Staying Busy

I have really been battling some serious OCD lately. My 'to do' list is literally 4 pages long and totally overwhelming me...hence my blog absence.

When we moved I had a list of things I would want done, but my impatience has been truly getting the best of me. I just want it to all be done-like yesterday! I feel really convicted about it though-really really convicted. What are my motives? Why can't I learn patience? God has put us through so many trials that have 'taught' me patience and then I somehow lose and end up right back here...

So far, since Jan 1 when we moved in, I have painted the kitchen, entry, dining room, hall, bedroom & master bath. We have completely demoed the master bath and remodeled it (and encountered major nightmares along the way). We put a fence up out back & got an alarm system installed. I've fully decorated our bedroom and am currently working on the kitchen. LOTS of pics to come! 

On top of all those fun home improvement projects I've been making Parker's spring clothes, planning Parker's 1st birthday party, & planning Clint's 30th birthday party.

 Birthday outfit

 Easter clothes

for the highchair

 the sign looks way better when the sun isn't shining through it...

I'll spare y'all from my extensive list and fill you in for when those things have been checked off! I plan on posting pictures of before and afters but you know how planning goes-I'll probably have them up in a month =) I don't know how all those working Momma's do it...

Parker's Fall Clothes

I FINALLY finished Parker's clothes for fall! 

 WAAAAR EAGLE!

 This one was free!!! (left over fabric)

CAN'T wait for October! Have I mentioned that I love fall?!?

Fall clothes and other good stuff

I'm all finished with Blakely's fall wardrobe! I ended up ordering her an adorable smocked pumpkin dress, but beyond that I made everything! This is the first time in making her stuff that at the end I was left wanting to do more! Usually I am SO over sewing at this time. Luckily I've got a little man that needs some clothes! I'm gonna attempt a couple of jon-jons and maybe some pants to go with his onesies that I'll throw some appliques on. Not to much for him!

Blakely is FINALLY feeling like herself! She told me 'pumpkin so pretty momma' about a dozen times! She loves it when I show her something that I made. 

On to other things...we made it to the park for a swing. With it being her last day until she starts school, I wanted to get out and do something fun. We went over to play with Elle after the park. After we got home I heard 'I had a good time Momma, a good time with Elle'. She is getting so smart and good with her words! I also hear on a daily basis: 'I'm commin', 'I'm stuck', 'hey guys, no guys, raffe fall down guys', also a favorite is 'boys stop' (not sure where she heard this one since I don't ever call Parker or Daddy a boy?)

 Here is my sweet Caroline! She has grown over 2 pounds since I saw her last =( With all the crud we were carrying around, the last thing I wanted was to get this sweet one sick! I missed her though, oh how I missed her!

 I missed this crazy girl too-SO MUCH!

 Couldn't leave a post without a pic of my man!

A project, oh and MY BABY CAN READ!

I have been trying so hard to get all of Blakely's clothes made for Spring/Summer lately since I will not be sewing for quite some time when our little buddy decides to join us! I saw something similar to this dress in a store for an obscene amount of mulah...Soooo I decided to try my hardest to recreate the fuzzy image that remained in my head.  I am happy to say that some of my college education in apparel merchandising has come to really help me in situations like this, thus saving us tons of money!

Anyways, here it is!

Yep, you read the title of my post right. Last night while I was cleaning the kitchen after dinner Blakely was sitting in the corner reading to herself (jibber jabber of course). Let me say really quick that she repeats herself often these days i.e. she will say elmo, elmo, elmo, elmo, elmo, elmo when she sees elmo, read, read, read, read, read, read if she wants you to read, strawberry, strawberry strawberry-you guessed it-if she wants a strawberry. Anyways, I kept hearing what sounded like 'all-done' over and over and glanced down at her seeing her with both her arms in the air. Confused, I looked down at the book (a My Baby Can Read Book) and saw the words 'arms up'. I started totally freaking out and ran up immediately to tell Daddy! Genius I tell you, genius! 

Parker Thomas Lyle

Yep, we decided on a name & we are ready to tell everyone! We love it and are so excited about our little buddy's arrival! Here are some onesies that I finally finished and are just awaiting him =)

I was so excited for how they all turned out. I also made some shirts for Blakely:

For the hospital

Spring Clothes

I am so excited about Blakely's Spring/Summer wardrobe. These few items have been made over the span of a year! Seriously, I made the green & pink dress last year this time! (before she was even born!) Luckily I guessed right on the size! I have enjoyed just taking my time on these!

My favorite

Pants are in the process of being made to go with this! 

Spring Fever

I am so excited for pleasant weather and beautiful flowers! I love the south for so many reasons-one primary one being the drastic season changes. Every 3 months we experience a time of transition that seems to come at the perfect moment! Spring seems to slip in right there after I feel as though I can't possibly deal with that bitter cold wind and bulky sweaters anymore! We have lots of stuff going on right now: spring cleaning, backyard makeover, sewing projects getting us ready for this beloved weather, working on fondant skills, & planning a super fun 1 year old 'ladybug' birthday party (yes 3 months early) =) So far I have been taking the spring cleaning one cabinet or drawer at a time and by 'at a time' I mean one small tiny drawer a day. I expect to have the house cleaner by next year this time. It absolutely amazes me how much junk we have accumulated over the 2 years of living here. So-craigslist and Hannah Home here we come! As for the backyard-these photos as embarrassing as they are tell it all!

Yeah...yuck, yuck and more yuck!

So our project will consist of painting the gross concrete, killing all of our lovely weeds, covering the main area with pea gravel or something like it, adding a couple of flowers & plants in pots and planters,  

a few pavers, and maybe even a water fixture. I'll make sure I update when this is finished! We are aiming for something like this:

As for the sewing creations, I'll post pictures tomorrow of Blakely's spring & summer wardrobe. She is going to be far better dressed than her momma. I do have some pictures of two birthday outfits that I made. One is for her ladybug party & the other is for her actual birthday.

Ooooooooh & the thing I am most excited about lately is getting this:

My awesome sister just smocked this ADORABLE Easter dress!!! I have decided to learn how to smock. She claims it isn't that hard-but I mean come on when you look at stuff this beautiful it is hard to not be intimidated! I will be sure to post many many more pictures of our Blakely in this.

AND FOR SOME REALLY REALLY REALLY FUN NEWS..... DRUM ROLL PLEASE.....

We did it. I pressed the pre-order button last night. I officially will be the proud owner of a Canon Rebel T3i. WhoooHoooo!!!! Now I just have to be patient-something we all know I am terrible at. 

Tomorrow our little Blakely will be 9 months. WHATTT? crazy, right? yep, 9 months & it so happens that our 9 month check up is tomorrow as well so I'll be posting watch me grow pictures along with accurate stats.