Sew Fun!

I have a secret...

I am a closet sewer now, well not literally. I do not sew in the closet, I sew in my craft room, but I have been secretly sewing away at some special items for family and friends for the last 3 months.

I knew I would enjoy sewing, and I knew it would be a little challenging, but it is a lot more fun than I was expecting. (Yes I just equated sewing with fun. Oh the life of a working mom.) But seriously, the possibilities are endless. I will admit, though, that at times being an impatient person doesn't bode well with sewing.... and in the end I think sewing will finally force me to have some patience.

Even though, I cannot share all of my completed projects just yet (I haven't given them all to their recipients), here is my first completed sewing project: a matching family wardrobe: Chris and Mason's matching pajamas, and shorts for muah from the leftover fabric. Even though Chris would not model the pants for the camera, he wears them literally almost every night which makes me smile! : )

Stay tuned: I will be sure to share the next projects when I can!

I couldn't have been happier for have such a handsome model for my new clothing... :)

Love him.

Tag... you're it!

My friend Brittany posted questions for her friends to answer, I am going to follow her lead and answer her questions and post my own, but leave it up to anyone that wants to do it to tag themselves.

Rules (which I am breaking 5 & 6):

1. Post these rules.
2. You must post 11 random things about yourself.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in her post.
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
5. Go to the blogs and tell them that you’ve tagged them.
6. You must tag 11 people.

11 Random Things About Myself:
 
1. If you could take your family and friends with you and move anywhere in the United States, where would you move?
This is a tough question because every where we have vacationed I have told Chris, "I want to move here!" (San Francisco/Napa Valley, Boston, Colorado were my top places). I guess I would say Austin though because I love the Hill Country and would still be in a warm place.

2. If you could have any talent, what would it be?
ANY talent?!?! I would love to have been a dancer, and I mean a real professional dancer, ballet, tap, ballroom, etc. Instead my parents put me in sports, which I loved, but I would have loved to have dancer's feet instead of a runner's feet.

3. What was your AIM screen name?
I honestly cannot remember. My husband's was Masterccdiddy. Hahaha, seriously. I married such a cool cat. :)

4. Other than your wedding or the birth of a child, what event in your life would you like to relive if you were given the chance?
I guess this counts since it wasn't my wedding, but I would relive my honeymoon. We were on top of the world together. We were experiencing a new place together (Italy) for the first time and our love was so fresh. We were carefree.

5. What has been the biggest surprise in your life? (This doesn't have to be deep. Just a fun surprise!)
Biggest surprise was getting pregnant at the same time as my sister. It was a fun experience to share.

6. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
Wow, these days I don't have a choice. Sometimes 5 minutes. Seriously, keepin' it real. Kids don't give you a whole lot of time for pampering.

7. What is the last book you read?
Hunger Games. I could not put this series down. I read it during the Christmas holidays when I didn't have to work and I had help from Chris and my parents so Mason had lots of family time while I read the series. Loved them and can't wait for the movies. I started reading The Help, but haven't gotten far.

8. What is your favorite room in your house and why?
I love my craft room. It has my sewing machine, scrapbooking materials, books, and picture albums. If I was alone for a few hours with no chores, I would want to spend it in this room with the window open and the birds in the tree outside the window chirping. I rarely have time to do this, but sometimes on Saturdays when Mason is napping I forgo the chores for just 30 minutes in there.

9. If you could do it again, what is something you would change about your wedding?
I would have invited less people. Looking back I don't remember half of the people that were there, but it seemed important to our parents at the time. I don't think those people would have felt remorse if we had not invited them. We could have had a more intimate wedding and used the money we saved towards our house or something.

10. What is your favorite non-reality show?
I only watch TV a few hours a week. And sadly most of that is reality TV. So, favorite non-reality show would have to be CSI because it is the only one...

11. What is your favorite vacation spot (a place you've already been before) and why?
Favorite vacation spot that I have been would have to be Puerto Vallarta because it was warm, cheap, spent alone with my hubby for Valentine's and we went on Zip lines together. A close second would be skiing at Steamboat, but I am not a fan of cold weather.

My Questions for you:

1. What did your spouse get you for Valentine's?
2. If you had an entire day to yourself, what would you do?
3. What is one chore you refuse to do?
4. What is your biggest weakness?
5. What is your favorite meal to cook?
6. What is your guilty pleasure that you hate to admit?
7. What is the one thing you would bring if stranded on an island?
8. Describe the perfect romantic date.
9. How many pairs of earrings do you have?
10. Do you wear lotion? If so, what kind and how many times a day do you reapply?
11. What is the one item you have in your house that you regret buying?

Hope some of you play along, if you leave a post on your own blog, leave a comment with the link, or leave your answers as a comment!

Finger Painting!

Well for all of you who are as obsessed with Pinterest as I am and love all of the kid activities that have been shared, here is a review of one that I decided to tackle.... The edible finger paint, originally posted here.

