3!

What I made him.

What we made him for cake.

home made dino pinata. Made by J. She rocks!

She made the crown too.

A constant theme...no time to post. But I will post these 3 year old pictures from E's party in case anyone still reads this. If you do read this, please comment. Thanks!

Hernia, furloughs, birthday countdown, and where the hack i've been

could they BE any sweeter?

Ok. So I've been away forever. Literally. Well, literally, a month. it feels like forever though. I've been away trying to work more efficiently at my job. That means no blogging at work. Would I actually ever have blogged at work? guilty. yes.

Because i work for a state university that is struggling through a financial crisis right now, I decided my job wasn't so much of a sure thing anymore. Why do I think this? well, it's a combination of them telling us so AND the furlough. We are all being furloughed 4 to 10 days. Thus the never blogging. That coupled with the fact that I've been doing more hours for the dog training and also coupled with the fact that my little baby is quickly approaching his 2nd birthday (which means a lot, but it means he's taking off in all kinds of directions). Link with that the fact tat J has been sick a bunch, her job ended so I'm working more hours and we're trying to sell stuff to make up or a 2 source income loss (furloughs and a lay off).

Then on Thursday of last week, something more happened. I woke up with a bad stomach ache. I felt bloated and sore al at once. Looked at my stomach and low and behold, I had a lump protruding from underneath my belly button. What the? I suffered through it Thursday. made an appointment with a new Dr. for the beginning of march and carried on. In discomfort. I also had a cold. I was coughing a lot. Every cough hurt. Went home. told J. She was like, well, maybe you should see a Dr. before that. I thought, eh, maybe. Friday. more pain. larger lump. Ok. So I went to the er to find that my suspicions were correct. I had an umbilical hernia. My brother had one too, last year, so I guess it must be genetic. They tried to push it back in. OUCH. When they couldnt, they decided to admit me and correct it surgically. Great.

What does this mean? Well, it means a lot o things. I'm on sick leave for the week. I am recovering from minor abdominal surgery. I get lots of rest, lots of olympics. I have a more normal looking belly button than I've had in years (see, it was looking funny for a while. it just started with the hard lump on Thursday).

Oh, and I can;t pick up anything heavier than a gallon milk carton for 6 weeks. E. is about 30 pounds. Which means J is on duty 24 7 and i can only talk to him. and kiss him. it's very hard. He's a very physical kid, and I find myself really missing him.

His birthday is Sat. and we have J's parents coming from MN. My mom and fam (who have been great through all this hernia business) will come too. But that's it. Small party. I can't believe he's going to be 2. He talks like crazy now (4 to 6 word sentences) and uses the potty a little. He knows when he has to poop, but has a hard time with pee. Sometimes he makes it to the potty, sometimes not. But every time is a win. And we're not in a huge hurry at all. We have switched to disposable diapers till I'm better. I'm the diapers washer, and J doesn't need that to add to her duties. The laundry is in the basement. Sorry environment.

Well this post is everywhere. For real, I hope that the promised squirrel will be done this week. I've been pretty remiss, but also, pretty overwhelmed for as long as I can think Sorry Leslie. I hope you still feel like a winner and are still reading.

Some recent cute pics!

table surfing. kid loves to climb

cousins

Hope

I have too much going on to write right now, but I wanted to put this out to any crafty people out there. Also to anyone who likes to buy handmade crafts. There is a website and an etsy shop that is donating 100% of it's proceeds to Doctors without Borders for Haiti. I am going to make some stuff for the shop. I'll letcha know more when I actually get it done.

for now visit the store and the site. and do what you can.
http://crafthope.com/2010/01/craft-hope-for-haiti/


let me never forget how safe and lucky I am.

Holiday 09

wa hoo. that's what this amazing toy santa brought is called. If you have a kid this age, get one.



