Crafty Beast

"Pink-N-Pokey" Quilt (not finished quilting yet)

Sweet Apron Sundress

"Marriage" Quilt

Antique Machine

"Pinkguins" Winter Coat
"Belly-Bugs" Ceramic Kit
Some Afghans
Quilted Tag Blankets
"BAG BAG" *Very useful for toting cloth diapers home*
Pink and Brown Hearts outfit
Sporty Sleepsack
"Patchwork" Sleeper


Mikey's Kilt for Burningman


Just thought I would share the latest of the crafts! I have gotten very into quilting, but haven't pursued selling anything because I think it would take the joy out of making it... most of my crafts get given to friends and family as holiday gifts :)

While you were napping...

Mommy made you some dresses!

I was cleaning out our closets and had a Goodwill bag ready to go, when I was hit by inspiration... some of the clothes were used to make these dresses! The tie on the side is super useful for getting my very active baby dressed, and I was pleased with the way it all came together!

Add some cute tights... and a baby!

Friendship

Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.

~Woodrow Wilson

20 years ago I was learning how to make friends, so everyone who showed any interest in Nina-Turtles, My Little Ponies, climbing pine trees or hopscotch was instantly a BEST friend for life! As a 5 year old, that worked.

15 years ago things got more complicated... crushes on silly boys and not wanting to dress the exact same as each other on the first Wednesday of the month were enough to tear apart those "lifelong alliances". As a 10 year old, that worked.

10 years ago high school threw a curve ball and I started to realize not just what I wanted in a friend, but what kind of friend I wanted to be. My circle got smaller, much smaller... but still consisted of some stereo-types "is this person COOL enough to be my friend?" or some other petty nonsense, but as a 15 year old, that worked.

5 years ago high school and many of the friendships made had all ended. I was 20 and focused on school, paying bills, dating etc. and didn't actually put much effort into friendships at all. I had one or two friends that were very close and then a whole bunch of friendly acquaintances. As a 20 year old, THAT worked.

NOW, I'm 25 and have recently started seeing the importance of having a close group of real friends. Paying closer attention to being the kind of friends I want to have. Aspen has really made me revaluate what kind of influences I would like to have in our lives, and look at the long-term effects those relationships may have. In short... if someone doesn't seem like a genuinely good person, they might still be a "friend", just not in the inner circle. It's been a fun transformation to go through, and I'm hoping in 5 years from now I can say "As a 25 year old, that worked" haha.

I have noticed how much I really look forward to play-dates with other Moms I know, and how important for my sanity and general health it is to get out to have tea (or wine) with a girl-friend here and there. As human beings I believe as the quote states above that friendship is the only cement that will hold this world together! It gets a little overwhelming when I stop to think about the general UGLINESS there is on a daily basis everywhere you turn. If we can all have (and BE) amazing friends, that is a great way to start the ripple effect of changing the world to a happier place for our children. Pay it Forward is an amazing movie if anyone is looking for a good film- and it's true. Without getting too preachy, I think we are going to start going to church more regularly because there are foundations in a spiritual community I would love to see Aspen grow up in. There really isn't an excuse for our lack of attendance... just finding motivation on Sundays is rough.

I don't have any wise ending thoughts here, and I'm tired of typing... so to wrap it up- I really love all of our friends and hope that Aspen can figure out sooner than I did that quality over quantity is important. Surround yourself with honest, true friends that hold you to a higher standard and make you push to be a great friend too... and it's always a bonus if those friends have a healthy appreciation for My Little Ponies too ;-)

Sandmania!

Aspen got a sandbox from her Grandma and Grandpa for her birthday this year... and we FINALLY bought some sand for it..... BIG HIT!

She first got her face very close to the sand (I was afraid she would eat it) and then sat up to look at me like, "Really Ma? Why are you so excited about dirt?". Then she got it, big time! She started raking the sand toward her like a dog, burrying her feet and shrieking with delight when she "found them". She spent a good 15 min. trying to fill the bucket and then was delighted that sand is just as much fun falling OUT of the bucket!

I am positive we know babies who have encountered sand before they are almost 13 months old... but this was HUGE for us and I had to laugh about all the babies who actually go to the ocean and see "real sand"! I hope you enjoy the pictures of this milstone (haha) and I even included one of her ANGRY face from when we had to come inside and clean up.

*Mommy sucks*

!THANK YOU AMAW AND PAPA!

New words, first steps and a tiled bathroom

Thought I would update this site, since I never do anymore!

Aspen started taking her first steps on her birthday, but then decided it was too scary or something because she has yet to take more than 5 steps (or wobbled runs with her arms way out like the Fiddler on the Roof) in a row. I figure she will get there when she's ready and there's really no rush right? She is also saying a bunch of words now, and she can identify even more things than I know! What a smarty-pants.

Among her words now are:

• Mama
• Daddy
• Trees :)
• Yes, yes, yes, yes (she says this one over and over)
• Dog and Tat
• Juice
• Papa and Amaw (my parents)
• Eat
• Out and In
• Up and Down
• Ball and Balls (her necklass is called "balls" now)

Probably more I can't think of them right now...

