Craft Club and a Cocktail Party

This was an exciting fun filled weekend for Kenny and I. Mema came into town on Saturday allowing for some time to ourselves on Saturday and Sunday.

Craft Club was Saturday evening hosted by the founder Julie. She was super patient as we all hammered away making necklaces. My first one turned out great. The 2nd one I tried didn't go so well. I had to get Adalyn home for bedtime, so I wasn't able to stay for the whole evening. But I hear everyone was up late chatting away.


After handing Addie off to Mema and getting dressed. Kenny and I were off to his co-workers annual cocktail party. Kenny was originally going to go by himself, but with the surprise visit from Mema a day early I was able to go with him. I did sacrifice my first block of sleep by being out. But it was nice to get all dressed up and have some time to hang out with some adults.


Sunday Kenny and I had a lunch date, along with a quick stop to Target and Home Depot. We were hoping to get a chance to figure out the new cabinets we need for the kitchen remodel, but we were out of luck. No one at fabulous Home Depot wanted to help us. We did get a chance to look around with out kiddos and have some ideas of where we want to head with the kitchen.

Thanks Mema for holding down the house while we got some time away from the kiddos!

Menu Monday

Monday -- Chicken Parmesan and Cornbread

Tuesday -- Salmon and Rice

Wednesday -- Meatloaf

Thursday -- leftovers

Friday -- Fajitas in the crock pot

Saturday -- leftovers

Sunday Spaghetti and bread

Bumbo

It seems that it doesn't matter what age you are, sitting in the Bumbo is fun!

Pillow Project

A fellow friend/blogger posted a great idea on how to make sewless pillows. Since my brother made us blankets like this a few years ago, I figured if he could make it then I certainly could do it. I had been running out of ideas for Shane and I in the project area and there just so happened to be two unused pillows laying around the house. Off to Joanne's we went to get fleece. With a little direction Shane picked out his fleece (he really really wanted the Buzz Lightyear, but it was more expense and uglier, so Mean Mommy said no).

The idea had been to work on this project together, but that didn't happen. Shane did entertain himself a large portion of the time by cutting the fleece scraps into little pieces. He was quiet and happy and that makes me SUPER happy, even if I did all the work.

My pillows were a different shape then Nona used for her pillow project, so I totally winged the dimensions. They aren't perfect by any means, but Shane was happy with them.

Flashback Friday

These pictures don't mean as much to you as they do to me. But I vividly remember taking these pictures the morning after Shane had slept through the night the very first time!! We went back and looked at Shane's first year calendar the other night to remind us when that was. He was days away from turning 4 months old and was weighing in at 12 pounds. I've heard that babies start sleeping through the night when they weigh between 12-15 pounds. Adalyn is coming up close to 12 pounds. Here is to hoping that sleeping through the night follows that!!

And of course his little mohawk! So cute.

Wordless Wednesday

Conversations With Shane

There are so many times through out the day that I have a conversation with Shane or he just says something funny and I want to remember it forever. Hence, the new blog "column": Conversations With Shane.

Last week as we were getting ready to go to Addie's 2 month doctor visit, Shane and I had this conversation.

Me: Shane, do you want to take anything with you to the doctors or in the car? Maybe a toy or a book?

Shane: (He starts to walk to his bedroom) Yay, I think I should take a quiet toy.

Me: Why a quiet toy?

Shane: So when the doctor listens to Addie's heart she can hear it okay.

Really!?! What foresight for a 3.5 year old!!!

Menu Monday

I am super impressed by last weeks dinners. Every single one of them got made. Let's see how this week goes.

Monday -- leftovers from Sunday's Goulash

Tuesday -- Halibut

Wednesday -- leftovers (if there is enough)

Thursday -- Crock Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup with Chicken

Friday -- leftovers

Saturday -- Macaroni and Cheese Casserole

Sunday -- leftovers

Sleep....

Addie and her buddy Seahorse catching some zzzzzz's in the swing.

It seems little Adalyn either is doing hardly any of this or a lot of this. She has one good day/night of sleeping which is then usually followed by one or two not so good days/nights not sleeping. A "good" day is any nap over 1 hour 3+ times over the course of the day. A "good" night is 5 hours straight to start out. A "bad" day is when she won't sleep longer then 45 minutes in a row and then usually that night she'll start out with a 2-3 hour stretch followed by waking up every hour or so after that.