December 28th

Well, I've been away from blogging for a while and part of that is to do with the utter lack of time and the preponderance of things to do. But it's also because I've been on a digestive rollercoaster since Christmas eve....maybe before. Maybe my body is looking out for me so I don't overdo it on cookies and candy, but I can't eat much. At around 2 AM Xmas morning, while I was sewing a doll for my mom I could no longer deny I felt bad. What happened next was a 12 hour hell fest of many visits to the porcelain deity, constant nausea, and well, we had to un-invite my family over. We had to cancel christmas. Not for the almost 2 year old, but for everyone else. I haven't felt this sick in a very long time. Given the fact that I was under the weather for a few days, I am sure it was a bug. But it was a lot like food poisoning.

Despite all that, I managed to make some great stuff, most of which I forgot to photograph. I'm still working on the felt nativity set for peanut. Made of felt and fabric scraps. I made my sister a glasses case, quilted, to protect her sun glasses, and my mother an art yoga doll, which she was a bit surprised by at first...not in a good way. The hedge hog for my sister my law, a shirt for my brother.

my brothers bills shirt that i made, by request!!

the hedgehog pin cushion...if you've been reading for a while, you know this is a long time coming.

BLOG POST interrupted..........picked up again 12-31....................by the flu. Seriously, while I was writing this, peanut woke up. I tried to go get him back to sleep, but he was fussy, and I got him up. Moments (and I mean moments) later, he threw up all over me and all over the living room rug. Now I was just recovering from the Xmas stomach flu. So I'm surprised how well I handled it. Also I was surprised at the volume. O Man.

Today was his first day back in the OK.

He lost weight, was really sad and threw up a lot. Worse yet, J came down with it a few hours later. So not one but 2 sick people in the house.

So I hope you all forgive me for bowing out of blogging until January. I have to get to wrk on the big craft of the xmas season. Stay tuned for that.

but before I go, I will say that the peanut has a verbal breakthrough. He talks all the time. His cute new thing though is to call himself peanut. And he says it so cutely.

no time, just a little holiday cheer

a tree!!!!



I mean it...I don't have time. I'm in the midst of seeking career advancement, christmasing, mothering a very needy toddler (needy in a good way, he's just got a lot going on right now)

We are so far from being done with christmas decorations and gifts that i feel a little sick thinking about it. But that might be the chocolate i just downed too....can you say sugar high?

The squirrel design is coming slowly and sorry leslie, is kinda on hold until after christmas! hope you're still reading and not disappointed. I've scrapped a couple designs because they didnt seem cool enough.

Last weekend we got a tree, at hmo dpoe. Twas fun and easy and less stressful and expensive than a treelot. That doesn't stop me from feeling a little bad about getting a tree from a big box store...i mean we are a diy christmas family, but we just can't afford a nice tree from a lot or nursery and we can;t do the driving to the country this year, which we have NEVER done, for the record. Last year, since we were out of town from the 2oth to the 27th, we didn't get a tree at all.

E. is loving the tree. He says hi to it every day. We just got the lights on it last night, so it's not even decorated yet. It smells great. Just not as far along as it was, pre baby.

Hope you all are staying sane. I know we aren't.
some christmas pictures

smile for the camera!

Preview

where?

lights from our adventure at the zoo.

I've been completely remiss of late, not posting, not commenting. It's like I did the 30 posts in 30 days challenge (I think I did 29) and then i dropped away with little else said. I've actually been quite busy. That's the reason for my absence. Quite busy, and some of the things that fell off behind my blogging efforts needed to be caught up on. Like folding laundry. and other stuff. Seriously, i've barely even been on facebook.

So what has been going on? Our staycation was awesome. Then it ended and the week that followed was hell on wheels. Just busy and too fast. Peanut has decided to nurse all the time again. And is going through a Mama period, so I miss him, but I know it will change eventually. I just get a few fewer hugs and cuddles.

