Arrr....me matey!

He didn't like this.

He did like this. (I also love the pirate in the background:)
She loved her sword and her patch. I made the other stuff and what we wore. Pirates are the new go-to costume. I totally forgot to put EZ in his cute pirate shirt we bought him for 99 cents.

Lots of candy. Parties. Halloween fun. Till next year.

This really happened!!

Poor Chloe! Tuesday night Brad took Chloe to a cub scouts thing and so Ezra and I were on our own. Wednesday night I had YW so I took Ezra and Brad and Chloe were on their own. Thursday night I had RS so Brad kept both kids and I was on my own! After about 1.5 hours of RS fun and service I came home to have Brad meet me at the back door with a look of disbelief and concern on his face. I figured he was cooked after 3 nights of playing Mr. Mom.

"Are both kids in bed?"

Brad says, "umm...Ezra is actually and Chloe is still sitting on the couch where you left her."

Then he started to tell the tale that every girl learns at one point or another. The tale of the 25 cent comb and the tragic part of the tale where every girls learns that you can never, ever twist or curl those combs in your hair cuz...they get stuck!
So Poor Brad. This is what he had to deal with the entire time I was gone. Kiddingly, he said to me," I'll bet you'll never leave the kids home with me again!" Actually, he did get EZ to sleep without me nursing him so that was awesome and he spent 1.5 hours actually making progress on getting this comb out so that was awesome, too. He had the big chunks in front freed by my arrival. The first thing they did was a have a prayer to stay calm and figure things out. He is a fantastic Dad.
I will admit, I laughed pretty hard. It was funny to see. By the time I got home Brad had the little scissors waiting for me to just "do the job" and cut her hair. I wasn't about to leave my sweet 3 year old with a hole of missing hair atop her head so I laughed a little more. Hugged her. Appreciated B-rad. And then got some tweazers and started removing one strand of hair at a time and then I'd stop and just be stumped and think I really should cut this because it isn't going anywhere, but then it finally did go somewhere...like out!

And now, aside from a wad of loose hairs that fell out after the comb came out, our beautiful Bluebird is back "comb free". And if you ask her about it she'll say, "I was just trying to look like a princess and curl my hair. I will never do that again." We asked her where she did this and she showed us over behind the curtain on the stair window. Apparently this is her thinking place and a place she gets herself looking like a princess.

So, the next day we dressed her up as a pirate!

The great pumpkin

We've driven past this door hundreds of times and we finally stopped for some pictures.

Look at the lines and textures and colors. Love.

The evolution of the old shirt dress. I post these creations here to tell you that you could totally make one of these. And I want Ruthie to see that I am applying the sewing tips she gives me (gathering in this case) 1. All you do is get an old shirt (its not that I'm totally tied to these old shirts but they're laying around, no trip to the fabric store, and this one in particular had the softest, nicest feel to it) 2. Lay the shirt down and then find another dress you like and lay it over and make a pattern of sorts (I draw right on the material which is probably totally wrong to do but it eliminates a step) You'll have to make it longer if she's outgrown the dress you are tracing (as is the case with mine) The beauty is that you already have the buttons from the shirt so she can get in an out. Also, you can choose to have the buttons in the front or the back. I did the front in this case. I made just a tank part this time then added a 3 inch band at the waist and then made a gathered skirt and then attached the gathered skirt to the tank part I made. Then whipped a little matching headband. Voila.
The pumpkin patch was so perfect this year.
Choosing the perfect one.
Where can I buy one of these?? It was this hill of tarp filled with air so you could bounce on it. Amazing!

Sometimes I want to write something really whitty and entertaining on this blog but by the time the pictures are up and i've journalled them I'm just ready to click publish now.

He's 10 months.

This is our little guy.

He turned 10 months yesterday.

This was a picture of him covered in Roseolla Rash. I think the face is sooo funny so I had to share it.

EZ is a pure delight.

He has really really blonde hair like his momma and everything else like his daddy. He is pretty much 97% Brad and a little me. I love his big dimples and his big hazel eyes. He makes you earn his smiles and when he smiles they're big and real and bright.
He has 7 teeth. He weighs a mere 18 pounds and stands a tall 27inches. He is in the 9th percentile and big in spirit.

I love how he lets me rock him to sleep at church. He loves to be held. But he's a wiggler. I have to hold his tummy down while I try to change his diaper or put his clothes on. He loves his big sister. She can make him laugh and help him if he needs something or if he's sad she comforts him. She even fed him his peaches the other night which was a huge help to me while I tried to get dinner on the table.