Some days we can get her to sleep in minutes and other days it takes over an hour. Some days she'll suck on a pacifier, others she screams bloody murder if you even get it close to her mouth. On the upside she isn't sleeping in the Moby attached to me any more!! My back says thank you to that! She has graduated to the swing. Even now sleeping nights in the swing as well.

She may have a case of acid reflux, which we just started medicating her for. Keeping her in an upright position seems to help her not get woken up when she refluxes.

We are crossing our fingers, hoping and waiting for the days when she puts herself to sleep and then sleeps through the night. Those days can't come soon enough!!

Flashback Friday

Shane at two months old (August 2007). 9 lbs 1 oz



Adalyn at two months old (January 2010) 10 lbs 11.5 oz
Man, I knew that Shane was smaller then Addie, but these pictures really show it. You can't tell with Adalyn since she is all covered up, but under her clothes she has little fat rolls. Not like skinny little Shane! Amazing!!! Shane is also so much darker in hair and eyes already at two months. Adalyn is sporting light hair and blue eyes.

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Shane and I planted this Amaryllis bulb in the beginning of November before the baby was born. It was slow going but finally we got beautiful flowers out of it the last week.

Renovations Continue

Kenny's (and Shane) have continued working on the pantry project as he (they) can between naps and all the other things that happen in a household of two children. We had my cousin Jeff out to work on the electrical. A major help there! It's coming along. We are now looking into shelving for it. Can't wait for it to be finished.

Looking at it from the kitchen.

The view as you walk in the house from the entry.

Menu Monday

Monday -- Super Easy Fettuccine (new recipe, it's not waist friendly, but what fettuccine is?)

Serves 4 prep time 30 minutes

2 sticks butter

1/2 lb grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Salt

1 lb fettuccine

Directions: using an electric mixer, beat butter and Parmesan until creamy. In large pot of boiling water, cook fettuccine according to pkg. Instructions until al dente, about 12 minutes. Reserve about 1/2 cup of cooking water; drain pasta. Return fettuccine to warm pot. Toss pasta with 1/2 teaspoon salt, cheese mixture,and 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Add more pasta water, as needed. Serve with additional cheese. From Martha Stewart Magazine.

Tuesday -- leftovers

Wednesday -- Country Pie

Thursday -- leftovers

Friday -- Lasagna Soup

Saturday -- leftovers

Sunday -- Goulash

2 months old

Adalyn is two months old today. That is it?!?! Just 8 weeks. I feel like we've been doing this two kid thing a lot longer then 8 weeks.

She is still a super happy baby. Smiling and cooing all the time and rarely crying. But just not sleeping enough and taking cat naps. Which won't allow her to get the deep sleep she needs in order to sleep even more. It seems that if she wakes up to early in the morning the day is shot for good sleep. I carried her in the Moby for 4 hours the other day just to keep her sleeping. We are praying this phase ends soon! Last night for the first time ever, she was in her bassinet asleep at 8:30. Hopefully this will start helping.

One thing I have noticed is that she is now happy to sit in her bouncy chair or kick and play on the floor or with her play mate. Since we are holding her ALL the time to keep her sleeping, it's nice to be able to sit her now for 10 minutes and have her play happily. She is even grabbing for her little friends that hang in front of her, too.

It appears that we've decided to spell her nickname this way: Addie

Cloth Diapering

(my subject wouldn't cooperate and look at the camera)

We are into day #4 of cloth diapering. So far, so good. I've been trying a whole bunch of different varieties and brands of diapers. I've only had one leak and that was a diaper cover that I think was just to small. I've even washed a load already. There was a little problem of staining. I'll need to do some research on that portion of the washing to resolve that issue.

I like the Velcro fasteners better, but I didn't like when they where washed and got stuck to everything. I see the benefits of the snaps then. I have an All In One that I like, but it took forever to dry. A couple of them seem really bulky and I don't like that. There was one that I thought her bottom was super wet feeling after I changed her and I didn't like that either.