He had a well baby appointment and that was good. He is 26 lbs now...and I forget all the other vital information. He got a DTP booster and didn't even cry. Just looked at it, and then at the nurse. Said owie. He got a bandaid and that was it. J had to work so I had to take him myself. The hardest part was getting his weight and measurements since he didn't have time to transition into the room. He kind of freaked out because he was afraid. Poor guy. He made it, but he didn't like it. He did have a rather swollen spot on his leg from the injection for a few days. It went away and he seems fine now. oh, and aparently he has an extra tooth. Anyone ever hear of such a thing? It's coming in a little sideways between 2 other teeth. Good times.

This weekend, E's cousin K (who is 5) came over and stayed the night on Saturday. That was fun, as e loves his cousin. I feel bad though, because e beats on k, and k is so nice and well behaved he never fights back.

Other than all that, and folding long ago cleaned laundry, I've been working out some sketches for the squirrel. It's fun making a squirrel. My dogs loves them. I may have to make her one too.
I've also been making a lot of bread. If you want to feel like a total kitchen genius, learn how to make "artisan bread in 5 minutes a day". It's Delicious and super easy.

Ok, I'm supposed to be doing something else. I better get to it.
Thanks for reading and understanding that I'm busy!! I'll try to post more again soon.


evolution? or just another human?I love this human!!






hugging the baby gorilla

Thanks for calling me out of my cave of silence, Kristen!! You look great!!!

The Winner

So the random number generator picked .....................................

drum roll..........................................................................................................................

Leslie!!!! I know, I'm excited too.  Leslie wants a squirrel.  No problem.  I'm on it! Congrats Leslie.

 

For everyone else, sorry and thanks for reading and playing!

I really want to take a stab at making each of your ideas because they are so cool.

I have lot to say but I'm going to leave early today and catch up later.

hard day

today was so hard it felt like a monday. to top it off, it rained all night making my poorly designed bus commute home quite soggy, and annoying. without going into detail, I'll just say that sometimes things come up at work that are difficult to address and they become a headache for me. What I dislike --oh come on, Sarah-- what I hate the most is when an emergency comes up at 4 and i have to fix it before i go. many of you who read this might be thinking i have a poor work ethic. I might. I might. But that's only because I want to be home with my fam. But at any rate, I did stay at work late and then I had my usual hour plus commute. got to see the peanut for about 40 minutes before bedtime.

I really have to get cracking with my crafting. I have lots to make.

still no poptarts

Ripple Effect

I don't post about her often, mostly because I like to respect her privacy. But she gave me a beautiful son, she shares her life with me, takes care of our son while I work, and in the meantime is amazingly talented. She supports and encourages my creative endeavors, but has a whole bunch of her own. There is the novel of course, but this post is dedicated to her crochet. Before e was born, she made him a blanket. And just recently she made me one too. They are ripple blankets and so warm and cozy. They are not easy to make and crochet is time consuming. Each color is carefully planned and executed. And I love that it brings her joy to make them, since they take a long time to make and are luxury.

here they are:

e's

mine before it was done

e in his kitchen. a $15 yard sale find. Yep, she found it. See, amazing.

Impressive, very impressive

mommy & e one Sunday morning

Well first of all I want to say thanks to those of you who are taking part in my give away adventure. It means a lot to me. Other than wanting to thank you for reading my blog, I think that the giveaway is a chance for me to do what I've been meaning to do for some time...invent my own pattern. If you haven't signed up, there is still time! Details?

What's this about impressive? Well, J inspired me to do the post everyday thing because she undertook the NOV challenge to write a 50,000 word novel. She started nov 1st and she has ALREADY exceeded that goal. So yeah j!!

in an abrupt change of subject, we are hand making a lot of gifts this year,and I've been researching patterns. How cute is this? I totally want to make it for e.

Give it away give it away give it away now

Ok. For all my readers, yes, even you, I am offering a super fun for me and you (yes, you) giveaway. Not familiar with the concept giveaway on a blog? It's simple, I offer something, and you all, all my readers, you all comment, post about the give away on your own blogs, sign up to follow me, that kind of stuff (full details below) and on a given date (in this case, December 1st) a winner will be announced. Winner will be picked randomly.