He crawls everywhere and stands and has recently realized that he can walk while holding onto things. He pinches my arms while I hold him. He looks at me to make sure it's okay if a stranger starts talking to him. He knows i'm his mom, and right now I'm his world and that makes my heart sing. He's started the "get-into-the-dogs-water-bowl-dump-it-all-over-time-and-time-again-stage". I sit him in the sink while I get ready so he can look at himself in the mirror and I know he won't get into anything. The other day he took a big bite of soap before I could catch him. Didn't seem to bother him a bit. This kid also gnaws on the chalk before we can get it away from him. I already see differences in him and Bluebird. He's such a curious little soul. He waves and claps and pats my arm. He also likes to make clicking sounds with his tongue but will only do it for mom and dad and once for Dr. P.

And to all of you...Thanks, thanks, thanks for reading my blog and commenting. I can think of a happy memory regarding each person that commented and each one of you has really enriched my/our life in a great way. I blog for the family in utah to see what's happening in our lives but along the way i've met so many many friends whose lives have touched my life. Your blogs inspire me and I'm glad that our little blog means something to you too.

The dress...finally!

We went to the zoo last week. Our free zoo. Well, free with all of my zoo coupons we earned at the library summer reading program. We also went to Chile's with our library coupons. I love those summer reading programs.

Anyway, look who said hi. This butterfly was absolutely stunning.

And the dress. I was immediately attracted to the colors of this shirt (recognize this Amy) and thought it'd make a cute jumper for Chloe. So, I cut it apart and then just kind of created a pattern and then realized it was too short so I had to add the bottom part and then realized the dimensions looked funny from the front so I added the tie to even things out and then realized the tie needed "something" and then it just sat on my table for weeks because I was just gonna toss it because it looked too homemade. Then I went back to it. When I used to draw and paint a lot this was part of my creative process so I guess sewing shouldn't be any different. I finally tweeked it a little more and this was what I came up with. I like it. Aside from all the flaws (I won't point those out) it was a fun experience and I will do another. (Kalleen these projects are all out of respect and awe for what you do! Wish we lived closer)

A first for us

Goodbye summer.

She's just such a happy little spirit and that little preschool is lucky to have her. The teacher told me today that they would be working on spelling her last name because she can already spell and write her first name. With Brad being gone so for these months she already knows his phone number and types it in each night that we call him. She knows the street we live on. Is this how it happens? Is this how your child just gets older and you just keep moving on??
School is close enough that we walk.
Look at the mug. The world is just AWESOME, Chloe!
And just like that, B-rad is gone for another month. Oh how we loved having him home. I do EVERYTHING with brad so when he's gone and those everythings become 'alonethings' it's just sad, but okay. We've geared up for it and are excited for what the days hold for us.

I'm not sure who reads this blog but it'd be real cool if you wrote a word or two because I so look forward to your comments, being out here in Illinois and all!

Cubs vs. Pirates

We went to a CUBS game. It was A.W.E.S.O.M.E.

We found tickets that were less than going to a movie. We drove to Chicago. We packed snacks. We ordered perfect weather. We scored on our parking spot. It was just THE perfect day and such a memory.

People were getting all excited while we were there and it turned out the owner-Ricketts something or other-of the Cubs was sitting 5 seats down. Guess our seats weren't too bad! He was signing autographs and such when I noticed he had some baseballs. Brad jumped up and took Chloe (the child is a ticket to free stuff) and the nice owner gave her a baseball. Cool souveneir.

Here we are before the game. We are all very excited.
Wrigley Field. Don't these people have jobs?? By the 3rd inning it was pretty well full.
In matching Cubs attire. My shirt was a gift, but I made everyone else's shirt for pennies.

Is this the shot from so many movies??

Ezra loved it. We had the perfect seats so he could play and not bother anyone. I love watching grown men walk by and stop and smile and play with this little baby. He brings out the best in people.
The atmosphere was awesome. A few sections down a big fight started and a guy was taken out in handcuffs. The pirates hit a home run and the Cubs fan through the ball back on the field in disgust. Just as we stood to leave, a pop fly came directly at us missing Chloe by inches. It hit the green rail (above) and fell back down into the crowd. To think we almost got 2 balls from the game. And...we had a hotdog. Brad got a photo of me eating said hotdog but, well, I'll spare you the delish details!!
Thanks to my B-rad for making this dream possible.