I've tried Thirsties diaper covers. I liked it, but it seemed really big on her. Bottom Bummpers, I liked but hate how it fastens in the back. G diapers, I like also, but it also fastens in the back, which I find extra hard to do. Fuzzi Bunz were good, but expensive to me. And I'm not sure how I feel about the pocket diapers. Feels like an unneeded extra step. I was given about 10 Q-Baby pocket diapers (not even sure if they are around any more). I really like them. They seem to fit her good and absorb the wetness well.

I'll be getting more soon after I decide really what I like to use best. We aren't using them at night right now. Too much other stuff going on to deal with that at for the moment. I just want to get sleep at night right now with out any diaper worries.

Wordless Wednesday

Menu Monday

I actually got a dinner or two made last week. Let's see how this week goes.

Sunday -- Spaghetti Pie (we didn't have it last week)

Monday -- leftovers

Tuesday -- Taco Soup

Wednesday -- leftovers

Thursday -- BBQ short ribs in the crock pot with rice

Friday -- leftovers

Saturday -- We'll see how the week goes....

Close To My Heart: January Newsletter

Here's to the New Year
May it be a great one.

Happy 2011 to you! I hope your holidays went well and were full of fun and family. There is A LOT going on with CTMH this month.

Spring/Summer Book Preview Party
Are you interested in getting your creative juices flowing this year? Want to work on that pile of scrapbooking you have sitting around? Have you always wanted to make your own cards? How about digital scrapbooking...maybe that would fit into your schedule better?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then join me where I can answer all those questions for you and more! We will be making a FREE Valentine's Day card and there will be door prizes, too!

Saturday, February 5th at 6pm at my house (8325 NE 120th Place, Kirkland 98034) RSVP at jessicadbooth@hotmail.com or 425-420-6700

Inspirations January 2011
When you purchase a new Wings Workshops on the Go kit for $29.95 (retail value $34.15), it opens the door for you to participate in three exciting promotions. With the purchase of the Wings Workshops on the Go kit you can choose any or all of the following:

1. Purchase new Inspiration My Acrylix stamp sets at a super discount:

My Acrylix® Stamp Set Discount Price Full Retail

A Game (A1113) $5 $7.95

Rosy Regards (B1369) $10.00 $13.95

Take a Picture (C1440) $15.00 $18.95

Dreams Come True (D1470) $18.00 $22.95

Bohemian Alphabet (E1019) $25.00 $34.95

2. Get the January Stamp of the Month set, Find Your Style, at a discount or free by purchasing new Inspiration products as follows:

Purchase a Wings Workshops on the Go kit and... Get the Stamp of the Month for

1 item from the Inspiration brochure 25% off

2 different items from the Inspiration brochure 50% off

3 different items from the Inspiration brochure 75% off

4+ different items from the Inspiration brochure FREE!

You can also earn the January Stamp of the Month with your purchases from the Autumn/Winter 2010 Idea Book following the standard Stamp of the Month program based on dollar totals rather than item totals. Mix and match new products from the Inspirations brochure and products from the Autumn/Winter 2010 Idea Book, and we will automatically calculate the greatest savings between the standard program and this promotion for you to get the best deal possible!

3. Celebrate National Papercrafting Month in January with a My Creations banner project. Simply purchase a My Creations Banner (Z1378) and you will be able to make the project with the remaining supplies from the Wings Workshops on the Go kit and the E-size Bohemian Alphabet stamp set. The how-to instructions are included with the Wings Workshop kit exclusively through the month of January.

Upcoming Workshops
Friday, January 14th, 7pm -- Card Workshop

Monday, January 31st, 7pm -- Wings Banner Workshop

Wednesday, February 2nd, 7pm -- Valentine Workshop

Monday, February 28th, 7pm -- Card Workshop

Tuesday, March 15th, 7pm -- Card Workshop

Your Close To My Heart Consultant,

Jessica Booth
contact me at: jessicadbooth@hotmail.com OR 425-420-6700
http://jessicabooth.myctmh.com
http://jessicabooth.blogspot.com/

Renovations

We've just started the next round of our house projects. We are going to be working in the kitchen now. We'll start with taking down a portion of a wall and moving/adding a pantry into the kitchen. Currently the pantry is in the hall coat closet. Which is so much better then not having one, but I'm excited to get it moved into the kitchen and get a hall closet back. We have more plans for the kitchen then that, but we'll be taking baby steps in the renovation project.

