very busy fun day full of meltdowns and lots of love!

Nanny & Papa came to visit!

Christian's parents came to visit us this past weekend. We had so much fun with them here. Jamie flew in on Thursday evening. Friday morning we got to work on some projects we planned. She taught Erin and I how to make french bread. I have watched her make bread several times before, but this was the first time I was involved and paying close attention.

The bread turned out so yummy! We each kept a loaf and turned the other batch of dough into hoagie buns for french dip. The bread wasn't hard but I am sure it will take me a few times to get the hang of it. I am so excited to be learning more about cooking and baking. I am not one to just jump in and try things in the kitchen.

Dave and a work colleague flew in on Friday evening. We had dinner at our house and hung out there for the evening. Addy opened right up to Papa! She has always been a little scared of both grandpas. Addy had him on the floor playing in the doll house and sitting on his lap showing him her puzzles.

On Saturday the guys went golfing and the girls went shopping. Jamie and I found the best deals! We picked out Addy's birthday clothes from both of us and got a few things for other birthdays coming up. We got home just in time for Jamie and I to get changed for the Relief Society Broadcast. Christian took Addy to the White Sox vs Detroit Tigers game that evening. They had a blast! I was a little concerned that she would be to busy for the guys to enjoy the game and I didn't want her to be cold. They said she was great. She loved shouting the songs with her dad! Christian loved having her there with him. It was definitely a highlight of being a daddy!

A few pictures of Addy in her new jammies that Nanny brought her.

Jamie and I had projects going the whole time she was here. On Monday we made these hair bows that Erin showed us how to tie. (I made the flowers and the bows on the right and Jamie made the bows on the left.) We also did a lot of sewing and made some yummy lemon bread. ( I saved a loaf in the freezer for you to try when you come Alice!) I loved doing all the projects! We were pretty wiped out when we were done. Hopefully I didn't wear you out too much Jamie!

Jamie flew home on Tuesday evening, so before she left Addy got to open her birthday gifts from her. She was so excited as Nanny helped her pull the prizes out of the bag. When she saw the blocks she started saying " a-hoo a-hoo!" Nanny held up the clothes but Addy was not interested. Really they are more for me anyways. Addy played with the blocks for a little bit before we left. The first thing she told her dad when she saw him was " Nanny blocks!" She has played with them all day everyday since. Thank you for the gifts!

Thank you so much for coming and seeing us! I really appreciate the time you spent here. Christian loved getting some time with both of you since he is the one that usually misses out. Addy really got to know both of you so much more. She is talking about you both a lot and saying how funny Nanny is. Thank you Jamie for teaching me so much. It really was so fun having someone to do projects with. I loved having you here! We can't wait to come home and visit
everyone in Nov and Dec. Thanks again! We love you!

We are home!

We are finally back home in our own house. We had such a fun get away! It was so nice to get out of our cold weather. Our 2 week trip turned into 3 weeks. Christian thought I wasn't coming home. :) I really wished we still lived around our family and friends. It's so hard to be away, but I'm trying to make the best of it. I have lots of pictures I'm still getting together from our trip. Stay tuned.

Jellybean loves to play in jewelry. Monday night when we were getting ready for bed, daddy let her put on every necklace I had in my bag on the dresser. She loved it! She use to pull at my earrings and necklaces constantly but now she just wants to wear everything. She puts them on and then takes them right back off. She is always all tangled up in jewels. Cheap entertainment!

On Tuesday it was in the high 60's! Finally! I love the warmth of sunshine. I opened up our deck door to let Jellybean see the birds and she was going crazy. She crawled in and out of the house for over an hour. I had no idea it was suppose to be warm so I decided to take advantage of it and head over to the park. Jellybean loves to swing. She recently has been nervous in swings and didn't want you to swing her very high, but she got over it. She loved being pushed high! There were tons of kids and dogs for her to watch. It was heaven! We both needed the fresh air and sunshine.

While I was home I did a little fabric shopping. Ok a lot! I hate that the quilt shops here order nothing but batiks! So I always take advantage of any chance to go to my fav shops whenever I am visiting. I have been in serious need of boy looking material. It is usually so hard to find. I lucked out this trip. That first stack of fabric is mostly all for gifts. Everyone is having boys right now so I bought almost all of that with someone in mind. The second stack is for a quilt for myself. Christian loves to be on the couch wrapped up in a blanket, and I have never made us one. So the stack of Amy Butler fabric is for me! I can't wait! What a small little stack of pink. I love pink and usually buy way too much of it. I bought those charm packs on ebay and they were delivered while I was away. I got them for a steal. I didn't pay more than $4 for any of them including shipping. That's more than 50% off! I am addicted to ebay! I plan on making stacked coin baby quilts with them. Here is one that I love!


My prize from Heidi came over the weekend. Coasters! I actually don't have any so I am pretty excited. What a fun gift! They are made out of tiles with cute matching paper. I am going to put that on my project list to make. Thanks so much Heidi I love them!

Projects

I really loved the blog challenge I did recently. It was a lot of fun! The only thing I purchased was fabric glue for the center of the flowers. I had everything else all ready. Here are some pictures of what I made. Two of them are check book covers and the other three are wallets. I threw in some jewelry for fun as well. Originally that's what I started to make for everyone. I hope everyone liked what I made them!

Here are some of my other projects I have finished lately. The first bag is for my cousin Taran and the second bag is for my aunt Carol. I am bringing these bags with me when I come home this week. I am so excited to give them their bags.

( the red and black bag is reversible)


I made this bag for my sister in law Ashly in January for her birthday. I saw this bag in a quilt shop and wanted to try and make it. It was so fun and easy. If you know how to do a rag quilt you can make this bag. The other bag had a scrappy handle but I decided to just do a solid one. I loved how it turned out with all the fun random fabric.



I made this crayon roll for my niece's 3rd birthday at the end of this month. I thought it was such a cute and easy idea. I am making her a little bag to hold a coloring book and this roll to take to church with her. This would be a fun idea for markers also!

Last but not least this is a quilt I am making right now. I cut and laid out the blocks during the super bowl at Alice's house. I love all the bright colors with the brown. It really is a challenge for me to make a "random" quilt. I do better when I have a specific pattern to follow. I got all this fabric 40% off at my favorite quilt shop. I couldn't resist! I have a thing for fabric! :)

I am coming home on Tuesday! Yahoo!!