baby brothers rock...

so why not have a tee that tells everyone so! check out Polly Tod for the coolest baby and toddler shirts around!

we are having a hard time choosing between this one

and this one

hmmm, maybe we need both!

wanna free tee shirt from Polly Tod?? check this out!

wordless wednesday! a look back... proud big sisters!!

snow and cold! *sigh*

it is cold and snowing today. i have several projects lined up (sewing, yarn dyeing, and my knitting works in progress to name a few) but i want, no, i *need* to get out of this house! i think we will bundle up and go to the bookstore. we can easily spend half the day there looking at all the books and drinking coffee and hot cocoa. i have had my eye on these books:

Feeding the Whole Family

Pushed~ The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care

or, this one looks like a lot of fun!

Warm Fuzzies~ 30 Sweet Felted Projects

but, who knows~ there is a good chance i will get there and find another perfect book~ i will be sure to update on what i bring home! hmmm, but warm fuzzies do sound pretty darn good on a day like today... maybe that will be the one!

sweet esme' rose

i was awoken by the hall light shining on my face as she slowly pushed open our bedroom door. the clock said 4:30. and then she was standing next to me. "i had a bad dream, i am scared." i pulled the covers back inviting her in. she climbed into the bed and snuggled next to me. nearly five minutes went by and i was just drifting back into sleep when she whispered "i put socks on so my toenails wouldn't tickle you, mama."

no, my heart was tickled with love instead!

big push for midwives!

it is freezing cold outside but that didn't stop us from bundling up and going down to our capital building to support our local midwives. i ran out the door and forgot my camera so we had to take pictures of harper and esme' when we got home. they were warmer (and esme' was much happier) here at home anyway!

and, today is my birthday!! i can't think of a better way to spend my afternoon than supporting something very improtant to me and my family. i am very fortunate and blessed to have had births attended by midwives and my hope is that the women and families of Idaho will always have that option.

We, the residents of Idaho, want legilature to :

* Protect women and families’ personal freedoms to choose the maternity care provider that best fits ALL their needs

* To continue to recognize the profession of midwifery as a practical health provider option for pregnant women

* Provide voluntary licensure for midwives so they might continue to provide safe care and exceptional outcomes WITHOUT the fear of prosecution

* To recognize that obstetrics and midwifery are different models of care and to recognize midwifery as an autonomous profession capable of self-regulation

reflections...

this is a list of my 7 favorite posts from 2007. visit rachelle at magpie girl to read more inspiring lists from other small is beautiful bloggers. it was fun to take a peek back and relive these moments in my life. so here goes...

birth blessings ~ this necklace was and is so meaningful to me. i am blessed indeed!
welcoming harper corrigan! ~ my birth story
from belly to baby! ~ ahh, if i could only freeze time!
how did you grow up so fast? ~ a post for riley
october ~ transitioning to autumn
unexpected lessons ~ i am still trying to remind myself of this lesson on a daily basis.
what a lovely year! ~ reflections from 2007!

looking forward to the wonderful thoughts, experiences and just plain silliness that will gather here in 2008!

wordless wednesday! spring daydreams...

knitter's block...

i am still knitting away on harper's baby surprise jacket but it has been sooooo s-l-o-w! i don't know what my block on this project is. i am a little past the half way mark and the yarn is knitting up beautifully. it will make a great late winter/early spring jacket.... if i could just finish it!! it is one of those don't think, just knit patterns, so it is super simple. *sigh* i am going to just plug away at it and get it off the needles so i can cast on something exciting.

and the exciting knitting i speak of is this~ i have ordered enough peace fleece to knit myself this sweater.

and i have enough cotton ease to knit this~

yes, i am feeling some selfish knitting coming on...

wordless wednesday! celebrate breastfeeding!

visit beauty and the breast at the unassisted birth website for more beautiful breastfeeding images~

harper's little adventures!

he is trying to move around. he mainly rolls around the room. but the past couple days he has been getting on his hands and knees and scooting forward... but only if he spies something he really, really wants. like this plastic ring!

then it's lay back down to kick and play, kick and play,


until something else catches his eye, like this green spoon!
then right back down... this is so fun!

let's try this again, shall we~

i cast on harper's baby surprise jacket again this morning. let's hope it goes better than it did last time!