Chris went out of town for his best friends bachelor party and wedding. I couldn't make it to the wedding, which was very sad for me, but I heard it was amazing from Chris and my brother Chad. Weddings are lovely, but also a motivation to stay married I think haha! They take so much time, energy and money to pull off!

While he was gone I decided to tile our bathrooms and that's the latest! It looks great and currently I am waiting for the grout to sit and then I'll rinse and seal it. TaDa!

Birthday Girl

Happy birthday to my beautiful baby girl!

Aspen is one and I simply can't believe it!

~The invites were inflatable beach toys with the info written on them and I made party-favor Tutu's for all the little fairies~

Her party was a lot of fun, we had a bbq/ pool party and she had a few baby friends there. In no particular order, thanks for coming: Devin, Wren, Savannah, Scarlett, Clara, Brooke, Ty, Naimaa, Niara, Nyanda, Chase and all of the parents too! My mom let us do it at her pool, and really it was awesome to be at Grandma and Grandpas house for the celebration! She got a ton of wonderful toys and I was surprised at how tightly they pack those toys in the boxes! NOT cool when you have a tiny anxious person! I put together a slideshow for her 1st year, and now I wish I had waited until after her birthday to include pictures of her WALKING!!!!! Her first steps were actually to Grandpa, but then she took turns walking to Mama, Daddy, Grandma and even uncle Devin! SO CUTE! I love being her Mom =)

Above are the tutu party-favors!

These are the shoes I made her!

Below are a few fairy-friends!

Sick Baby

At 11 months old, Aspen got very sick. She was running a fever for almost 9 days and I had taken her to the Dr. 4 times in that week. I finally gave in and was worried about her not eating, so I took her to the hospital and they told me she had Hand-Foot and Mouth disease... great. They also drew blood and attempted to get an IV in her little arm until it was bruised and my Mom and I wanted to punch the stupid nurse. They told us the bloodwork came back saying there was no infections and she would be just fine.......

I took her home with the BABY VICODIN they gave me to keep her comfortable and trusted that now my baby would get better. It is such a helpless feeling to see them so sick and know there isn't a "magic mom button" to make it all better! I got so crazed from stress and sleep deprivation that I swore outloud I would cut my own arm off if it would make her feel even just the tiniest bit better. She was a wilted flower, even got to the point I couldn't rouse her and she didn't even want to cry... just be held by Mom.....

So THEN I took her back to the pediatrician so she could see how very sick my baby was, and upon looking in her throat she asked us if we wanted to drive to the PICU or if we would like to take an ambulance!!!! Aspen had a mass the size of an EGG in her throat. I remained surprisingly calm and we drove. I contacted my work and found the number for an ENT that we use and really like, called Chris and my Folks to let them know we were on our way there etc. She had a cat scan and all kinds of tests done to discover this Tonscillar Abscess in the back of her throat that again, was the size of a large egg and FULL OF INFECTION (see above for the reason of all caps and my frustration)... She had to go into surgery immediatly and it was the most heart- wrenching, helpless feeling of my entire life. I kept a smile on for Aspen and repeated what a good girl she was and how happy we all were she was going to feel better etc. As soon as the nurse took her away and the doors closed (Aspen was crying Mama, and waving bye bye *stab to the heart*) I literally hit my knees!

One of my very best friends, Lindsay, ended up coming down to the hospital to wait with Us and my parents... I was so distraught and she is such a great friend (also Aspens Godmama) she hurried down to cry with me, which was such a help. Friends are treasures.

Anyway, they came out of surgery just fine and told us that in another 12 hours Aspen most likely would have been dead. Either from the mass suffocating her in her sleep, or rupturing and basically drowning her to death from all the fluid... Thank God we had it taken care of! It is very rare in adults to get an abscess like that, even more rare in children and almost unheard of in infants.

We stayed 3 days in the hospital and it was nice for us both to be able to recover. I was so worn out from taking care of her! Chris stayed one night with us, but had to work and there is only one rock-hard couch in the rooms- so I made him go home to get good sleep. Also, as the Mama, I physically felt like it would be impossible for me to leave the building. My family all took turns droping in to check on us and Grandma/ Grandpa were there a few times a day looking after snoodle-butt. She is a loved baby.

The night nurse was rediculous.... Aspen was having OSA, from the narcotics I believe, but she had the nerve to tell me that "babies don't get apnea", BULLSHIT! So when I asked for her to be put on O2 the nurse gave me attitude and wanted to know how I knew anything about it (heheheeee) so I replied (it's a little stretch, but felt good) "I am a polysomnographic technician with an emphasis on pediatric respritory medicine, so please either put my daughter on oxygen or let me speak to someone who will." HA! She did. When we came home I borrowed a POX to moniter her at home for a few days *thanks Kristen!* and all was well. I figured it would be, but as a mom with those resources and knowledge base, who just found out her baby almost died, who wouldn't be a little paranoid?!

UGH! She is doing fantastic now, and the recovery was relatively easy! I was so relieved something got done for her, and also a little frustrated that it feels like in order to get people to pay attention to you it's like you have to pitch a fit!

We were so happy to see these smiles :)