Day 1: The first hole.
Are you sure Mommy and Daddy I can hit the wall with this hammer?!?!

Needless to say, Shane LOVED taking down the drywall. He was super upset when he woke up one morning to see that Kenny had done a bunch with out him.

Day #2


Day #3 and #4 (slow going when you are working in 30 minute time slots between naps and bedtimes.)

SNOW

A fellow CTMH consultant made this cute SNOW decoration for our team meeting holiday party in December. We did a gift swap and I was so happy to get this. It is made out of covered coasters, hinges and chipboard letters.


Thanks, Barb! I just love it!

Wordless Wednesday

I Don't Understand.....

I don't understand how having a baby is one of the most natural things in the world but it is so difficult and complicated at the same time? Why don't babies just sleep when they need to sleep, sleep for as long as they need to sleep, and know how to nurse perfectly right from the start? Why are there tons of books on how to get a baby to sleep better, a profession of lactation consultants, etc, to help you raise said child. Why does it feel like at only 6 weeks old I have already "ruined" this kid because she is overtired and not sleeping enough? How do families with 3 plus kids make it work? Why do I hear that the 2nd kid "just figures" it out and sleeps when they need to sleep and gets use to being toted around? Yet, it just isn't that simple in my case. How do Moms in third world countries in the middle of no where, who have no resources, food, etc raise a baby? They don't have books to turn to, the internet to look at, doctors and professional to visit with.

I just don't understand why having a baby seems so darn complicated and confusing!?!

Smiley

This is what gets me through the long and sleepless days/nights right now.



She is so overtired, but still wakes with smiles and coos. Which only warms your heart and makes you forget about how tired you are and frustrated that she won't sleep more!

Menu Monday

I'm going to try and get back in the swing of dinners this week. I started yesterday making a yummy dinner with Shane. He was the BEST helper! Such a good listener and a step ahead of me most of the time.

Sunday -- Meatball Soup

Monday -- leftovers

Tuesday -- Sloppy Joes

Wednesday -- leftovers

Thursday -- Creamy Beef Over Noodles in the crock pot (I'm going to attempt to make Thursday's a crock pot day since I watch Sydney in the afternoons making it super hard to get dinner ready).

Friday -- leftovers

Saturday -- Spaghetti Pie

Happy 2011!

Happy New Year! I've been thinking about my goals for 2011. Not resolutions, but things I'd like to work on or start doing more of or do better at. Here is what I have so far.

**Exercise: Since most of last year I was pregnant it's been a while since I've worked out regularly and now I have 10 extra pounds left from being pregnant that I would like to see gone sooner then later. It took me almost exactly 1 year to lose all the baby weight after having Shane. I'm hoping to lose it this time around much faster.

When am I going to squeeze this extra item into my day? I'm not sure exactly, but I'm going to shoot for 3 times a week working out to my Jillian Michaels DVD I have (and have never used) and when the weather gets warmer getting out and walking again with the kiddos. I think Shane will join me in hopping around while I work out so I can do that when Adalyn naps or in the evening when Kenny is home.

**Scrapbooking: I would like to keep up with my scrapbooking monthly by using Studio J our online digital scrapbooking program. I would love to get Adalyn's baby book completed this way. I am aiming to at the end of each month sit down and complete any needed pages this way.

**Dinner: I've been in a dinner rut for awhile now. It's been hard trying to make dinner with Adalyn since I never know if she'll be eating, sleeping or awake when I need to make dinner. I'm armed with some new cookbooks that I received for Christmas and I hope to get in a new recipe once a week. Along with getting some better sides going with dinner as well.

**Cloth Diapering: As the new year begins we'll be starting our adventure with cloth diapering. I have my supplies and she is big enough I believe to start wearing said supplies. Now I just have to get over my fear of using them and we'll be good to go!!

Here is to a new and rewarding 2011.