warm feet

it is january, there is snow on the ground, but harper thinks it is barefoot weather. everywhere we go his feet end up bare. i started to remove his socks when i buckled him into his carseat otherwise he would take them off while we were driving and chew on them. wet socks are worse than no socks! with high hopes of nipping this problem in the bud i knit him this fabulous footware~ these are knit from the baltic bootie pattern with wool from peace fleece.

so far they seem to be doing the trick. they stay on, they are very warm, and they are absolutely adorable! he can untie them and take them off but has only done so a couple times.

and in the spirit of cozy feet i knit up these magic little pocket book slippers.

this is cascade quatro, 100% wool. i don't know the name of the colorway. i bought this yarn at a going out of business sale for crazy cheap and the ball band was pretty worn and hard to read.
both of these patterns are super easy and fun to knit. and our toasty toes are forever grateful!

there was one in the bed...

and the little one said "Good Night"

how is it that such a tiny little being can take over an entire queen size bed?

wordless wednesday! little artist!

CRE8 LOVE Knucks!

remember the knucks i started back in november? i finished them... finally!

my dirty little secret

sarah at ordinary days is asking you to dig deep and dish the dirt by sharing a confession you wouldn't normally share with anyone, let alone the whole blogging world! and there are some fun prizes up for grabs for doing so! bonus points for having a photo to accompany that little skeleton in your closet.

i shared this story with all the mommies at our playgroup recently, so why not share it here too! so here goes... i often wear dirty jeans. you know, i am getting ready to leave so i pull a pair off the top of the laundry basket or off the floor and throw them on. jeans can be worn 3-4 times at least and are more comfy with each wear, right?! several years ago tony and i were making a quick trip to the grocery store. as we were walking across the parking lot tony noticed something sticking out of one of my pant legs. yep, you guessed it, it was the pair of underwear i was wearing the last time i had those pants on! tony stepped on them pulling them from my pant leg. i scooped them up and immediately stuffed them into the my coat pocket... where i forgot them for several weeks... the dirty little secrets just keep coming...

wordless wednesday! snow day!

resolutions...

resolutions are good, right? they are like goals or life improvements. if you don't resolve to do things differently you are essentially saying there is no room for improvement in your life. even tiny resolutions are good!

this year i resolve to:

~ organize, organize, organize!! (and then organize some more!) our home is the size of a tea cup so needless to say keeping everything in it's place and clutter out is so important. this will be an ongoing struggle for me, i suspect.

~ save! we have been working on getting rid of all our debt for some time now and will continue to do so. ideally we will cut all credit from our lives!

~ reduce, reuse, recycle! simply use less, repurpose everything possible and recycle things we cannot reuse. i recommend everyone take 20 minutes of their day to sit and watch the story of stuff. make your kids watch too!

~support local! we kinda sucked at this the past year. we did not plant a garden last spring and did not buy local produce nearly enough. this year we will make a huge effort to support local whenever possible~ produce, meat, books, coffee...

~be healthy! okay so this isn't really a resolution as much as a lifestyle but we will continue to be proactive about our health and take good care of our bodies!

~laugh! i will resolve to laugh, smile and be happy as often as possible this year. life is to short to be stressed and grouchy over silly things that often cannot be changed. and with a house full of 4 active kids, a crazy husband, a dog and 2 cats the hilarity never ends!

happy, happy new year!!

my new year's eve in a nutshell!!

let's see, we have one frogged baby surprise jacket. don't ask me what happened, because i am clueless. i was happily knitting along and then my decreases betrayed me and took off in the wrong direction. i was only about 3 inches into this project so no worries.

soooo... i decided to cast on a new pair of longies for harper. i received this hand dyed yarn from a work at home mama~ she needed testers for her wool. you know, how well does it knit up, how does it wear, how waterproof is it when used as a diaper cover. i happily accepted 6 oz. of this lovely wool and so far i love it! i will post more feedback and product details when this project is finished.

i finally purchased crazy aunt purl's book yesterday. i have only read about 12 pages but so far i love it... i love her!! anyone who pairs wine with cheetos is a-okay in my book!

i also indulged in a tasty microbrew (please note that this had nothing to do with my BSJ's demise!) i actually only drank half the bottle. i spilled about a quarter of it onto my longies pattern and the rest went down the drain when i finally went to bed. i never thought i'd be the girl who can't even finish one bottle of beer...