 

Once I mixed the corn starch, cold water, and then hot water, as instructed, my mixture seemed watery still. I was wondering since it involved corn starch if it would thicken over time, so I proceeded to the next step.

 

I divided it up into 3 small Tupperware containers...

 

... added food coloring: green, red, and blue...

 

... and put some on a plastic plate for Mason to play with...

 

 

He loved it and really got into painting his high chair too. :)

 

See Mom, all done.

 

So the important parts of my review are this: 

• It did thicken up after a few hours, so maybe make it ahead of time and let it thicken before painting.
• This recipe should be made for 5-10 kids, not one, so consider scaling it down if you are doing it for just 1-2 kids because we had A LOT left over and it does start to grow mold after a few days... yes, I was curious if it would keep well like normal paint does, and the answer was a definite no.
• You will need to add 10+ drops of food coloring if you want the color to actually show up on a piece of paper if you are planning on keeping it as potential artwork. I think I used at least 5 of each color and once the paint was on the paper it was a very dull pastel painting.
• Yes it is edible, meaning non-toxic, but no it does not taste good. Corn starch and water, enough said. :)
• The paint will dry on paper after a few hours and will have a sort of chalk-like feel to it on top of a rippled sheet of paper. Probably not important, but in case you were curious.

Happy painting! 

Ten Months Old!

Month Ten

Weight:

19 pounds (birth: 8lbs .3oz)

Length:

28.5 inches (birth: 21 inches)

Diapers:

Size 3 daytime and Size 4 nighttime.

Clothes:

6-9 month range.

Feedings:

Mason still nurses 4 times a day, but the two midday feedings have become a lot shorter. I can tell Mason has started the weaning process because morning and nighttime are the most important to him, but during the day he is just too busy to sit still for long.
Every 4-5 hours. Breast milk. 7-8 oz.

Mason still loves food. And he finally has his 1st tooth, well 3 teeth now actually! I tried to get a picture for proof... kinda hard to see, look below. Poor guy had them all come in within a week of each other. We have been venturing a little farther these days with more "finger foods" which he really seems to enjoy: beans, peas, pastas, bread, cheese, fruits, rice, even some chicken and turkey in bite size portions. It also makes meal time a whole lot easier for mom and dad! :)

Nights:

Mason is still consistently sleeping at least 11 hours each night, to bed between 7:30-8:00 and awake between 6:30-8:00 these days.

Personality:

Mason is such a curious little boy. His curiosity drives him to move faster, be stronger, scream louder, throw farther, haha. He definitely has his mama's patience (or lack of) and his daddy's love for all things loud and fast. 

He is into everything and on the move nonstop. People were not kidding when they told me to get my running shoes on, this kid is a go getter. He loves any kind of car. And he loves making the sounds and "driving" them around on everything (i.e. the floor, the cabinets, the tub). It just amazes me that it has started at a such a young age and that it came so naturally to him. There is so much I am learning about what makes up a man just based on what is innately part of them as boys.

 Development:

Mason's biggest development this month is WALKING. 99.9999% of the time he is up walking. The other 0.0001% he is eating or standing himself back up after a stumble. He is on the move constantly and will even pace back and forth across the room just showing us how proud he is of himself and his new found independence.

Mason still doesn't say any distinct words, but he has said "mama" and "uh oh" occasionally. It really is kind of hard to know what a "First" word is, but he just babbles a lot... and grunts.... and "vooms" A LOT like a car. I definitely feel like he should be saying words, but when he tries it is too cute. He looks me in the eyes and says "uhhh uhhh" for pretty much everything. He does know how to sign "more" and can now drink from his cup on his own too.

Mason loves to read, throw balls and chase them around the house, open and close cabinets, doors, and drawers, helping with the laundry, and loves going to the park. He watches for birds and screams when he sees them in the sky. In fact one of our favorite things to do while eating breakfast in the mornings is to listen for birds together. When he hears one he will turn to me, smile and "say" something. I wish I knew what he was saying. He also loves touching different trees and likes pulling off the bark and watching it fall to the ground. We often take bike rides as a family and recently we were brave enough to put Dusty and Mason into the trailer together. That went better than we expected.

Mason finally understands "no" and will actually listen to us most of the time.

Bath time has become a fun and enjoyable play time now. We have to get Mason to get out now, instead of him wanting out.

The last several months Mason has been sick off and on, ear infections, coughing, congestion, and teething... so he seems to have become a lot more attached to me lately, I am not sure if it is because he hasn't been feeling like himself or has the separation anxiety, maybe a little of both.

Here is where he thought I was leaving him when visiting some friends...

He still has blonde hair and has a few curls in the back and these last few months we have really started to hear that he looks like me. I still just see Mason. He is so unique, not like his dad, not like his mom, just Mason and we are so thankful for his precious little personality and new found independence, haha, well sort of. He is still sooo happy, even with all that has been going on with him this month.

We love you Mason and cannot believe it has been 10 months since we welcomed you into our lives!!!!