Now, why is my (MY) giveaway special? Well, I'm giving you the chance to tell ME what YOU want. That's right. But wait...it's not, "i want an eye-phone." the giveaway will be a dance peanut softie and this gives you chance to think up a softie you want to see, and have me take a swing at creating it.

Winners will be selected randomly. You have to enter to win.

several ways to enter.

• need some ideas? ask your kids, tell me your dream monster, think of a ridiculous combination (cat-horse or, um, elephant-fish --you know a fishaphant)

• what the hecks a softie?

• where's peanut? you're sweet to ask. asleep right now, but here he was in a leaf pile.

How to enter the "Dance Peanut Softie Adventure Giveaway":

1. Comment on this post and leave a detailed suggestion for a softie, for ex.: "wow sarah! I'm so excited about this giveaway that I wet my pants. Please make a rhino, a pink one."

a comment will give you one entry

2. if you Follow me that will give you 1 MORE entry. (but only if you comment. I wont know what to make you, otherwise.

3. Post about this Dance Peanut Softie Adventure Giveaway on your blog and that will get you 2 more entries.

So you could have a potential of 4 entries!!! right now, based on current comment trends, that would really make you have an unfair advantage, dear reader. But i won't tell if you won't tell.

full disclosure: since i started posting every day, I have felt a need to receive more comments than i generally do (oh, seeker of approval). I'm hoping this giveaway will bring quiet readers out of the woodwork and will also draw more readers to my blog.

And for those of you wondering, still no pop tarts. Today was hard but my resolve was strong.

Leaves

So e and I raked leaves this morning and he loves leaves. He loves jumping in them, throwing them, filling buckets with them...everything! We ran out of bags so more fun will ensue next weekend I'm sure. Here's a cute pic of our fun time. I love how focused he is!

I am not sure what else to say right now other than that I'm in the planning stages of a giveaway of a craft. So stay tuned. For real. It's the kind of giveaway that you don;t want to miss. Let's call it, choose my own adventure. That's right. Oooooo, you're going to love it.

blogging AND crafting

Yes, that's right. I am making a stuffed elephant (wee wonderfuls) and blogging at once.

while I was cutting it out, my least favorite part, I made up a little rhyme about it.

josie my cat standing on the cut pieces

E's friend P turned 3

so I am making it for she

soon you will see

this elephant by wee.

sewn by me

here they are, complete pictures. Cell phone quality, but you get the picture:

and day one without pop tarts went off without a hitch...which is to say, I didn't eat any.

What I Make

Got the hedgehog pin cushion started last night. it's from a vintage pattern. J was out seeing Margaret Atwood read from her new book. After cleaning and blogging I didn't have much time before the Peanut woke up and or before tiredness sunk in. But it's all cut out. I only have too stitch it. I don't like cutting out stuff. this was small though and not hard to cut.Anyway, Tho the pincushion isn't complete I do have some projects I can share. I mostly like to make cute things, Dolls and softies. i take a great many ideas from this Hillary Lang at Wee Wonderfuls.

here are some of the things I've made.

bunnies from recycled sweater (wee wonderfuls)

little brown bear (wee wonderfuls)

monster...my own original pattern.

dragon, my own pattern
knight

procraftination

i have a craft

and i have a blog.

im writing a boring blog post instead of working on my craft.

please comment.

5 posts and radio silence. I'm getting a complex here people.

my craft is a hedgehog pincushion.

i shall post it upon completion. :)

trying for 30

Now, it's no secret that I don't post as often as some people do. Part of that stems from the fact that i am busy, part of it comes from being lazy, and then I also think no one reads anyway, but that's not the point, I guess. So even though it's november 3rd and I am going to need to play catch up, I am doing the NaBloPoMo challenge. It will give me a chance to articulate all the crazy stuff that's been happening of late.

And hopefully make me a better blogger.

I am going to take this moment to say that while I mostly write about peanut, I'm going to try to write about other things too, like crafting and maybe even politics, Or to bore the life out of you, my life story.

I'm also trying to lose weight, could write about that as well.